How to cook red cabbage

Red cabbage can be a flavoursome addition to a roast and adds a touch of vibrant purple to your dinner plate. 

Done right, your guests will forget it’s a healthy vegetable and simply enjoy its rich taste.

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Most festive cabbage recipes involved cooking it down with spices and fruity extras to create a warm and flavoursome side dish, but you can also pickle it or simply boil it.

Braised red cabbage recipe

Braising red cabbage essentially involves cooking it with other flavours, such as apple, onions, sugar and/or spices, for at least an hour. 

Some recipes suggest adding cranberry sauce, star anise, juniper berries, prunes, cinnamon sticks and even chillies, soy and ginger for a Chinese take on the dish. But it, in part, depends what meat or vegetarian option you're going to have it with. 

A few recipes say that you only need to cook the cabbage for around 40 minutes. The longer you cook it for though, the more the flavours will marry with it and the softer it will be. Low and slow is best.

Pickled red cabbage recipe

Pickling cabbage involves combining it with salt, and often a mix of other flavours – such as onions or chilli – and leaving it to infuse for a few hours or overnight. 

The mix is then simmered for around 10 to 15 minutes, usually with the addition of vinegar and other spices and/or sugar. 

Once done, the cabbage needs to be rinsed and dried with kitchen towel before being stored in sealed jars. 

This is not the type of red cabbage you want to be serving with your Christmas dinner, but it'll go nicely with a gammon joint.

Boiled red cabbage recipe

This is the simplest method. Simply cut it into four or six chunks – again, cutting down the cabbage rather than across – and boil it in water for around five to 10 minutes. 

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Red cabbage: top cooking tips

When buying, look for cabbages that have bright and crisp or firm leaves, and that feel solid and a little heavy. 

Avoid any that have the outer leaves taken off, as this tends to only be done when a red cabbage is starting to go past its best. 

To prepare red cabbage:

• Remove any discoloured leaves
• Cut it into quarters – down the length of it, not around it. Cutting it this way will make it easier to remove the stalk. 
• Shred into smallish pieces by hand or using a food processor. 

If you’re looking to take the hassle out of Christmas dinner prep, use our reviews to find the best food processor for you.

Why you need to add vinegar when cooking cabbage

However you cook red cabbage, using a little vinegar will help to preserve the colour of it and stop it turning blue – not as tempting when served for Christmas dinner.

For braising, you can use a variety of different vinegar types – wine, balsamic, cider – it depends on what else you’re adding to it. 

More red cabbage recipes

How long will red cabbage keep in the fridge or freezer?

If it’s uncooked, red cabbage should last in a cool, dark place for around seven to 10 days. 

Once braised, it should last a few days in the fridge – so cooking it on Christmas Eve and still enjoying it on Boxing Day should be fine.

If it’s been pickled, it can last for up to three months, as long as you keep it in a cool, dark place, with the lid sealed. Once you open it, it will last around two weeks in the fridge.

You can also freeze cooked red cabbage, and it will last for around three months.