German Red Cabbage (Rotkohl)
Traditional German red cabbage slowly braised with apples, bacon, brown sugar and vinegar until silky and sweet and sour. Also known as rotkohl, blaukraut or purple cabbage. Only 20 minutes of hands on work, and it's better on day 2, which makes it the ideal holiday side.
Servings: 8
Calories: 227kcal
Ingredients
- 1 large red cabbage shredded, about 8-10 cups
- 8 slices bacon diced
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- 4 teaspoon all-purpose flour
- 2 cups water divided
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon pepper or to taste
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 apples diced small, Gala recommended
Instructions
- Add the shredded cabbage, 2 teaspoons salt, 1 cup of the water and ½ cup of the vinegar to a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- In a separate pan, fry the diced bacon until crisp. Reserve 2 teaspoons of the fat and discard the rest. Set the bacon aside. Drain excess liquid from the cabbage pot if needed.
- In the pan with the reserved 2 teaspoons bacon fat, combine the ½ cup brown sugar and 4 teaspoons flour over medium heat. Add ¼ cup water and ¼ cup vinegar, then stir in the ¼ teaspoon pepper and the diced onion. Simmer 5 minutes until the onion has softened.
- Pour the sauce into the cabbage pot. Add the bacon and the diced apples. Stir and bring to a gentle boil.
- Reduce to the lowest possible simmer and cook 3 to 5 hours, checking occasionally. Keep the remaining ¾ cup water and ¼ cup vinegar on hand and add a splash whenever it looks dry.
- Taste and adjust the salt and vinegar before serving.
Video
Notes
- The water and vinegar are used in 3 stages: 1 cup water and ½ cup vinegar with the cabbage, ¼ cup water and ¼ cup vinegar in the sauce, and the remaining ¾ cup water and ¼ cup vinegar held back for topping up during the long simmer.
- Shred the cabbage finely. It collapses a great deal over the cooking time.
- Keep the simmer very low and use a heavy pot so the bottom doesn't catch.
- The vinegar keeps the cabbage a deep red. Without enough acid it drifts toward blue grey.
- White vinegar is sharp. Red wine or cider vinegar can be used in the same quantity for a mellower result.
- To make it without bacon, start the sauce with 2 teaspoons of butter or oil.
- For a Christmas version, add a cinnamon stick, 2 cloves and a bay leaf with the sauce and remove before serving.
- Better on day 2 and day 3. Keeps 5 days refrigerated, freezes 3 months. Reheat gently with a splash of water.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 774mg | Potassium: 478mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 1615IU | Vitamin C: 84mg | Calcium: 87mg | Iron: 1mg
