Recipe for a Braised Red Cabbage – it’s the perfect side dish for thanksgiving and christmas! Vegan & Gluten-free. Easy to make & better than store-bought!
Braised Red Cabbage is a wonderful side dish for Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts. Together with a Stuffed Seitan Roast or veggie sausages and some oven-roasted potatoes and green leafy salads you have the perfect festive combination. Braised Red Cabbage is pretty easy to make, it takes a bit of time to soften the red cabbage but it’s mostly cooking time that doesn’t need you to stand directly next to it so you can make other tasks (like watching a movie you wanted to watch for too long or playing with your cat) in the meantime.
The Braised Red Cabbage freezes very well, so you can make a big batch and use it for different meals. You can heat it up in a small pot along with a bit of water or apple juice to make it good as new again.
Am I the only one who absolutely loves the inside of a red cabbage? I think it’s one of the prettiest veggies :)
Don’t worry too much about the size of the apple slices. You won’t notice them in the final dish because they cook down, but don’t leave them out either – the apple flavor is key. I’ve used red apples that are a bit on the sweeter side.
Want some inspirations what to do with the Braised Red Cabbage? I’ve eaten it with weirdly real-looking TVP slices (beef-style) and some oven-roasted potatoes, coated in salt, paprika and dried rosemary.
Braised Red Cabbage
Ingredients
- 1 red cabbage
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 apple
- 1 teaspoon canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vegan apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 teaspoon organic rice syrup
- 3 bay leaves
- 4 cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Peel and chop the onion. Wash the cabbage and the apple and thinly slice* them (leave out the core).
- In a large pot, heat the canola oil and add in the chopped onions. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until soft.
- Add in the sliced cabbage and apple and give it a good stir. Mix in the water, apple cider vinegar, rice syrup, salt, cloves and bay leaves. Give it a good mix, cover it with the lid, reduce the heat a bit and let it simmer for about 40 minutes until the cabbage is soft and the water has evaporated. Stir every now and then.
- Once the cabbage is tender, add in the lemon juice, remove the bay leaves (and the cloves if you can find them) before serving and add additional salt to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Should you decide to give this Braised Red Cabbage a try I’d love to hear how it went! Write me a comment or post a picture on instagram, use the hashtag #elephantasticvegan and tag me via @elephantasticvegan to make sure I’ll see it ^.^ I love to see all your lovely creations! Thanks! <3
Natalie
So gorgeous! I love cabbage, but I always forget how much I love it. In coleslaw or cooked like this. It’s amazing how you can’t even see the apple slices anymore after it’s cooked, that purple is strong and beautiful :)
Bianca
Thanks, Natalie! I don’t cook with cabbage too often, but when I got this pretty red cabbage by a fellow co-worker, I was faced with the task of using it somehow. I love how it turned out and swore I’d cook with cabbage from now on more often :)
Strength and Sunshine
Well I am loving the apple! Such a perfect sweetness!
Bianca
Thanks, Rebecca! The apple provides a great additional flavor to the red cabbage :) Super yummy and a bit christmas-y with the cloves ^.^
Audrey @ Unconventional Baker
I love the addition of apple in there. Would never have thought of that, but that sounds wonderful with the cabbage <3
Bianca
I think it’s not that uncommon to add an apple to red cabbage – it adds such a lovely sweet flavor. My mother used to make it like that (when I was still eating at home :D )
Kat
What kind of Apple is used in this recipe?
Bianca
Hi Kat! I’ve used a Jonagold apple. :)
Craig
The ingredient list calls for ½ teaspoon lime juice but the instructions state lemon juice…which should be used?
Bianca
Good call, Craig! It should be lemon juice :) Fixed it, thanks for pointing it out!
Craig
NP…made a judgement call and went with lemon juice! Made this and added it to make this beauty for dinner..
Bianca
The sandwich looks AWESOME! :)
Emily
I liked this recipe a lot with a minor tweak. I substituted for canola oil – EVOO (best grade – organic) and maintained heat on low. I also used Manuka Honey (using low heat) instead of the rice syrup I ended up using a touch more honey and ACV to taste, and 2 apples instead of one. I thought this recipe was one of the healthier ones out there.