Sunday, December 12, 2010

Red cabbage, beans, and cream cheese

I prefer to eat red cabbage raw than cooked. To my taste buds, it - like all brassicas - goes past its best when boiled or steamed for longer than about five minutes. However, the raw cabbage needs partners with contrasting textures, or it simply offers mouthful after mouthful of dull chewiness.

1dstp white wine vinegar
Salt, peppper
1/3tsp honey
1/3tsp Dijon mustard
2dstsp sunflower oil
1dstsp olive oil
150g cream cheese
1 tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 of a large red cabbage, shredded


Put the vinegar in a large bowl, add the salt (to taste), pepper (ditto), honey and mustard, and stir until the salt, honey and mustard dissolve. Whisk in the oils. Mash in the cheese, so that it softens.

Stir in the beans and cabbage until the lumps of cheese break up and coat everything.

4 comments:

Claudine In France said...

The best cooked red cabbage I have eaten was one I cooked in a slow-cooker. I adapted it from a Jamie Oliver recipe (here). Scrumptious.

A quartered green cabbage, accompanied by onions, garlic and lardons, the lot braised in white wine, is perfect when served with meaty sausages and boiled spuds.

Nicholas Clee said...

That does look good, Claudine. Easy, too. Perhaps I'll try it on Christmas Day. If it doesn't convert me, it will certainly go down well with other members of my family.

Richard Olney says that cabbage should be cooked either very briefly or for a long time: it's at its worst, he argues, after about 30 minutes.

Anonymous said...

Last Christmas, I sliced a red cabbage and tossed it with pieces of pineapple, oil and one or two flavourings. Then I wrapped it in foil and shoved it in the oven for an hour or so, along with the pork that was cooking therein. The cabbage was delicious. It may have been Olney's "long time", but it was very easy to cook, requiring no attention.

bjg

Nicholas Clee said...

Wrapping it in foil! There's an interesting idea. Thank you.