Braised Red Cabbage

This recipe is one that we cook every Christmas but, as it freezes well, it's something that's made in advance.  Sous Chef J adores the cabbage and it's easier to make in big batches.

The ingredients are pretty simple...

25g butter - you can use dairy free spread, coconut oil or vegetable oil if you need to
1 onion finely sliced
¼tsp freshly grated nutmeg
3 or 4 allspice, crushed
Small red cabbage, sliced
1 Bramley apple, cored, peeled and grated - we used home made defrosted cooking apple puree (a good dollop)
4 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
2 Tbsp redcurrant jelly - this isn't needed until just before serving

The butter was melted in a pan (although don't do what we did and use one that's too small for the cabbage.) After this the sliced onion was added and cooked until soft.

During the onion cooking, the red cabbage was halved, the heart was removed and then it was sliced... and, as we noticed, it suddenly took up a lot more room!  The onion/butter was hastily moved to the BIG pan before adding the nutmeg and allspice.  Having stirred the spices into the onion, the red cabbage, apple, vinegar, sugar and 100ml cold water were added.  The whole lot was stirred to combine and make sure the sugar dissolved. 

Some seasoning was added, the pan was brought to the boil, covered and left to simmer for about an hour.  We did remember to stir during the simmering... ensuring all the cabbage cooked. 

Once cooked it can be served immediately or cooled and divided into portions for freezing.  Stir a little redcurrant jelly through the cabbage just prior to serving.

If you have frozen batches, allow the cabbage mix to defrost, heat through thoroughly and then add the redcurrant jelly - it's ready to serve when the jelly has melted into the cabbage.