Sunday, August 10, 2008

Braised Cabbage

Enough with the melancholy; let’s talk cabbage. I’ve been craving something cabbage-y ever since I had a lunch of coleslaw and fried potatoes back in Tallinn. It’s been cooler here in Wisconsin; so I went with braising-—a surefire way to make cabbage mild, rich and almost dip-like. This recipe, which I made up as I went along, was good with grilled chicken and even better on its own the next day.

In a large plan, I sautéed a chopped onion and some diced bacon in a splash of olive oil on high heat until the onion was soft and translucent, about 6 or 7 minutes. Deglazed with some marsala wine, and added a whole head of shredded cabbage, stirring it often. Then another good splash of marsala and white wine (about ¾ cup altogether), since I had two open bottles that I wanted to finish up.

Sautéed on high heat until the cabbage cooked down, which only took 10 minutes or so, and added kosher salt, a bit of paprika and a bay leaf. Turned down the heat to low, covered the pan, and let the cabbage cook another 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before it was done, added about 5 ounces of chopped ham and a couple of ounces of yogurt cheese (available at Russian groceries, but all kinds of cheese will work here, especially Parmesan, goat and feta). Topped with chopped scallions for serving.

3 comments:

adele said...

This reminds me a little of a bacon and cabbage dish my grandmother makes. As a kid, I had a bad habit of stealing all the little bits of bacon. :)

raiuchka said...

Oh yum, I love braised cabbage. When I lived in Crimea my best friend (she's Russian) made it all the time -- we practically lived on it, along with beans w/ sunflower oil and garlic -- and I've never been able to get it to taste quite right. I'll try your version!

I am really enjoying your blog!

Mrs. M. said...

Adele--I plucked much of the ham out while I was cooking this thing.

Raiuchka--Glad you like the blog! Cabbage and beans prepared with sunflower oil and garlic sounds delish to me.

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