Red cabbage

Brassica oleracea var. capitata

vegetable

A headed cabbage with red-purple leaves, the same species as white cabbage, raw in salads or braised; in Germany, once cooked, it is called Blaukraut, “blue cabbage”. It provides anthocyanins, glucosinolates and vitamin C.

Origin

Atlantic coasts of Europe

Season (United States)

September to March · grows in your region

Preparation

The core is eaten too, thinly sliced. Its anthocyanin turns blue-gray in an alkaline medium: a splash of vinegar or lemon at the end of cooking gives it back its red. Short steaming keeps its glucosinolates; long boiling carries them off. Most of its goitrogens go with cooking, even a short one.

Molecules

Anthocyanins · Glucoraphanin → sulforaphane · Glucobrassicin → I3C · Vitamin C · Insoluble fibersWhat slows things down Goitrogens

Did you know?

Its pigment changes colour with the soil: in acid soil the cabbage grows redder, in neutral soil more purple, and in alkaline soil almost greenish-yellow.