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Rotkraut
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- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 1head red cabbage (about 2 pounds), halved, cored and thinly sliced
- 1cup burgundy (or other dry red wine)
- ½cup light brown sugar
- 1teaspoon salt
- Dash of cayenne pepper
- Dash of ground cloves
- 2bay leaves
- 2tart apples (such as Granny Smith or Cortland), peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 1tablespoon cornstarch
- ½cup apple cider vinegar
- 4tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
Preparation
- Step 1
Combine cabbage, wine, brown sugar, salt, cayenne, cloves, bay leaves and apples in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
- Step 2
In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch into the vinegar, then add to the pot along with the butter; stir until butter is melted. Simmer, uncovered, 20 more minutes, or until most of the liquid has cooked off and cabbage is very tender. Remove bay leaves before serving.
- This tastes best if it is made a day or two ahead, and can be reheated in a covered saucepan the day you plan to serve it.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
As a German family living in this country, this is exactly the item we have been adding to our otherwise very traditional American Thanksgiving meal as the token German side dish for many years! As I also prepare it from scratch, I recommend to marinate the sliced red cabbage the night before it is cooked. Marinade should include vinegar, red wine (or apple juice), sugar (or honey), and cloves. And I agree, it needs to cook more than 20 minutes to become as soft as it should be.
My German grandmother made this for Christmas for years, it is wonderful any other time of the year as well. The red cabbage is so festive.
The best substitute for butter is goose fat. The cornstarch is unnecessary.
Addictive, if you like sweet/sour veggies. Have made this several times and find it to be very well balanced. This definitely worth a try for something unusual in the cabbage family. Don’t add the cornstarch. The first time I followed the recipe and cornstarch made an unpleasant grainy texture. This time without and it is right on.
Made this for Thanksgiving and it was a smash hit. It was the perfect counterpoint to turkey and mashed potatoes. Even the cabbage haters in our family loved it. Followed suggestion of one reviewer and marinated the cabbage overnight before cooking. Also followed suggestion to make it ahead of time. Marinated on Monday, cooked on Tuesday, served it on Thursday.
I've made this several times, everyone loves it! One time that I made it I used white cabbage and white wine instead of red. Just as delicious!
I just made this for tomorrow and it's so delicious that I'm moved to let everyone know. I think it will be a great addition to our normal Thanksgiving fare. I made it a day ahead of time as the recipe suggests. I did make one change - I reduced the amount of sugar by half. I think it's plenty sweet as do my tasters, my husband and daughter. Thank you for a great recipe!
This needed longer cooking to soften. Benefited from some caraway seeds
Good flavor - next time I’ll cut back on the brown sugar a bit; this was overly sweet for my taste.
Very intense flavor! I added a star anise for marinating overnight. Cook longer, as mentioned by others.
This is my favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal having grown up/ lived in Munich, Germany for 10 years. Its a great addition to the bland (in my opinion) turkey fare. I have adjusted my recipe over the years to include sweetening it with honey. Using butter and oil and different spices and levels of heat. Either way its deliciously sweet and sour and a holiday favorite. I love surprising people with how delicious Germanic food is when done right.
Have made a very similar recipe to this for more than 30 years. The difference between this recipe and the one I use is that mine contains three sliced or chopped onions, no cornstarch & no cayenne but it does contain ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and ½ teaspoon dried thyme. The cooking method is also different - all ingredients are divided into two layers in a covered ovenproof dish and cooked in the oven at 180°C (355°) for 2 ½ hours. Really excellent winter dish.
Made as written with a bit less sugar (1/3 cup). It was the perfect balance between sweet and sour, and the butter gave it a nice silky feel. I had no trouble with the length of cooking. I think the key is to get the cabbage sliced thin enough. A mandolin is very helpful for that.
This is exactly how I (a German living in Germany) season my Rotkohl (or Blaukraut, many names for the same velvety goodness). But it needs at least 40 mins cooking time. And it gets even better after being reheated. So prepare it one day in advance, it makes Thanksgiving or Christmas less stressful and your taste buds will thank you.
I make my German grandmother’s already creamy Bavarian sauerkraut recipe even creamier in a slow-cooker. I wonder if I can cook rotkraut the same way?
Added a pinch of pumpkin pie spice in place of the cloves, as well as caraway seed (about 1 tbs) and red currant jelly. Cooked 50 minutes total and made it the day before it was to be served with Sauerbraten and parsley/butter potatoes.
Grew up eating this for every holiday in Germany and at many restaurants. Don’t add the corn starch. Recommend cooking it closed-lid for 2-3 hours on a simmer to make the cabbage more creamy. This will taste best if you make it 24-48 hours in advance and then reheat in a pan.
This dish is so good! I’m trying to cut back on sugar so I substituted red wine with beef broth. Cut back to 1/4 cup of brown sugar. The overall dish still had a lot of sweetness, probably thanks to the apples. I used arrowroot instead of cornstarch to make it gluten free. I’m not sure that the cornstarch is even needed though. This is going to be a new dish in rotation!
Very tasty and colorful. Took a bit longer than the recipe described.
Followed recipe exactly. It turned out great!
Have made this a couple times, both as written and with some substitutes. In a pinch, in place of the cabbage, an equal weight of bagged coleslaw mix works well. If all you have is sweet apples (ex: gala) use them but cut back on the sugar a little. Agree the cabbage could be cooked longer than the 40 minutes in the recipe.
I tossed all ingredients into crock pot, leaving out butter. I added 1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds, 3/4 cup cabernet franc, used dark brown sugar, and 3 bay leaves. All other ingredients as stated in recipe. It sure smells up the house. Will let it cool overnight and sample next day.
Good flavor - next time I’ll cut back on the brown sugar a bit; this was overly sweet for my taste.
This was good, but a little sweeter than i recalled. next time I will reduce the sugar. I also agree with other commenters and simmered the cabbage for about 40 minutes to an hour before adding the vinegar, corn starch, and butter.
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