Pages
(Brassica oleracea var. capitata— Family Cruciferae)
Cabbage
The term “Cabbage” includes Bok Choy or Chinese cabbages, Peking cabbage, Celery cabbage, napa cabbage, wong bok, Savoy cabbage, and the green and purple varieties.
As a member of the Cruciferous family, cabbage is related to such other vegetables as broccoli, cauliflower, kale, and brussels sprouts.
The original wild or sea cabbage
still grows in some coastal areas of Europe. It does not have the “heads”, but looks more like kale than a cabbage.
Both the Greeks and Romans wisely valued cabbage as a healthy food; however, they went a little far in assuming it would cure drunkenness.
Heads of cabbage started forming about the 1st century BCE. Pliny the Elder, in the 1st century CE, was already describing twelve-inch heads. Many speculate that this was only hearsay as headed cabbage seems to have evolved in northern Europe.
It was not until the Middle Ages that the headed cabbage began in earnest to replace kale. Heat-tolerant varieties were bred in southern Europe, and many “hard-headed” varieties were introduced by the Celts and Scandinavians.
White cabbages (Brassica oleracea convar. capitata var. capitata fruticosa alba – Family Cruciferae [Brassicaceae])
appeared after 814 CE. White cabbage has been known even to the ancient Romans. It is the most important of all head cabbage species.
It is often considered to be typically German and East European. Although Germany is one of the leading producers, the US, Holland, Russia, France, Poland, Denmark, China, Korea, to name a few, also cultivate the white cabbage on a large scale.
Botanically, the ovoid, spherical, or pointed head of the white cabbage is the compressed shoot of the plant. Unlike its name, white cabbage can be whitish-green to green in colour and is formed from the smooth, glossy leaves, which are covered with a waxy layer.
It is classified as early, midseason, late, and winter types and perfect for stuffed cabbage, in stew, grated raw for salad (coleslaw) and many other dishes. Various kinds of pickled white cabbage are popular in both the East and West.
Kimchee is a Korean specialty, for example, and the result of fermenting cabbage in lactic acid, producing their own version of sauerkraut.
German literature records the cultivation of red cabbages (Brassica oleracea convar, capitata var. capitata fruticosa rubra)
in 1150. In the 16th century, Estienne and Liébault wrote that they believed red cabbages were made by watering them with red wine or by growing them in hot places. This should not to be scoffed at since there are still people walking around today who believe chocolate milk comes from brown cows!
By the 13th century, “head cabbage” was well-known, and three kinds of Savoy were mentioned in a German herbal of 1543.
The cabbage was introduced to the New World in 1541 on the third voyage by Jacques Cartier to what is known today as Quebec, Canada. The first written record of it being planted in the US is dated 1669, when the British began cultivating it throughout their North American colonies. By the late 1700s, cabbages were grown by many of the native peoples of North America.
One of the earliest of the head cabbages was the red, which was followed by many types of loose-leafed varieties of either light or dark green and sometimes tinged with red or purple.
With the increasing number of varieties, the possibility of extended growing seasons, and its long-keeping qualities, the cabbage soon became available almost year round instead of just in the fall.
Chinese cabbages do not belong to the same species as the European brassicas; nor does the Palm cabbage, which is of a totally different family altogether (Palm).
One curious survivor from the early days of headed cabbages is the enormously tall Jersey or walking stick cabbage (kale),
whose stem has been recorded as reaching sixteen feet.
Two other oddities include the Portugal or Galician cabbage
which was developed before the 17th century. It resembles the seakale and has no proper head; but it does have wide, spreading leaves with very thick midribs.
The other is Kerguelen cabbage (Pringlea antiscorbutica),
which cannot be any relation to the European cabbages; but it does closely resemble ordinary leafy cabbage and grows only on the Antarctic islands of Kerguelen and Heard.
Leaf rape (Brassica napus var. pabularia)
is a cabbage that is botanically closely related to rape, but is the leafy form.
Generally, there are three main types of cabbage; green, red, and savoy.
Green is the most common and can be used either raw or cooked.
Savoy (Brassica oleracea convar. capitata var. sabauda – Family Cruciferae [Brassicaceae])
is the “curly” cabbage having leaves that are ruffled, deeper ridged, and deeper veined. It has a milder flavour and a softer texture, making it good for either salads or wraps.
Savoy, together with white and red cabbages, is one of the most important and popular kinds of cabbage. It has a mild flavour and is particularly tender. The crimped or curly leaves form loose, round, oval, or tapering heads.
Varieties are classified as early, midseason, fall, and winter types. Early Savoy cabbage has a pale tender heart and needs only brief cooking. Late varieties have dark green robust leaves and a very pronounced cabbage flavour.
Early varieties are ideal when quartered and steamed or stir-fried. Later ones can be used in soups or casseroles. Savoy cabbage is less suitable for eating raw than other types of cabbage, however.
Fall Savoy cabbage is also known as storing Savoy and is recognizable by its large, closed head and thick, very crimped leaves, along with its large wrapping leaves. It appears in the market from late summer onward.
Red cabbage (see above) has more than twice as much Vitamin C, but green cabbage has about twice as much folate as the red. Only the Savoy is a source of beta carotene. Red cabbage is just another form within the same species and so has much in common with the green and white cabbages. In addition to the purplish violet colour, its other main distinguishing features are the smaller, very firm head and the slightly sweetish taste. Like other cabbages, the head shapes of the red range from round with a flat top through spherical, to balloon-shaped and oval. The main growing areas, with the exception of China, are the same as for white cabbage and classified in the same way.
Cabbages are also grouped according to the season of their harvest and the shape of their heads. These range from fairly loose-leafed heads of pointed or conical shape to rounded ball shapes with varying degrees of densely packed leaves.
Spring cabbages traditionally have pointed heads, but there are now some round headed types. Their immature leaves are best for salads or used as greens. Some varieties are: Greensleeves, Offenham 1, Myatts Offenham Compacta, and Pixie.
Early summer varieties usually have pointed heads and varieties include: Derby Day, Hispi, First of June, and Ruby Ball (a red variety sometimes used as an ornamental plant but excellent for salads).
Late summer and autumn varieties generally have round heads, and some include: Golden Acre, Quickstep, and Stonehead.
Winter and winter storage varieties are usually ball or drum-headed. The white-leaved Dutch cabbage is used mainly for coleslaw. The extremely hardy, but tasty and attractive, Savoy types have puckered leaves and mature mid-autumn to late winter. Some varieties are: Ice Queen, January King 3, and Multiton.
Cabbage contains more vitamin C than oranges, as well as a large number of minerals, including iodine, sulfur, calcium, magnesium, and potassium. The outer leaves contain more Vitamin E and calcium than the inner leaves.
Making cabbage into sauerkraut
actually promotes healthy intestinal flora and strengthens the intestines. Cabbage also contains a factor called Vitamin U, which is an ulcer healer, helping both peptic and duodenal ulcers.
Many of the healing properties of cabbage are attributed to its high sulfur content. Grated cabbage has been used as a poultice for the treatment of wounds, varicose veins, and leg ulcers.
Cabbages should not be sliced until they are ready to be used as this tears the cell walls, releasing the enzymes that hasten oxidation and destruction of Vitamin C.
Cabbage also contains small amounts of the indigestible food fibers of cellulose, hemicellulose, pectin, and lignin, which are found in the structural stringy parts of the plant.
The moderate amounts of vitamin A are from the carotenoids hidden under the chlorophyll pigments in Savoy and green cabbage and in the red anthocyanin pigments of the red or purple varieties. Vitamin A is most abundant in the darker green leave.
Savoy has more vitamin A than the green cabbage, which has more than the red. The red cabbages also contain an anti-nutrient enzyme that splits the thiamin molecule, rendering it nutritionally useless. Although this enzyme is inactivated by cooking, many people still use the red cabbage raw.
Cabbages thrive when planted with such herbs as dill, mints, rosemary, thyme, and chamomile.
They also grow well with such other vegetables as onions, garlic, legumes, celery, potatoes, and beets.
Like all brassicas, they benefit from the nitrogen left in the soil after legumes have grown and rotated out to another spot.
When purchasing, look for cabbages that seem heavy for their size and whose leaves are tightly closed and attached tightly to the stem end. The outer leaves on a Savoy cabbage may curl back from the head, but the center leaves should still remain relatively closed.
Skunk Cabbage, Yellow arum, Swamp lantern
(Lysichitum americanum – Family Araceae)
Skunk cabbage is not a cabbage, or brassica vegetable, but a member of the Arum family.
It is a perennial herb with thick, fleshy rootstocks and large, clustered, oval, bright, waxy green leaves. Beautifully large, bright yellow flowers appear in the spring. The skunk-like odour of the plant gave it its name.
It resembles that of another species found in eastern North America.
Skunk cabbage rhizomes were eaten by the early natives but not so the leaves. The leaves were used to line steam pits or to lay food on, but they were never eaten as the mature leaves contain calcium oxalate crystals.
If any part of the skunk cabbage is put into the mouth, the crystals become imbedded in the mucus membranes and cause intense irritation and burning. Prolonged cooking reduces the effects, but does not entirely eliminate them. AGAIN, it is NOT a true cabbage and the leaves should not be eaten.
Black cabbage, kale, borecole, collards, colewort, Sprouts, cavolo nero (Brassica oleracea convar. acephala var. viridis – Family Cruciferae [Brassicaceae])
Black cabbage is another that is not a true cabbage, but rather a variety of kale that can be prepared in the same manner.
It is a hearty, spicy, long-leafed plant, and so named because of its extremely dark green colour. Like the green variety, it can be served with hearty winter dishes. Personally, I prefer it for making kale chips!
It tastes best after the first frosts, which convert its starch into sugar, making it more digestible. The heads are actually leaf rosettes that survive freezing temperatures.
