How the Poor Cabbage is a Global Superstar

Cabbage is one of the veggies I always try to keep in my fridge. It keeps well, is nutritious, and has a taste I particularly like. It also is a hearty veggie, that can easily leave one full. But to top it off, it can be used in simple or more complicated recipes.

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Cabbage

The Plant

Cabbage is a member of the Brassicaceae family. Other members include broccoli, cauliflower, mustard, and turnips. This group of vegetables is also referred to as cole crops, from the Roman word caulis, meaning cabbage or stem. They are also called crucifers, a reference to their four-petaled flowers which form the shape of a Greek cross.

There are over 400 varaties of cabbage. But there are 3 main types I usually find in the grocery store: head cabbages, Chinese cabbages and Brussels sprouts.

• Head cabbages include Savoy, and the green and blue-red types with firm round or flat heads and tightly wrapped leaves.
• Chinese cabbages, like Napa and Bok Choy, are relatives with similar flavor, but are related closely to turnips.
• And the cousin would be the ~599 year old Brussels sprouts.

Amazingly, the original plant still grows wild in some of the coastal areas of Europe (1).

At the turn of the century, from 1800s to 1900s, cabbage was thought to be food exclusively for poor people. Now, of course, it is regarded as one of the most nutritional vegetables and is thought to have strong anti-aging and anti-cancer properties (2).

Globally, cabbage can be prepared in many different ways. Raw it is a great ingredient for a salad, or can become a salad itself, like coleslaw. It can be pickled, as in sauerkraut and kimchi, two of its most common mixes. But it can also be steamed, stewed, sautéed, stir-fryed, or braised. Because of its multiple uses it really is a global commodity.

History

I love cabbage, every type of cabbage, and there are quite a few. It comes in many colors, from green, blue to red, and white versions. It can have tightly packed leaves, or looser more showy leaf structures. They are simply amazing, and have evolved over a vast amount of time to what we eat today. Little is known of its history, but we do know it grows around the world and has done so most likely since pre-history.

• Probably domesticated in Europe before 1000 BCE (3), most likely Mediterranean in origin (4)
• China has cultivated cabbage since ~4000 BCE
• Europe cultivated it ~3000 years ago when it is believed the Celts brought cabbage to Europe from Asia. Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt knew about cabbage as well.
• The first cabbage in USA was brought by a French explorer Jacques Cartier sometime between 1541 – 1542.
• During WWII, nearly every USA Victory Garden had a row of cabbage.

My Favorites

I am listing these variations in the order I tend to use them. I do have my preferences, but there fortunately many to choose from (5):

• Green Cabbage: This is the most popular cabbage, and has a mild peppery taste. It forms round tight heads, the leaves are smooth. I use this raw in coleslaw, for making sauerkraut, and boiled. I will use this for stuffed cabbage but have to parch it first to make it more pliable. I also have been making cabbage “steaks” with sauces or gravy.
• Red Cabbage: This is a cabbage that runs from blue to red in color, depending upon the acidity in the soil. It is similar to green cabbage, tight heads, smooth leaves, and peppery taste. Red takes longer to mature and is thus generally not as tender as green. I have used these for a blaukraut dish, pickling, soups, lettuce wraps.
• Chinese Cabbage:
  • Bok Choy is used by my family often, and there are variations here too. In general they have white stems that remind me of celery, and green leaves. I use them most often with noodle or rice-based stir-fry.
  • Napa Cabbage may have originated in the Beijing region of China. It has a mild flavor and long, broad leaves. I do not use this often but it works in kimchi and in soups.
• Savoy cabbage: This cabbage originated in Italy in the 1500s. Some call this a sweet and tender cabbage, but for me it is amazing for its pliable yellow-green leaves that actually can bend without breaking. I use this for kimchi, stuffed cabbage, soups, and when doing lettuce wraps.
• Brussels sprouts: Very small cabbage with a very assertive, and some find unpleasant taste. They grow long stems with lines of these small cabbage heads all along it. I have eaten these roasted, fried and grilled. Cooks everywhere try to caramelize the sugars in these sprouts to mellow out their flavors.

Nutrition

The age of wooden sailing ships were the mid-16th (or mid-15th) to the mid-19th centuries and on those ships often found cabbage a necessary vegetable, raw or pickled. For those on long ocean journeys it was critical to preventing rickets, which cabbage prevents given its high VitC content

• Cabbage is considered an excellent source of polyphenols with substantial antioxidant properties associated with the alleviation of oxidative stress and the prevention of free-radical mediated diseases (6).

Cabbage is low in saturated fat and cholesterol. Although 1C of cabbage is only 15 calories, it is high in dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, potassium, manganese, vitamin A, thiamin, vitamin B6, calcium and iron.

• RxList writes: Cabbage is used for stomach pain, excess stomach acid, stomach and intestinal ulcers, and a stomach condition called Roemheld syndrome. 

Global Producers

The largest cabbage producers currently, include China (32,800,000 tons), India (8,500,000 tons) and Russia (3,309,315 tons). However, many other Asian and European countries are also mass producers of this cruciferous vegetable, such as Japan, South Korea, Ukraine, United States, Romania and Poland. Interestingly, Russia is the biggest consumer of cabbage; but Putin’s war, of course, has interrupted the growing and selling of cabbage, among other food supplies.

• Beef2Live writes that California produced the most cabbage in the United States in 2021 followed by New York, Florida, Wisconsin and Texas. California produced 540.2 million pounds of cabbage in 2021, accounting for more than 25% of the cabbage produced in the United States.

The Smelly Side of Cabbage

Truth telling time, if new to eating cabbage, and you over indulge, know it can cause gas, bloating, and flatulence. Consider not serving this to small animals due to Gastrointestinal Stasis where it can actually kill them, here I mean small rabbits and such.

Also, I tend to avoid pre-sliced cabbage, as it may be subjected to many hands, which increases the likelihood of buggies getting in there. It is too simple to just cut the veggie yourself rather than to waste money on getting it pre-cut.

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Simple 1 Ingredient Cabbage Dishes

Sautéed Cabbage

This is a one ingredient dish, simple to make and easy to serve with slices of pork or chicken, or a cauliflower steak. I cooked this recently adding Polish Kielbasa sausage, and everyone was happy with the meal. The simple cooking instructions is to fry until the cabbage has been caramelized.

• Caramelized Cabbage
• Mise en Place
  • Wash the cabbage and let dry
  • Chop thyme to release its oils
• Ingredients
  • ~2# small head of green or white cabbage chopped or sliced into bite sized pieces
  • 1T extra virgin olive oil + 1T unsalted butter combined for sautéing
  • 1-1/2t kosher salt
  • 1/2t freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ apple cider vinegar
  • 1T chopped fresh thyme
• Serve

Still Simple But More Complex 2 Ingredients

This is called a desert dish because it is a sweet sautéed red cabbage with 1 additional ingredient, apples. What makes this special will be the sweet and warming flavors and taste of molasses in the brown sugar, the nutmeg and cinnamon. Almost like a desert.

• Desert Red Cabbage
• Ingredient (serves 4)
  • Chop and sauté in 1T olive oil
  • 1 small head red cabbage
  • Add 1 peeled, diced granny smith apple
  • Add 3T red-wine vinegar 
  • Add Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • Add 2T light-brown sugar
  • Add 1t freshly ground nutmeg
  • And 1t ground cinnamon
  • Taste and add more spice if needed
• Serve

This is a 2 vegetable dish of cabbage and carrots with aromatics and the coloring of turmeric.

• Caramelized Turmeric Garlic Cabbage + Carrots (serves 6-8)
• Mise en Place
  • Wash the cabbage, carrots, onions and leave skin on carrots
  • Slice or chop all the veggies including garlic so everything is ready
  • Blanch carrots in boiling salt water to soften which will take up to 8min depending on how they are cut
• Ingredients
  • In heated skilled add 1/3C extra-virgin olive oil
  • Sauté 2C finely chopped red onions
  • Add kosher salt and long-pepper (or ground peppercorns) to taste
  • Add 10 minced garlic and sauté until aromatic
  • Add 1# chopped carrots (cut the way you want)
  • Then add 2” grated fresh ginger
  • Add 2T ground dried turmeric
  • Add 5# cut green cabbage (cut the way you want)
• Serve

Three Ingredient Cabbage Dishes

This is one of my favorite Ethiopian dish of cabbage, carrots and potatoes. This 3 combo meal is very tasty and filling. For detailed instructions please see Ethiopian Carrots + Cabbage.

• Ingredients (serves 6)
• 1/2 sliced medium head of cabbage
• 4 unpeeled roast-cut carrots
• 5 Peeled and large diced medium white potatoes
• 1 Diced medium yellow onion
• 1T Olive oil
• 1/2C Water reserve
• 1t Cumin powder
• 1t Turmeric
• 1/2t Grated Ginger using a planer
• Salt + Pepper to taste

This is red cabbage, apples, with red onions, so 3 ingredients. It is a sweet and sour combination and for more detail on cooking, please see Blaukraut.

• Ingredients (serve 6)
  • 1 small head sliced red cabbage
  • 4T apple cider vinegar
  • 2 Tart Apples cored peeled, cubed Pink Lady or Granny Smith apples 
  • ½ white onion diced medium
  • 1T olive oil
  • 1/2C beef bouillon Mix in water or stock
  • 1/2t Kosher salt
  • 1/2t pepper
  • 1t sugar
  • 3 oz red wine

This is a vegan version, but you can add kielbasa, bacon, other sausage or pork instead. There are many variations of this dish in all areas around Poland so some might add potatoes, do not have mushrooms, some make a gravy, you name it. The fundamentals of the dish, however, remains the same.

• Polish Bigos
• Mise en Place
  • Wash the cabbage and prep
  • Clean the mushrooms and prep
  • Dice the onions
• Ingredient
  • ¼ medium head, thinly sliced cabbage (add per your desire) and cook in boiled water for ~10 minutes until soft, then drain as much water as you can from the cabbage
  • Melt 4T in skillet, and sauté these veggies until soft and aromatic, then remove from heat
    • 2 diced medium white or yellow onions
    • 1 sliced, large portobello mushroom
    • 1-½C sliced white mushrooms
  • In a bigger soup pan combine the cabbage, with the mushroom-onion mix, with these additions
    • Melt 2T butter
    • 1 (32 ounce) jar of drained and pressed sauerkraut
    • ½t dried thyme
    • salt and pepper to taste
  • Now just low simmer on the stove until all the ingredients are well combined
  • Taste to decide on additional seasoning or not
• Serve

This is a 3 ingredient vegan dish great with a side of pirogies, sausages, pork or chicken, or mashed potatoes. In fact, this can be the filling of pirogies or pies.

• Ukrainian Braised Cabbage with Carrots + Onions (8 served)
• Mise en Place
  • Wash and slice 1 large cabbage head that has been quartered + core removed
  • Wash and grate carrots with skin
  • Wash and diced onions
• Ingredients
  • Put 2T olive oil in soup pot to heat up
  • Sauté 1 diced small yellow onion until translucent
  • Add 2 grated carrots to the onions and sauté for a minute or two together
  • Add tomato mix, make sure it is well mixed before using
    • 3T tomato paste
    • ½t sugar
    • 4T water
  • Now alternate the grated cabbage with the tomato mix allowing time for the cabbage to reduce before each round
  • Once all the cabbage is in the pot, turn the heat on medium-low, and cook for 5 minute, mixing as it cooks so nothing sticks for ~5min.
  • Then add ½C hot boiling water with ¼t kosher salt and 1 bay leaf to the pot.
  • Cover the pan and cook ~30min, consider stirring every ~5min to mix well and prevent burining
• Serve

Hope you enjoyed this cabbage tour of recipes I have enjoyed through the years. Give some a try and mix it up, as it is very easy to add or replace ingredients for something that tastes good to you and your family. Consider sharing your recipes with me.

—Patty

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