Braised Red Cabbage
First made for a little dinner party,
to boost my post-rachel self-confidence.
Braised Red Cabbage
side main meat
Although I'm quite sure I've braised a variety of red cabbages in the distant past,
I couldn't find any of the recipes, so I resorted to the Interwebs for inspiration.
Serves 4- 500g red cabbage about ½ medium cabbage
- 2 apples, sliced
- 2 sprigs thyme, leaves stripped
- butter
- olive oil
- 100g smoked bacon
- 2 medium onions, halved, sliced - not too thickly
- 6 cloves garlic, thickly sliced
- 12 juniper berries, crushed
- thinly pared peel of 1 orange
- juice of ½ orange
- 2 bay leaves
- 180ml red wine
- splash cognac
- 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- generous dose of salt
- 1 teaspoon muscovado sugar or redcurrant jelly if you have it
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.
Season the pheasants inside and out.
Remove the hard core from the cabbage and thinly shred the leaves.
Peel the apples and cut slices away from the core and add to the cabbage.
On the hob, heat a knob of butter and glug of oil in a casserole dish large enough to hold the cabbage. Chop the bacon into strips and add to the fat. Cook for a few minutes until the bacon starts to brown, add the onions, garlic, juniper, thyme leaves orange peel and bay leaf, then sweat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onion is soft. Add the cabbage and apple, then cook for 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes to stop it burning. Mix in the wine, vinegar, orange juice and sugar (or redcurrant jelly), splash in the cognac, season and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook in the oven for an hour or two until thoroughly wilted.
Stir occasionally, and let it cook uncovered for a while if there seems to be too much liquid.
On the hob, heat a knob of butter and glug of oil in a casserole dish large enough to hold the cabbage. Chop the bacon into strips and add to the fat. Cook for a few minutes until the bacon starts to brown, add the onions, garlic, juniper, thyme leaves orange peel and bay leaf, then sweat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onion is soft. Add the cabbage and apple, then cook for 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes to stop it burning. Mix in the wine, vinegar, orange juice and sugar (or redcurrant jelly), splash in the cognac, season and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook in the oven for an hour or two until thoroughly wilted.
Stir occasionally, and let it cook uncovered for a while if there seems to be too much liquid.
My only complaint would be a slightly gritty feeling to the dish. Possibly from the juniper berries or the orange peel. Perhaps these could be kept in a muslin bag during the cooking?