Chef Juliette
Marinaded Red Cabbages for Hors-d’œuvre
A cold-larder lesson in patience: fine red cabbage salted for two days until crisp-tender, then steeped with vinegar, garlic, peppercorns, and bay for the sharp spoonful boiled beef needs.
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Choux Rouges à la Flamande
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 2098, Choux Rouges à la Flamande, from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
Fine-cut red cabbage, russet apples, butter, sugar, nutmeg, and vinegar share one covered cocotte, cooking gently until the leaves gleam garnet and the apples soften without disappearing.
Side Dishes
French
Comfort Food
Holiday
Make Ahead
25 min
Active Time
2 hr cook•2 hr 35 min total
Yield4 servings
Choux Rouges à la Flamande (Flemish-style red cabbage) teaches one exact lesson: vinegar is the only moistening. The covered cabbage must surrender its own water over gentle heat, while butter, nutmeg, sugar, and russet apples turn that sharp beginning into a glossy, sweet-sour braise. Add stock or water and the flavor goes slack; raise the heat and the edges catch before the center softens.
The brigade entry assumes cabbages in the plural, four apples, and a capacious earthenware cocotte. This home translation halves that working proportion to one cabbage, two apples, and half the spoonful of sugar, in a heavy 4-quart lidded cocotte. It did not call for a saucier, a stockpot kept on the fire, or a salamander, and neither do you. The large service batch is scaffolding and can go. The fine julienne, tight cover, late addition of apples, and vinegar alone are the dish, and they stay. One cook, one stove, one evening.
Cut the leaves finely and evenly so they soften at the same pace. If an edge begins to catch, lower the oven, fold that patch toward the center, spoon the cabbage juices over it, and seal the lid more tightly. Ça se rattrape. The step to guard is the heat: keep it gentle from the first minute to the last.
Choux Rouges à la Flamande belongs to French Flanders, the northern country around Lille and the Belgian border, where sweet-sour cabbage and apples sit naturally beside pork, duck, goose, and sausages. The farmhouse combination passed into the classical canon as a vegetable garnish while retaining its covered earthenware cooking and measured balance of vinegar and sugar. Despite its place among baked casseroles, it is not a gratin: no crust should form, and the lid stays on so the cabbage cooks in its own juices.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
red cabbage
Quantity
1 medium (about 2 lb / 900 g untrimmed; about 10 cups / 2.4 L / 700 g prepared)
coarse outer leaves and hard core removed, finely julienned
russet apples
Quantity
2 medium (about 12 oz / 340 g total)
peeled, cored, and quartered
unsalted butter
Quantity
2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g)
softened
red wine vinegar
Quantity
3 tablespoons plus up to 1 teaspoon (45 to 50 ml / 45 to 50 g)
reserve the additional teaspoon only for rescuing dry edges
fine sea salt
Quantity
1¼ teaspoons (6 ml / 7 g)
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g)
freshly grated nutmeg
Quantity
¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml / 0.5 g)
soft light brown sugar or granulated sugar
Quantity
1½ teaspoons (7.5 ml / 6 g)
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| red cabbagecoarse outer leaves and hard core removed, finely julienned | 1 medium (about 2 lb / 900 g untrimmed; about 10 cups / 2.4 L / 700 g prepared) |
| russet applespeeled, cored, and quartered | 2 medium (about 12 oz / 340 g total) |
| unsalted buttersoftened | 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 28 g) |
| red wine vinegarreserve the additional teaspoon only for rescuing dry edges | 3 tablespoons plus up to 1 teaspoon (45 to 50 ml / 45 to 50 g) |
| fine sea salt | 1¼ teaspoons (6 ml / 7 g) |
| freshly ground black pepper | ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g) |
| freshly grated nutmeg | ¼ teaspoon (1.25 ml / 0.5 g) |
| soft light brown sugar or granulated sugar | 1½ teaspoons (7.5 ml / 6 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •4-quart (3.8 L) heavy lidded earthenware or enameled cast-iron cocotte
- •Sharp chef's knife or mandoline with hand guard
- •Large mixing bowl
- •Broad wooden spoon
Instructions
- 1
Heat and butter cocotte
Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C), or 285°F (140°C) with convection, with a rack in the lower-middle position. Coat the base and sides of a 4-quart (3.8 L) cocotte generously with all the softened butter. If its lid fits loosely, have a sheet of foil ready to place beneath it; the seal holds the cabbage's own moisture inside.
- 2
Cut a fine julienne
Quarter the cabbage through the core, pull away any coarse outside leaves, and cut out the hard central stump from each quarter. Slice the leaves crosswise into a fine julienne, about ⅛ inch (3 mm) wide. Keep the ribbons even. Thick pieces remain stubborn while fine ones soften, and this dish gives you no stock or water to cover an uneven cut.
Julienne-fashion means cutting into match-shaped pieces. Cabbage leaves naturally make ribbons rather than rigid rods, so match-width is the useful measure here. - 3
Season and cover
Put the cabbage in a large bowl and scatter over the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of the vinegar, then turn everything thoroughly until the seasoning is distributed and the leaves carry a light gloss. Pack the cabbage into the buttered cocotte without crushing it, cover tightly, and place it in the oven. Add no water and no stock. Vinegar is the only moistening.
- 4
Cook three-parts gently
Cook gently for about 1 hour 15 minutes. After 45 minutes, open the cocotte once and turn the cabbage from the outside toward the center, then reseal it at once. It is three-parts cooked when the mound has collapsed, the leaves are glossy and nearly tender, and the thicker ribs retain only a little resistance. If an edge begins to brown or catch, lower the oven to 285°F (140°C), lift the darkened leaves away from the pot, spoon juices from the center over them, and seal the lid with foil beneath it. If the pot is truly dry, use no more than the reserved teaspoon of vinegar. Ça se rattrape.
- 5
Add apples and sugar
Nestle the peeled apple quarters among the cabbage and sprinkle the sugar evenly over both. Cover tightly and return the cocotte to the same gentle oven for 35 to 45 minutes. The cabbage is ready when it yields completely under the spoon and the apples accept a knife without resistance while still holding their quartered shape. If the apples soften early, lift them onto a warm plate and return them for the final 5 minutes.
- 6
Rest and serve
Rest the covered cocotte for 10 minutes, then fold the cabbage once through its buttery crimson juices, handling the apples gently. Taste for salt and pepper. The finished balance should be distinctly sweet-sour, with nutmeg behind it rather than in front, and the cabbage should be tender without dissolving. Bring the cocotte directly to the table beside roast pork, duck, goose, or sausages. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Russet apples have rough skins and dense, aromatic flesh that keeps its shape during covered cooking. Golden Russet is splendid here. If russets aren't available, choose a firm tart-sweet apple rather than a soft cooking apple that will disappear into the cabbage.
- •A heavy enameled cast-iron cocotte is the honest home equivalent of the source's earthenware vessel. What matters is steady heat and a lid that seals tightly; a thin casserole creates hot spots and catches the cabbage at the edges.
- •Use wine vinegar, not balsamic. Balsamic brings its own concentrated sweetness and color, while this dish must build its balance from plain vinegar, russet apples, and a measured spoonful of sugar.
- •Serve it with rich meats that welcome acidity: roast pork, duck, goose, boudin, or a good northern sausage. A bière de garde is entirely at home beside it.
Advance Preparation
- •The cabbage can be trimmed and cut into julienne up to 1 day ahead. Keep it tightly covered in the refrigerator, but peel and quarter the apples only when the cabbage reaches the three-parts stage.
- •The completed dish can be made up to 3 days ahead. Cool it within 2 hours, cover, and refrigerate with all its juices. Reheat it covered at 300°F (150°C) for 25 to 30 minutes, turning it once with care.
- •The flavor becomes rounder after a night in the refrigerator, which makes Choux Rouges à la Flamande particularly useful for a holiday table. Freezing is less kind to the apple quarters, so refrigeration is the better plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 235g)
Calories
150 calories
Total Fat
6 g
Saturated Fat
4 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
2 g
Cholesterol
15 mg
Sodium
740 mg
Total Carbohydrates
24 g
Dietary Fiber
5 g
Sugars
15 g
Protein
3 g
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