Do I make you hungry?
You may have noticed that the Virginia Department of Agriculture challenged Virginians last week to eat local for one day. It was part of Virginia Farmers Market week, a special designation by Gov. Tim Kaine.
Blog reader Deb seemed to take that challenge to heart. Or maybe she didn’t hear a thing about the challenge and just wanted to enjoy some tasty local chicken, dairy and produce. She sent me this photo of her lunch yesterday with this description of what she bought on the market: “The chicken, cabbage and green apples for the slaw, potatoes and eggs for the potato salad and deviled eggs, green beans and red bell pepper, fried green tomatoes, corn on the cob and peaches for the cobbler. Barbara Kingsolver would be proud.”
She would indeed. I’m proud, and hungry, too!
I didn’t go all out like Deb, but I did buy a gorgeous head of white cabbage from the market on Friday and fried it up last night to go along with grilled pork tenderloin and big, fat slices of my neighbor’s tomatoes.
The whole house now smells of cabbage, but it’s worth it for one of my favorite side dishes. Cabbage is easy to cook, but I’ll post my method below for anyone who has never cooked it up before. Other ideas for fresh cabbage? Shoot me a message!
Fried Cabbage
One whole head of cabbage, chopped
1 Tbsp. real butter
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 pinch of sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Heat oil and butter in a large skillet. Pile in cabbage (it will shrink significantly as it cooks) and cover. Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently to avoid burning on the bottom, until cabbage has cooked all the way down and is translucent.
As the cabbage cooks down, add a tablespoon of water from time to time to keep the cabbage moist and allow it to steam down. Keep covered when you aren’t stirring it. If desired, a splash of beer or white wine is also good.
Season with a pinch or two of sugar and kosher salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!!
August 11, 2008 - 11:36 AM
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I just shouldn’t read your blog before lunch. Grrrrrr…
Can you hear my stomach rumbling?
That cabbage caught my eye. It reminded me of a dish my husband grew up with. Cabbage and dumplings. Yummmm!!
“do I make you hungy?”
Please tell me you were thinking of Austin Powers when you typed that out!
Nice play on the catchphrase,good for a laugh!
Oh, and just polished off the last of a basket of peaches I bought on the market last week.
So much tastier than storebought!
Ones from Kroger taste freeze dried comparatively.
My mom makes the BEST fried cabbage! She fries a pan of bacon til it’s crisp then removes the bacon (don’t drain the pan) and tosses in the head of chopped cabbage along with 1/4 to 1/3 cup of sugar. Then she places the lid on and lets it cook down. Before serving, she tastes and adds more sugar as needed. Best served with cornbread, pintos, and fresh tomatoes and cukes!
Rigby, I was indeed thinking of Austin Powers when I wrote that. I almost titled it, “Do I make you hungry, Bay-Bay? Do I?”
Whit, that sounds to die for. It reminds me of some roasted brussels sprouts with sugar-covered bacon that I had in Charleston. The sweetness with the smoky bacon flavor is such a delicious combo!
The cabbage and dumplings my husband makes has bacon in it too. These recipes all sound as if they might be kin to each other.
I did take up that challenge.
I was having my mom over for lunch yesterday, and walked down to the market to see what I could find. The chicken wasn’t cheap, but it was about the same price I would have paid for an organic one at the grocery store, so I bought it.
It was great to find everything I needed w/in walking distance.
Your dinner looked great too! I love fried cabbage. I like to cook it w/kielbasa and peppers and onions.
Oh yes, that’s a delicious combination too, Debbie. My dad will sometimes dump a can of corned beef into his cabbage and mix it in. Not exactly healthy, but delicious and easy!
Oh yeah!