One of my main reasons for growing red cabbage on plot 15c is to pickle them. 80% of my homegrown crop makes it’s way into a jar and the other 20% usually gets made into a delicious soup. However, this year was a bit of a disaster and my row of 6 red cabbages didn’t amount to much at all.
I picked all six of my tiny cabbages a week before Christmas so that I could get to pickling them ASAP. Yet again I left it a tad too late to have with our Boxing day meal, it’s a tradition of ours to tuck into cold meat and pickles and I’m always proud as can be to provide my very own pickled homegrown red cabbage for the whole family to enjoy every year.
I had to adapt the recipe to cater for my small harvest but surprisingly my miniature cabbages provided me with a whole jar full of pickled goodness and I can’t wait to tuck into it. Plus it’s looking rather pretty sitting on the kitchen dresser!
Pickled Red Cabbage:
Makes approximately 2 jars.
Ingredients:
- 675g red cabbage, cored and shredded.
- 3 tbsp salt.
- 600ml white wine vinegar.
- 125g caster sugar.
- 1 tsp mustard seeds.
- 1 tsp coriander seeds.
Instructions:
Put the shredded cabbage in a colander and mix in the salt. Leave over a large bowl and cover with a plate overnight to drain. You want to lose as much liquid from the cabbage as possible. Pour the vinegar into a large jug, add the sugar and spices and stir to dissolve the sugar. Cover and leave overnight.
Rinse the cabbage under cold water to remove the salt then dry using a clean tea towel. Layer the cabbage in sterilised jars making sure to pack it down. Give the vinegar mixture a stir and then pour over the cabbage so that they are completely covered. Seal and label before storing in a cool, dark place for at least 1 month before using to allow the flavours to develop. Keep refrigerated once open.
Keeps for 3 months refrigerated.
Perfect served with cold meat and cheese!
