Ravenous for Red Cabbage

Here is a picture of my marvelous best friends from home (Me, Imogen, Olivia, Sophie, Clementine and Heather).  Like me they love to eat and we often cook together and share stories and debates over the dinner table.

One of our all time favourite things to do together, as a treat, is to book a table at a small locally owned restaurant called ‘Ravenous.’ A couple of the girls have worked there as waitresses and we love that the chef (Richard) makes all his ingredients from scratch. We all set out with the intention of choosing something new and different from the menu but almost always revert to the sirloin steak, covered in a creamy peppercorn sauce with fresh vegetables. What we know before we leave the house is that extra portions of his red cabbage will always be negotiated and demolished.

I don’t know Richards recipe but I do have a quick and easy way to make a good braised red cabbage without the complex timings that are normally emphasized.

*** Shred a red cabbage roughly using a very sharp large knife and rinse in cold water. (this part is important as the water helps cook the cabbage.) Melt a knob of butter in a heavy bottomed pot, add a clove of fresh crushed garlic. Throw in the washed red cabbage and a couple of chopped and diced apples. Season well with salt and pepper and pour in about a cup of red wine and a cup of red wine vinegar (I have to use only red wine at Christmas or Granny complains, she hates vinegar) Add two or three fresh or dried bay leaves and let the pot simmer over a medium heat for around 20mins or until the liquid evaporates and the cabbage softens a little (but not too soft, I like a little bit of crunch) Stir occasionally so it doesn’t burn on the bottom of the pan. Add a little extra water if it dries out too much. It might not be the best you ever had but it beats the complicated scientific recipes I have seen in the past.

Nobody has complained……...yet!