Braised red cabbage is a classic side dish found in Germany during the cold months of winter. Braising the cabbage with apples creates a tender sweetness. Balancing that is the pop from apple cider vinegar. This healthy, plant-based, oil-free recipe is made for cold winter nights!
What is Rotkohl? Traditional German Braised Red Cabbage
Rotkohl is the German word to describe the traditional dish of braised red cabbage. This dish is a common side dish served throughout the country. It is often served beside heavy stews or roasted meats. In turn, the sweetness and acidic pop help to balance the rich flavors served at the meal. Think of how cranberry sauce balances a Thanksgiving dinner. Now, you have an understanding of how braised red cabbage and apples can balance a meal.
The traditional recipe will often include butter, sugar, and currant jam (a jam made from a fruit locally grown in Germany). It is often served throughout the winter, when other fresh vegetables are hard to grow. This recipe is a healthy and delicious way to add more vegetables to your diet!
What is Braising?
Braising is a combination of two cooking techniques: Browning + Stewing. The first step of a braise is always to brown the ingredients. Browning, or caramelization, brings out the natural sugars for sweet flavor. The second step, stewing, helps mellow all of the flavors together. The ingredients create a flavorful broth.
For this braised cabbage recipe, these two techniques help create delicious flavors. First, the browning of the cabbage and apples brings out their natural sweetness. Second, apple cider vinegar is added during the stewing. This acidity adds a brighter, sharper flavor. Together, the sweetness and the acidic pop balance each other. This recipe is simple yet delicious!
Some of my favorite oil-free, plant-based vegan recipes that incorporate braising include: Italian Braised Fennel and Peppers with Cannellini Beans, Smoky Sweet Braised Giant Lima Beans, and Braised French Flageolet Beans and Leeks.
How to Cook a Healthy, Oil-Free Vegan Braised Cabbage
Traditional recipes for German braised red cabbage and apple will often contain sugar or butter. However, with the natural sweetness from the apples and the slow technique of braising, you don’t need these ingredients.
The trick to this healthy, oil-free, vegan braised red cabbage recipe is two-fold: First, use sweet, crisp apples for this recipe. Opt for a variety like Gala, Fuji, Golden Delicious, or Honeycrisp. Avoid tart apples like Granny Smith or Red Delicious. They won’t give you the sweetness you need.
Second, braise the apples and cabbage low and slow. If you try to rush this recipe, your cabbage won’t reach that melt-in-your-mouth tender stage. While the dish calls for an hour of cooking, you can leave it on the stove for up to 2 hours. You can also cook this in your crock pot on Low for 6 hours. Or, speed up the cooking by using an Instapot.
Healthy Benefits of Red Cabbage
Despite its color, red cabbage is one of those Get Your Greens that is often considered a super food. In fact, it’s deep red purple color comes from anthocyanins. These antioxidants have been shown to improve cardiovascular health.
In addition, red cabbage is low in calories, high in fiber, and high in Vitamin C. One cup has only 14 calories! That is what we call nutrient dense!
How to Cut and Cook Red Cabbage
A big head of red cabbage can seem daunting to a beginner cook. However, it just takes a little practice until you’ll feel comfortable tackling this delicious vegetable
- Wash the cabbage. Remove the two outermost leaves.
- Cut the cabbage in half, through the core. A long, sturdy knife is best for this.
- Cut the halves in half again, so that you have four quarters.
- Set one quarter cut-side-down. Use your knife to cut at an angle, cutting out the core. Repeat this with the remaining quarters.
- From there, you can shred, dice, or chop the cabbage into your desired size.
What to Do with Leftover Red Cabbage
Red cabbage is a great addition to other healthy, plant-based vegan recipes. You can use it to make a Red Cabbage Apple Creamy Slaw with Oil-Free Poppy Seed Dressing or Irresistible Smoky Broccoli Cabbage Pecan Crunch Salad. Add to oil-free stir-fry like Chinese Double Garlic Broccoli Stir-Fry or Vietnamese Orange Ginger Tofu Stir-fry. Or, use it to add crunchy texture to Burgers, Sandwiches, and Wraps.
Chef Katie Oil-Free Plant-Based Cooking Tips:
Other Types of Cabbage: While red cabbage is traditional to this recipe, you can also use other varieties of cabbage. Savoy, Napa, and regular green cabbage all taste delicious braised.
Refrigerate your Apple Cider Vinegar? Bottles of Organic Apple Cider Vinegar will often say to refrigerate after opening. However, there is enough acidity to prevent the vinegar from spoiling. You can store the vinegar in the fridge or keep it in a dark, cool place.
Why Oil-Free? I’m on a mission to get rid of empty calories, like those found in olive oil. You simply don’t need the oil for this recipe. This leaves you with a cleaner flavor and fewer calories
Apple Cider Vinegar adds a pop of flavor for this whole foods, plant-based recipe Apples add natural sweetness to braised red cabbage for this healthy plant-based recipe 
Braie the cabbage for at least one hour, until it is completely tender
Easy | Servings: 4 | Ready In: 90 minutes
Print Recipe
Braised Red Cabbage and Apples and Cider Vinegar
Ingredients
- 4 cups red cabbage cored and shredded (about ½ head)
- 1 sweet apple cored and thinly sliced
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup water as needed
- ½ teaspoon allspice*
Instructions
- To braise cabbage:
- Heat a large pan over high heat. Add your cabbage and apples in a big pile. Cook over the high heat to release the natural sugars. Stir occasionally, to wilt the cabbage. Once the cabbage starts to wilt, after about 10 minutes, add in your vinegar, water, and allspice. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook low and slow until cabbage is completely tender, about 60 minutes. Once cabbage is done, remove the lid. Turn up the heat to cook off some of the water in the pan. Cook 5-8 minutes, until the water reaches a syrupy consistency.
- Season with salt, to taste, and serve!
- Best enjoyed warm.
- *While allspice is a traditional flavor to add to the subtle sweetness of this mix, this is a great dish to experiment with new spices. Fennel seed, caraway, and even coriander are all great spices to play with.
Notes
Servings: 4
Ready In: 90 minutes
Nutrition Facts
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings 4.0 | |
| Amount Per Serving | |
| calories 53 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 0 g | 0 % |
| Saturated Fat 0 g | 0 % |
| Monounsaturated Fat 0 g | |
| Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g | |
| Trans Fat 0 g | |
| Cholesterol 0 mg | 0 % |
| Sodium 27 mg | 1 % |
| Potassium 261 mg | 7 % |
| Total Carbohydrate 12 g | 4 % |
| Dietary Fiber 3 g | 10 % |
| Sugars 7 g | |
| Protein 1 g | 3 % |
| Vitamin A | 20 % |
| Vitamin C | 87 % |
| Calcium | 6 % |
| Iron | 4 % |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA. |
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