Recipe details

Red cabbage with apple and pine nuts

Red cabbage with apple and pine nuts

Lombarda con manzana y piñones

Easy

Contains allergens

Sulfitos
Preparation time
84 min
Servings
6

Summary

An easy recipe for 6 servings. It takes about 84 minutes to make. It is vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and sugar-free.

Red cabbage braised slowly with garlic, apple and a splash of vinegar, finished with raisins and toasted pine nuts. Sweet, sharp and deep purple, it opens Christmas Eve dinner in Madrid.

Ingredients

6 servings
  • 3 cloves Garlic
  • 2 u Apple (tart, such as russets)
  • Salt (to taste)
  • Black pepper (freshly ground, to taste)
  • 4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 3 tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
  • 2 leaves Bay Leaf (one for cooking and one to garnish)
  • 50 g Raisins
  • 1 u Red Cabbage (about 1 kg)
  • 40 g Pine Nuts
  • 250 ml Water (warm, some for soaking the raisins and 100 ml for the braise)

Instructions

  1. Put the raisins in a bowl of warm water and leave them to plump up while you prepare everything else.

    15 min

  2. Remove any damaged outer leaves from the cabbage, cut it into quarters and cut out the hard core. Shred it finely with a large knife, rinse it in a colander and drain. Peel and core the apples and cut them into cubes.

    15 min

  3. Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan over a medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until golden. Tip them onto a plate so they stop cooking.

    3 min

  4. Peel and thinly slice the garlic. Heat the oil gently in a large casserole and fry the garlic until golden, without letting it burn.

    3 min

  5. Add the cabbage, season with salt and cook over a medium heat, stirring, until it starts to soften and shrinks down.

    6 min

  6. Stir in the apple, vinegar, one bay leaf, a little pepper and 100 ml of water. Cover and cook over a low heat, stirring now and then, until the cabbage is tender but still has a little bite and there is no liquid left in the bottom; if it dries out before then, add a splash of water.

    40 min

  7. Drain the raisins and add them with the pine nuts. Stir for a couple of minutes and taste: adjust the salt and add a few more drops of vinegar if needed. Remove the bay leaf.

    2 min

  8. Serve hot in a dish with the other bay leaf on top as a garnish.

Notes

In Madrid and much of Castile, red cabbage starts Christmas Eve dinner before the sea bream or the lamb, and it also goes very well with turkey, roast pork or game. Choose a heavy, tightly packed head with glossy, crisp leaves. The vinegar is not just there for flavour: red cabbage pigments turn bluish or grey when there is too little acid, and a splash of vinegar keeps them a reddish purple; a tart apple helps for the same reason. Use a russet or another tart apple that won't collapse completely. It stains everything, so cut it on a board you don't mind colouring or cover the board with paper. If you like it sweeter, add more raisins or a second apple. Many family recipes boil it first and then fry it, but braising it straight away keeps more flavour and colour. Plan: it is even better the next day, so you can cook it up to two days ahead and keep it in the fridge; add the raisins and pine nuts when you reheat it gently. It keeps for 4 days in the fridge and freezes well, without the pine nuts, for up to three months.

More information

Guide indicatorsDifficulty, quality and data reliability

Guide indicators

Estimated difficulty49/100
Recipe completeness65/100
Nutrition reliability
Medium

Calculated automatically from the ingredients, steps, time and community feedback. They are not a guarantee.

StorageKeeps 4 days in the fridge
Cuisine: SpanishKeeps 4 days in the fridgeFreezer friendlyGood for batch cooking

Frequently asked questions

How long does Red cabbage with apple and pine nuts take to make?
It takes about 84 minutes in total.
Which allergens does Red cabbage with apple and pine nuts contain?
It contains sulphites. Always check the labels of the products you use.
How long does Red cabbage with apple and pine nuts keep in the fridge?
Up to 4 days in the fridge, in a closed container. It can also be frozen.
Which diets is this recipe suitable for?
It is vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and sugar-free.

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