There are truly folk dishes in the cuisines of various countries. This includes cabbage. The recipe for its preparation is not at all complicated. Probably, this dish has been prepared since the very times when cabbage was eaten. But the variations, as usual, can be very different. Each kitchen has its own nuances in cooking dishes. So there is where the culinary fantasies roam. Let us try to cook cabbage today. The basic recipe is quite simple. Why not give it a try?
A bit of history
How to cook cabbage? What to cook this dish from? The name itself speaks for itself! Of course, it is made from cabbage. But again, cabbage is also different: sour, salty, fresh. And additives (like in an ax soup in a notorious Russian fairy tale) may be completely different.
In fact, cabbage (another name for the dish) is a dish of national Ukrainian, Slovak, Polish cuisine. As usual, some other countries also claim it as a birthplace, where the same-name vegetable has long had nutritional significance. By its kinship, fresh cabbage cabbage is a brother of borsch that we all know well. But the preparation is a little simpler and not so many require ingredients (as for real Ukrainian borsch, where the spoon is standing).
The benefits and popularity
In many countries around the world, delicious cabbage is widely popular. After all, the soup is hearty and healthy. In addition, it is very cost-effective. After all, it can be used, especially when there is nothing else at hand, as a full meal for a large family: the first and second. If this dish is not prepared lean, but with meat, then pork is best. She is fat and nutritious. A sauerkraut, previously washed with water to remove excess acid, well neutralizes this fat, allowing all the constituent products to be easily absorbed.
Some add flour, butter, and sour cream with garlic. And in Zaporizhzhya, in Cossack - it is also necessary to introduce millet at a certain stage of preparation. So, probably, the cabbage was prepared by Cossacks-Sachevich in ancient Catherine’s times.
The Chinese and peoples of eastern Siberia make this dish with rice, using only fresh cabbage. Therefore, how to cook cabbage (the recipe for its preparation and ingredients) is decided independently by each mistress. Which, in general, is wonderful, if only because you can fully demonstrate your culinary imagination and prepare a delicious dish, delighting your relatives or guests with this simple folk dish.
Ingredients for the main recipe.
We need: a pound of fresh cabbage, the same amount of sauerkraut, but not too sour, a couple of carrots, pieces of five medium potatoes, a couple of onions, pork broth, a piece of salted (fresh) fat, a bunch of fresh herbs - parsley, dill, onion.
Cooking
First, we cook the broth according to all the rules from a small piece of pork. For those who don’t like too fat, we immediately warn you - this soup is just that. This can only be avoided if you cook lean cabbage. Its recipe will be given below.
When the broth is boiled, we strain it for transparency (we also cook with the onion head for the same purpose). A piece of cooked soft pork is pulled out and finely chopped. Cut back to the broth.
Vegetable preparation
Cut fresh cabbage into thin strips using a special knife (as for borsch). Squash slightly washed under running water. Peel the potatoes and cut into large cubes. Three large carrots, previously peeled. Chop the onion finely. Salted salted cut into small pieces. And chop fresh greens quite finely.
Frying
As for borsch, to make it tasty, for cabbage you also need to cook a fry. In a pan, put slices of bacon (baked meat) and fry over low heat. Add the onion first, then the carrots to the pan. Stir frying for about five minutes. Then add sauerkraut, a little broth to the fry, cover the frying pan with a lid and simmer for another ten minutes.
Final stage
At this time, we throw fresh cabbage and potatoes into the broth and cook for 10 minutes as well. Combine the contents of the pan and pan together, carefully stirring. Then we cook the almost ready-made cabbage until the potatoes are ready (we take out a piece of potato and try it: if it breaks effortlessly, the soup is ready). Cover, remove from heat and let it brew. Some people think that this is one of the most important points: let the cabbage soup brew.
Serving dishes to the table
You can serve cabbage to the table in half an hour, sprinkling with chopped fresh herbs, putting a spoonful of sour cream in each plate. The soup should be very thick (at least, it looks like a classic cooking). In it, in theory, the spoon should stand, stuck in the middle of the pan. Coarse brown bread is best suited to the dish .
Variations
- It is believed that there is no need to add tomato to the cabbage. But for tomato lovers, there are at least two variations of the basic recipe. First: we take fresh tomatoes (especially good if in the season when they are inexpensive) and put them into the soup at the stage of final cooking, after cutting into large pieces. Second: add a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste to the frying. But then, what is already there, add more beets - and a real borsch can turn out!
- If you want Cossack food, then at the middle stage of cooking (along with potatoes), throw three more tablespoons of millet into the pan.
- Who does not like sourness, you can cook cabbage without sauerkraut. But then you need to take twice as much fresh to compensate for the density of the soup.
- Those who are used to using this kitchen appliance can cook cabbage in a slow cooker. It’s not at all difficult, it is prepared as much as ordinary borsch.
- Those who are on a fast and on a diet without meat can cook lean cabbage. Do the same thing, but not on meat broth and without the participation of bacon. True, it turns out not so tasty, but also has the right to its place on the table. Then season the lean soup heartily with spices, fresh herbs, sour cream (if allowed) or melted cow butter. This will significantly improve the taste. Bon appetit to all!