Cabbage

[Pan]

On Sunday I made a Malaysian style "coleslaw" with 1/2 a head of cabbage and mangos, in a coconut milk-nampla-hot chile sauce, it was absolutely incredible!

Hmmm...Nouvelle Malaysian, perhaps? I know that Tom Yam soup has long since been adopted as a "Malaysian" dish (it wasn't so considered in the 70s, and was not normally available in the restaurants I went to in Malaysia), so perhaps this really is a Thai-influenced Malaysian dish. I'd love some comments by people more current with food trends in Malaysia nowadays.

Where did you get the recipe, Kris? It does sound good, but it sounds Thai to me. I don't remember much use of ripe mangos in cooked food in Malaysia.

[Shiewie]

On Sunday I made a Malaysian style "coleslaw" with 1/2 a head of cabbage and mangos, in a coconut milk-nampla-hot chile sauce, it was absolutely incredible!

Hmmm...Nouvelle Malaysian, perhaps? I know that Tom Yam soup has long since been adopted as a "Malaysian" dish (it wasn't so considered in the 70s, and was not normally available in the restaurants I went to in Malaysia), so perhaps this really is a Thai-influenced Malaysian dish. I'd love some comments by people more current with food trends in Malaysia nowadays.

There are a lot of tom-yam style dishes in Malaysia nowadays like tom yam prawns, steamed fish with tom-yam paste and tom-yam noodles (both stir-fried and in soup). However, I think Tom Yam is still regarded as a Thai dish in Malaysia.

There are Malaysian dishes with components of Kristin's creation but none that I know of with nampla.

Cabbage is used mainly for stir-fries and soups in Malaysia. Some traditional Malay dishes which use cabbage are "Sayur Lodeh" (a mixture of vegetable cooked in coconut milk with turmeric, lemon grass, shallots and dried prawns), "Lontong" (nasi empit, the little cubes of rice you get with satay, served with Sayur Lodeh) and "Kobis Masak Lemak" (like Sayur Lodeh but only cabbage is used). Cabbage is also used in a Nyonya mixed vegetable pickle called "Acar Awak".

Where did you get the recipe, Kris? It does sound good, but it sounds Thai to me. I don't remember much use of ripe mangos in cooked food in Malaysia.

Raw mangoes are used in pickles or in fruit rojak. As far as I know, ripe mangoes are only used in Thai-influenced dishes such as Mango Kerabu (Mango salad) or fried chicken/fish with a mango-kerabu sauce.

[howard88]

/Why not use some of the cabbage to make Bubble & Squeak. All you need is potatoes and the cabbage and some good type of oil or fat. Recipe is available on the Food Network under the Two Fat Ladies.

[KNorthrup]

On Sunday I made a Malaysian style "coleslaw" with 1/2 a head of cabbage and mangos, in a coconut milk-nampla-hot chile sauce, it was absolutely incredible!

Where did you get the recipe, Kris? It does sound good, but it sounds Thai to me. I don't remember much use of ripe mangos in cooked food in Malaysia.

I know!

Steven Raichlen's Barbeque Bible.

[torakris]

On Sunday I made a Malaysian style "coleslaw" with 1/2 a head of cabbage and mangos, in a coconut milk-nampla-hot chile sauce, it was absolutely incredible!

Where did you get the recipe, Kris? It does sound good, but it sounds Thai to me. I don't remember much use of ripe mangos in cooked food in Malaysia.

I know!

Steven Raichlen's Barbeque Bible.

yep that is where it is from!

I am not very familiar with SEAsian foods. He calls it mango achar and describes achars as Indian and SEAsian relich like dish often made with fruit. He has recipes for a pineapple achar from Singapore,@a mixed vegetable achar from Bali and the mango one from Malaysia.

Though he uses nampla he mentions in a note that it is traditional to use a shrimp paste, but it could be more difficult ingredient to obtain.

I have two good friends who are Malaysian, I was just at the one woman's house last week, next time I see her I will ask her about it.

[Max101]

Anyone got any suggestions for cabbage recipes?  What is your favorite way to have it? Store had it on sale this week so I picked up a few heads myself.

[Chris Hennes]

A few heads is a lot of cabbage! I am a sucker for coleslaw, so that would be my first impulse. Another obvious route to using a bunch of it up is a homemade sauerkraut.

[lesliec]

I rather like it sautéed in a herb-infused oil.  Bit of salt and pepper to taste; maybe throw on some poppy or kalonji seeds for interest.

[Plantes Vertes]

What type of cabbage is it?

[heidih]

As Chris says - coleslaw - but expand your horizons into a variety of dressings. It is the ideal working person's lunch salad to prep on the weekend and vary during the week with different proteins. As an example "Chinese" chicken salad.

 

I enjoy the combination of cabbage and Dijon mustard and do a quick saute of the cabbage, onions & garlic (or other alliums of choice), mustard, and pork tenderloin or chicken thigh meat. A bit of apple at the end is nice.

 

If your weather is still pre-spring cold then indulge in a cabbage based gratin. 

 

If you are in a country that "celebrates" St. Patrick's day then colcannon is a comforting dish. 

 

ETA: I assumed it was standard green cabbage on sale for St. Paddy's

Edited March 11, 2014 by heidih (log)

[huiray]

Indeed - as heidih asks, *what* sort of cabbage?  Assuming you don't mean things like Napa cabbage, Taiwanese bok-choy cabbage, any number of other types of cabbage etc etc but, instead, mean this type: http://www.photo-dictionary.com/photofiles/list/525/5713cabbage.jpg , then one can still do so many things with it.  Some things off the top of my head:

• Cabbage soup - cut-up leaves, chiffonaded leaves, etc; with or without a protein; chicken (legs or thighs) and chopped cabbage is nice;

• Corned beef & cabbage, as already mentioned;

• Stir-fried chopped/chiffonaded cabbage, with the protein of your choice;

• Cabbage leaves as a wrap for whatever you like, as a, uh, "wrap" - whether the cabbage leaves are steamed/softened or not;

• Stuffed cabbage leaves;

• Orak-arek, sliced/shredded cabbage stir-fried w/ eggs and sliced onions (browned first) and lots of white pepper;

• As an ingredient in any number of soups and whatnot, spicy or not - try something like Sayur Asem, or Sayur Lodeh;

• In place of sauerkraut when cooking any dish that usually uses sauerkraut - e.g. with kielbasa or any number of German/European-type sausages; ditto as a variation on choucroute garnie;

• Pickle it;

• Make sauerkraut anyway;

• Any number of variations of Borscht;

Gosh, I could think of many more but perhaps I'll stop here.

 

For myself, "a few heads" of cabbage (the assumed variety) wouldn't go very far at all in my hands. :-)

[Katie Meadow]

Slaw, of course--I eat a LOT of coleslaw. But it's also very good in Chinese stir fry with other veggies and in fried rice. Also in Okonomiyaki, which are Japanese Pancakes: http://food52.com/recipes/12352-okonomiyaki

[liuzhou]

Stuffed cabbage is also an option. I particularly like some of the Russian examples. Mr Google has lots of recipes.

[Tri2Cook]

Cabbage rolls. A little bit of work but I'm pretty sure they have to be mentioned somewhere in The Book of Comfort Foods.

[Blether]

You could pot-roast some pork in it (recipe a few posts further down, there).

[Shel_B]

How about Cabbage and Onions, sautéed together, or better yet, caramelize the onions and mix with sautéed cabbage.  Maybe add some carrots for additional flavor.

 

There's always a Choucroute Garni.  Lots of recipes floating around out there for such a dish.

 

While not a cabbage dish per se, adding a generous amount of cabbage to vegetable soups is a nice way to go.  Or you could try a borscht.

[weinoo]

If you make a coleslaw, make sure to salt the cabbage first.

 

I like it, along with an onion and a few cloves of garlic, braised, covered on the stovetop in its own juices for a long time - an hour and a half to two hours.  Then, just a hit of red wine vinegar. A la Marcella Hazan.  You must keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't start burning - if so, add a few tablespoons of water.

[annachan]

Stir fry - cabbage, garlic, Chinese sausage/cured pork belly. Seasoned with soy and a little sugar. Chinese wine optional.

 

I also like cabbage in soup, especially something beefy, like oxtail soup.

[natasha1270]

Pancit. It's been a while since I bought any cabbage but I think shredded cabbage freezes well - can anyone corroborate?

[LizD518]

Stir-fried with cumin and mustard seeds, a little bit of onions, garlic, turmeric & jalapeno. 

[SobaAddict70]

cavolo e pancetta (stewed cabbage, with pancetta and onion)

[SylviaLovegren]

An easy way is what my Greek MIL used to do -- steam (or boil, more honestly) cabbage wedges for a few minutes until just tender, then dress with lemon, oil, salt and pepper. 

[Darienne]

Slaw would be my first thought.  My DH makes a mean cole slaw.

But Chinese dishes would be my second.  Hot and Sour Cabbage and also Singapore Noodles, two of my favorites.

[ElainaA]

Mark Bittman had an article in the NY Times last year giving riffs on some basic cabbage recipes:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/magazine/a-dozen-slawless-cabbage-recipes.html

 

I particularly like the unstuffed cabbage (which I think of as deconstructed stuffed cabbage). I do add a dose of lemon juice at the end which brightens things up considerably.

 (I hope this link works. If not the article was in the March 17,2013 NY Times magazine. A search on the Times site will bring it up.)

 

Elaina

Edited March 12, 2014 by ElainaA (log)

[rlibkind]

Cabbage soup. Can be frozen. Here's a recipe for a Jewish-Hungarian variation:

http://robertsmarketreport.blogspot.com/2014/02/winter-vegetable-hungarian-accent.html?m=1