Cabbage is Perfect
A super quick dinner party side
A super quick dinner party side
Cabbage is so easy to make in the sense that it requires very little effort to taste very good. I see it as a vessel for whatever flavors you’re looking to highlight: it absorbs quickly and takes on the life of butter, lemon, and fresh herbs very well. This is a super quick 20-minute dinner side or lunch on its own that I like to make when I’m not feeling particularly motivated to cook—you can chop the wedges down into halves to serve 8 as a dinner party side or keep them as-is to serve 4. Hope you love!
Ingredients:
1 head of cabbage, cut into four wedges, core removed
8 ish sprigs of fresh thyme
Avocado oil (or another high-heat oil) for the pan
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
Juice of 1/2 a large lemon or juice of 1 small lemon
Flaky salt, for serving
Fill a large pot with water until it’s 1/3 of the way full and place over high heat. Once boiling, place a steamer basket or heatproof colander into the pot, and place the cabbage wedges into it with 4 sprigs of thyme. Cover the pot with the lid, and steam for 9 minutes. It’s okay if some of the cabbage is submerged!
Meanwhile, heat a cast-iron or stainless steel pan over medium-high heat. Add a glug of oil to the pan.
Remove the cabbage from the water with a slotted spoon, taking off the top layer of leaves that may have naturally separated from the wedge, letting excess water drip back into the pot. Place the separated leaves on a cutting board, roughly chop into small 1/2-inch pieces, and set aside. Add the whole wedges to the hot pan in batches and sauté for 3 minutes on each side (6 min total), seasoning with pinches of kosher salt as you go.
Remove cabbage wedges to a serving bowl or platter, turn the heat to high, add a few tablespoons of avocado oil to the pan. Once warmed through, add the roughly chopped cabbage pieces and season with kosher salt. Leave undisturbed for 4 minutes, then toss around the pan. Continue to leave undisturbed another for 5 minutes or until the edges start to crisp and get charred. Remove from pan and add to the top of the cabbage wedges in the serving bowl.
Turn the heat off on the stove, then add 4 tablespoons of butter to the pan with the remaining sprigs of thyme, the juice of 1 small lemon, and a pinch of flaky salt. Swirl around the pan for a few seconds, and then drizzle the whole thing over all of the cabbage on the serving bowl. Enjoy!