Red Cabbage: What is it?

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Red cabbage is a nutritious vegetable with a strong flavor and color that changes based on acidity. It is best cooked briefly and served in a variety of dishes. To avoid color variations, it should be cooked with vinegar and in stainless steel cookware. It takes around 70-75 days to harvest and requires well-fertilized soil and frequent watering.

Red cabbage is a mature cabbage with a strong, peppery flavor and tough leaves. Its color is a response to various acids and bases and turns blue or purple upon preparation. Red cabbage is also known as blue kraut or red kraut. It is commonly used for coleslaw and salads, and is popularly used as an alternative to collard greens to add color and presentation to salads and cooked dishes.

A head of red cabbage is high in fiber and vitamin C and can make for many nutritional meals and snacks. Red cabbage is best prepared with a short cooking time, before it starts to smell with overcooking, and is best prepared in stainless steel pots or pans. A medium-sized head of cabbage will serve nearly nine servings, cooked or raw, and can be served in a variety of dishes, from coleslaw and salads to more adventurous cooked variations. It can be served as a side or as an appetizer, pickled or boiled, or simply as a small, colorful side dish to a well-prepared meal.

The red color of cabbage, if prepared incorrectly, can turn many different colors. These color changes are due to the pigments in the soil where the cabbage was harvested and the pH value of the soil. The most common discoloration is an ugly blue-gray color, although an alkaline soil will produce a greenish-yellow cabbage. To avoid color variations, red cabbage should be cooked with vinegar or other acidic products. Stainless steel cookware should also be used to avoid color variations during preparation.

Red cabbage takes around 70-75 days to harvest, similar to the time frame of a green cabbage, but faster than a savoy cabbage. The red cabbage type of red meteor takes 75 days, harvests firm, and is good for all seasons. Ruby cabbage is harvested much larger, is hardy to both heat and cold, and is slow to burst. Red cabbage is usually smaller and denser than collard greens

Red cabbage should be harvested in well fertilized soil in late winter or early spring. Kale is often planted nearly a month before the last frost of the year. A red cabbage’s pot must allow for water movement and permeation and require a frequent diet of watering, although it is otherwise an easy plant to care for. They are planted about 1-2 feet (about 30-60cm) apart and thrive in moist environments.




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