This delicious sausage, cabbage and lentil recipe is a warming winter recipe that really makes the most of seasonal red cabbage.
Versatile and nutritious, cabbages of all kinds are immensely satisfying to grow. Melanie Johnson makes the most of red cabbage.
Maple-and-mustard pork chipolatas with braised red cabbage and lentils
Serves 4 generously
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- 1 red cabbage
- 4 apples
- 2tbspn red-wine vinegar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 10 peppercorns
- 3 cloves
- 1tbspn brown sugar
- 250ml red wine
- 250ml vegetable stock
- 100g puy lentils
- 300ml chicken stock
- 12 chipolatas (I used free-range ones with apple)
- 1tbspn maple syrup
- 1tbspn wholegrain mustard
Method
Preheat your oven to 180˚C/350˚F/gas mark 4. Peel and slice the onion and thinly slice the red cabbage into ribbons, then mix together in a large, lidded casserole dish with a little butter. Peel and chop the apples and add to the dish along with the red-wine vinegar, cinnamon stick, peppercorns, cloves and sugar. Season well and cook over a medium heat until the liquid is almost reduced.
Add the red wine and keep over the heat until the liquid has almost completely reduced again, then add the vegetable stock. Put the lid on the dish and bake in the oven for about 90 minutes, checking every so often to see if you need to add a little more stock.
Meanwhile, rinse the lentils in cold water and cook in a pan with the chicken stock for about half an hour or until tender. Drain and set aside.
Bake the sausages until golden, then toss in the maple syrup and mustard so that they’re well coated. Stir the lentils through the cabbage and serve alongside your sticky chipolatas.
More ways with red cabbage
Roasted red cabbage with garlic, lemon and olive oil
Roasted red cabbage with garlic, lemon and olive oilCut thin slices from a red cabbage (cutting through the core to keep the pieces whole) and arrange on a foil-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in a moderately hot oven for 8 minutes before turning and roasting for a further 8 minutes. Mix together a splash of olive oil with a crushed clove of garlic and a good squeeze of lemon. Pour over the red cabbage, season well, grate Parmesan over the top and serve immediately. Delicious as a starter with toasted sourdough.
Red-cabbage slaw
Mix together half a thinly sliced red cabbage, 2 grated carrots, 1 thinly sliced red onion, 1 grated green apple (skin on) with 4 tablespoons of Greek yoghurt, 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon of apple-cider vinegar and seasoning. Top with pomegranate seeds and serve.
Red-cabbage and walnut salad with orange dressing
Mix together half a shredded red cabbage with 2 grated apples and a handful of chopped walnuts. To make the dressing, heat orange juice until reduced to a syrup, then add two parts olive oil. Pour over the salad and mix well. This dish will improve with time, so aim to make it several hours before serving.
