This Braised Swedish red cabbage is a traditional accompaniment to Rack of Pork.
It doesn’t sound exactly thrilling, but it is. There is rarely more than a single serving left the day after Christmas. (This post contains affiliate links for your convenience, at no additional charge to you.) This post was originally published on January 4th, 2013.
Last year, I found myself hunting the fridge for the last bit, hoping that nobody else had beaten me to it. And then, like a crazed hormonal pregnant woman, I decided I needed more cabbage. I made three batches between Christmas and New Year’s. I confess that I could eat a bowl of this Braised Swedish Red Cabbage, and nothing else, for dinner.
I believe that our bodies tell us what we are deficient in, by our cravings, so I looked up the benefits of red cabbage. In addition to being high in vitamins C, E and A, red cabbage has a cleansing effect on the body, due to its large quantities of sulfur. I won’t go into more detail, but you get the drift…
The Braised Swedish Cabbage recipe comes from the Time-Life cookbook series, Foods of the World, from the 60’s. Which is a classic cookbook series that I often rely on for international dishes. Make it up to two days ahead and refrigerated.
Here’s the recipe for the braised Swedish red cabbage:
Braised Swedish Red Cabbage
Ingredients
- 1 head red cabbage sliced very thin (about 3 pounds)
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 1/3 cup white vinegar
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup red currant jelly (or lingonberry)
- 2 Tablespoons apple grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven over a medium heat.
- Sauté cabbage for a few minutes, coating all the cabbage with the butter.
- Add vinegar, water, sugar and salt and sauté another couple of minutes.
- Cover Dutch oven and place in center of oven for 2 hours.
- Minutes before cabbage is done, remove from oven and stir in red currant jelly and grated apples or applesauce. Return to oven for an additional 10 minutes.
- Can be made up to 2 days in advance.
Nutrition
While these Moravian Molasses cookies are more Eastern European, they are similar to Swedish Nyakers.
Looking for more Swedish items for the holidays? (affiliate link)
Jovina Coughlin says
I have a bag of these little peppers in my refrigerator right now. I’ll have to try your recipe.
Mom says
Yum,
Mom says
Looks good enough to. Good to hear how nutritious it is, I never gave it a thought.
Christina | Christina's Cucina says
I love cabbage! Mostly I love it pickled, and my mother used to make pickled red cabbage, so your photo made me salivate! I can understand the draw of this cruciferous vegetable and yes, so nutritious!! Will have to give this a try!
Carolyn says
The Braised Swedish Red Cabbage dish – best served warm? or cold? Personal preference?
Thank you, I intend to try soon! Sounds delicious!
Cynthia says
Either way. We serve it warm, but I’ve been known to eat it straight from the fridge!
Danielle says
I do like me some cabbage. This sounds yummy, and will help me with my goal of losing that 5 extra holiday pounds!
Cynthia says
This cabbage is pretty addictive! At least it’s a veggie!
Laurie says
Do you stir the cabbage during the 2 hours or just leave it be?
Cynthia says
I actually leave it alone, with no issues.
Eleanor says
The most amazingly delicious recipe.Cook the day before you serve and it needs no attention other than to sit in oven while you are fixing other dishes. Only correction to recipe: Double it….you are going to want more especially if you are hoping for leftovers. My 4 guests finished it and would have eaten more. I would be eating leftovers with pleasure. I had lingonberry preserves which was extra perfect.
Cynthia says
Awesome! I agree doubling it is a must!
Christian Baker says
how much is a head of cabbage? I have a 6lb head. do I triple the recipe?
Cynthia says
Funny you should ask. I just bought a head of cabbage for this recipe and weighed it. It looks like an average sized red cabbage and weighs in at about 2 1/2 pounds. I can’t imagine a 6 pound cabbage! That must be massive. I’ll adjust the recipe to reflect an average cabbage size of 3 pounds. So, I’d double it if I were you.