"This dish is my interpretation of the braised green cabbage you’ll see on menus all over Tel Aviv. In my
version I sear the wedges of cabbage like vegetable steaks, splash them with wine and stock, cover them,
and cook them slow and low until the vegetables soften and deepen in color. If you want the wedges to hold
their shape, stop at about 2 hours. But if you’re OK with a messier, slightly mushier finished product that takes on more delicious flavor the longer you leave it in the oven, by all means cook it for an extra hour; just make sure the bottom of your pot doesn’t begin to burn. Once the cabbage is done to your liking, finishing with butter and crème fraîche is highly recommended, but a glug of good olive oil adds its own kind of wonderful. Either way, this is a dish you could make a meal out of, paired with a glass of crisp, dry white wine and a piece of crusty bread, at least once a week."
Melted Green Cabbage
4
- ★★
- ★★
- ★★
- ★★
- ★★
Recipe Intro From adeenasussman
We had Adeena Sussman on our podcast to chat all things cookbooks, so naturally it had us craving this hearty melted green cabage recipe form her new book Sababa. While she uses chicken stock, you can swap in vegetable stock to make the dish vegetarian!
Need something sweet to finish off the meal? Watch Adeena make her Tahini Blondies with us here!
Jump to Section
- Recipe Card
Prep time 20mins
Cook time 2hrs 30mins
Serves or Makes: 4
Recipe Card
ingredients
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, coarsely cracked, plus more to taste
- 2 small heads green cabbage, (2 pounds), quartered (but not cored)
- 10 cloves garlic, peeled
- 4 shallots, peeled and halved
- 1/2 cup white wine, dry and acidic such as Albariño or Grüner Veltliner
- 1/2 cup chicken broth, or vegetable broth, plus more if necessary
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/4 cup crème fraîche, or sour cream
- Lemon, wedges, for serving (optional)
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Step 2
In a heavy, large, high-sided skillet or shallow Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper directly onto the oil, then arrange the cabbage wedges in the pot, making sure that each is lying on a flat side (you can cram them in; they’ll relax into one another as they release liquid). Let the undersides get nice and brown, resisting the urge to move them too much but checking once to make sure they’re not burning (reduce the heat slightly if they are), 6 to 7 minutes. Using tongs, flip the cabbage wedges, then tuck the garlic cloves and shallots into the pot, and brown the undersides of the cabbage, another 6 to 7 minutes.
Step 3
Add the wine and broth, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and add the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper along with the thyme. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, transfer to the oven, and cook until soft, slumped, and mahogany brown, 2 hours, or 2½ hours for even softer cabbage. Uncover, cool slightly, and serve the cabbage with the liquid accumulated in the pot. Season with salt and pepper and top with butter and crème fraîche. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.