20 Ways to Make a Head of Cabbage Dinner

These recipes make a convincing argument in favor of the criminally underrated vegetable.

There’s really nothing humble about a head of cabbage: It can play just about any part, like the Sarah Paulson of the vegetable kingdom. It thrives in every possible environment — quickly cooked in a ripping-hot oven, braised low and slow, charred assertively on a grill — and it seemingly lasts forever, waiting patiently until you want to prepare it. Here are a few recipes that prove cabbage can shine as the leading lady or in the supporting role.

1. Parmesan Cabbage Soup

Melissa Clark uses a whole head of cabbage in this easy and flavorful five-star soup. If you love Parmesan (who doesn’t?), you’re in luck: The cheese rinds are simmered in the broth, and grated cheese is stirred in at the end. (Watch Melissa teach Amanda Seyfried how to make the cozy dish.)

Recipe: Parmesan Cabbage Soup

2. Cabbage Parm

Our girl (cabbage) gets the classic Parmesan treatment in this comforting vegetarian main from Hetty Lui McKinnon, which swaps the traditional breadcrumb topping for big, chunky croutons.

Recipe: Cabbage Parm

3. Black Pepper Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry

This Sue Li recipe also calls for cooking cabbage in leftover fat, in this case from sliced sirloin steak, which does amazing things to the cruciferous vegetable. When the beef and the cabbage come together, flavored intensely with crushed black peppercorns, it’s one of the best toppings a bowl of rice has ever seen.

Recipe: Black Pepper Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry

4. Yamitsuki

“Yamitsuki” means addictive in Japanese, and that’s exactly what this no-cook cabbage is. It’s not just delicious, but simple, too: Just cut the leaves, salt, squeeze, rinse, then dress with sesame oil, sesame seeds, garlic, black pepper and a pinch of salt, and serve as a refreshing side dish for richer mains like this honey-soy braised pork or chicken karaage.

Recipe: Yamitsuki

5. Red Cabbage With Walnuts and Feta

This dazzling recipe from Melissa Clark is a certified crowd-pleaser, especially if there are vegetarians at the table. So channel your inner artist and make this colorful dish — full of caramelized cabbage wedges, topped with feta, walnuts and pomegranate seeds — for your next dinner party.

Recipe: Red Cabbage With Walnuts and Feta

6. Roasted Cabbage and Butter Beans

Dan Pelosi roasts strands of cabbage until they are sweet and caramelized, then tosses them with butter beans, garlic and anchovies for an easy and affordable dinner. “This is a masterpiece. Such good flavor from the simplest ingredients,” one reader wrote.

Recipe: Roasted Cabbage and Butter Beans

7. Classic Okonomiyaki

Half a pound of cabbage forms the base of these deeply savory okonomiyaki from Kay Chun. Pork belly, scallions, ginger and bonito stock do a lot of the heavy lifting on flavor, but the toppings really bring it all together: tangy okonomi sauce, Kewpie mayonnaise, bonito flakes and nori, applied in as artful or chaotic a manner as you like.

Recipe: Classic Okonomiyaki

8. Roasted Chicken With Caramelized Cabbage

What’s better than caramelized cabbage? Probably caramelized cabbage that’s soaked up plenty of chicken fat. All that rich schmaltziness is broken up with a splash of sherry vinegar, making this recipe from Eric Kim beautifully balanced and a joy to eat.

Recipe: Roasted Chicken With Caramelized Cabbage

9. Creamy Vegan Cabbage Pasta

Silky ribbons of green cabbage practically melt into Nisha Vora’s extra-creamy, dairy-free pasta. Oat or cashew milk is mixed with olive oil, nutritional yeast and finely ground walnuts for the vegan white sauce. It’s a weeknight-friendly meal that also feels luxurious.

Recipe: Creamy Vegan Cabbage Pasta

10. Cabbage, Potato and Cheese Dumplings With Dill

Kay Chun’s dumplings were inspired by her mom’s cabbage-potato soup. They’re filled with creamy mashed potatoes and caramelized cabbage, seasoned with tangy sauerkraut, caraway, Parmesan and fresh dill. Like pierogi, these are equally delicious boiled or pan-fried.

Recipe: Cabbage, Potato and Cheese Dumplings With Dill

11. Sheet-Pan Kielbasa With Cabbage and Beans

Leave it to Ali Slagle, weeknight dinner virtuoso, to turn sausage, beans and cabbage into an elegant 30-minute meal. A 450-degree oven chars thick wedges of cabbage, while rich kielbasa cooks on top and enriches the vegetables. Canned white beans in a simple mustardy dressing add a much-appreciated creaminess.

Recipe: Sheet-Pan Kielbasa With Cabbage and Beans

12. Crispy Tofu and Cabbage Stir-Fry

Ali Slagle thinks this might be your new favorite way to cook cabbage: charred, with smoky edges and a bit of soy sauce. It plays very nice with cornstarch-tossed crispy tofu, and the whole dish is finished with cilantro and lime.

Recipe: Crispy Tofu and Cabbage Stir-Fry

13. Caramelized Cabbage and Walnut Pasta

Raw cabbage is a beautiful thing, but so is tender cabbage that’s been cooked down. After 15 minutes of sautéing on medium-low heat with leeks and garlic, cabbage softens until it’s almost jammy. And, because Hetty Lui McKinnon is brilliant, she tosses it all into pasta with pecorino and toasted walnuts.

Recipe: Caramelized Cabbage and Walnut Pasta

14. Hot Slaw, Mexican-Style

Charring green and purple cabbages creates a smoky, softened version of a slaw. Sam Sifton’s recipe is dressed with crema, chipotle en adobo, cilantro and lime juice — one commenter calls it “the Rolls-Royce of slaws.”

Recipe: Hot Slaw, Mexican-Style

15. Gingery Cabbage Rolls With Pork and Rice

A tender cabbage roll is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself when you have a leisurely afternoon to cook. Sue Li fills hers with ground pork and white rice flavored with ginger, soy sauce and scallions, then serves them with a ladle of hot chicken broth and a drizzle of nutty sesame oil.

Recipe: Gingery Cabbage Rolls With Pork and Rice

16. Roasted Cabbage With Capers and Garlic

This recipe from Hetty Lui McKinnon is, as one reader put it, “out-of-this-world delicious!” As the cabbage roasts, it gets tender and caramelized while the capers develop a crunch. Serve with bread to mop up every last drop of the garlicky caper oil.

Recipe: Roasted Cabbage With Capers and Garlic

17. Bruschetta With Cabbage Braised in Wine

Another argument in favor of long-cooked cabbage: this recipe from “Cooking From an Italian Garden,” by Paola Scaravelli and Jon Cohen, adapted by Martha Rose Shulman. Cooking shredded cabbage with lots of aromatics, white wine and a Parmesan rind imparts a deep savoriness, and the whole affair is served on garlic-rubbed toasts.

Recipe: Bruschetta With Cabbage Braised in Wine

18. Sausage and Cabbage

With only four ingredients — sausage, cabbage, butter and pepper — this recipe, which Julia Moskin adapted from Tamasin Day-Lewis, left a reader commenting, “Who’d a thought something so simple would be so delicious.” The key is time. After two and a half hours in the oven, what emerges is a silky, hearty, comforting and magnificent dish. SHARON ATTIA

Recipe: Sausage and Cabbage

19. Lemon-Tahini Slaw

Cabbage does a fantastic job standing up to creamy, punchy dressings, and this vegan recipe from Ali Slagle is proof. The cabbage is massaged with a paste of chopped capers, lemon and scallions, then tossed in a tahini and Dijon mustard dressing.

Recipe: Lemon-Tahini Slaw

20. Pasta With Sausage, Caramelized Cabbage and Goat Cheese

The genius of this five-star pasta recipe from Aaron Hutcherson is a whole head of sliced savoy cabbage cooked in sweet Italian sausage fat. A rich, thyme-infused sauce with goat cheese and heavy cream doesn’t hurt, either.

Recipe: Pasta With Sausage, Caramelized Cabbage and Goat Cheese

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