Cabbage confusion, napa vs savoy
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Featured Answer
Sort by:Oldest
Comments (21)
9 years ago
9 years agoRelated Discussions
Recipes for dumpling wrappers?
Comments (8)dumpling wrappers, potstickers, dim sum, and wontons are not synonymous. Dumpling wrappers, almost always round but occasionally square, are thicker than wonton wrappers, which are always square. potstickers are dumpling wrappers filled with a rich filling, folded over and pinched and then cooked in a very special way -- they are put onto a hot pan with a bit of oil, seared to brown and then covered in a bit of liquid to braise under a cover until the liquid is all gone and the dumplings literally "stick" to the pot. dim sum is a collective phrase for a great many "appetizer-like" foods, some of which are "dumplings" but not exactly the kind of dumplings made with dumpling wrappers. wontons refers to the thin square wrappers or to the wrapper with filling. They can be small or large and they can be boiled/steamed or deep-fried. The extra large ones are best truly steamed over gentle heat. For deep-frying, the smaller, the better. Here's my favorite "dumpling filling" recipe to put into wontons or dumpling wrappers (given to me by a little Chinese grandmother about 25 years ago in L.A.; true): DUMPLING FILLING Makes 12 to 24 1 pound ground pork -- shoulder 1/4 pound shrimp -- finely chopped 1 small bok choy -- chopped 1 egg 1 teaspoon cornstarch salt -- to taste 1/2 teaspoon sugar 2 tablespoons sesame oil 1 tablespoon water 1 teaspoon ginger root -- grated 2 stalks green onion -- chopped Chop bok choy coarsely and cook in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain by placing in cheese cloth and squeezing out all water. Chop finely. Combine pork, shrimp, egg, cornstarch, salt, sugar, sesame oil, water, and ginger. Mix well. Add bok choy and chopped green onions. Put small teaspoon-fulls into won ton wrappers or larger tablespoon-fulls into dumpling wrappers. Boil them gently in water or chicken stock until floating. Dumplings can be boiled (steamed) or braised (fried). Or you can freeze them stuffed raw for later use. Joe...See Morecan a young dumb lurker ask a dumb question
Comments (16)Most self-rising flours sold in the south have the salt. I find some our here in the west don't. Personally, I prefer it with the salt, but that's probably because it's what I grew up on. And that was not a dumb question at all! (Actually, the only two dumb questions I've ever heard were my sister asking me once "Where do you keep your ice?" and once at the restaurant when a cook had stuck a knife all the way into his hand, one of the managers asked, "Are you hurt?" THOSE were dumb questions. LOL!)...See MoreDraft Fall Garden Plan - requesting input (veggie newbie!!!)
Comments (23)If that were my garden, I'd do the following. Well, at least the following would be my first draft. Then I'd rethink it eighteen more times. I should note that my own "plant plants with like needs together" rule tends to be mainly about water, because that's the limiting factor in my climate. My fertilizing tends to be a one-size-fits-all for every bed. So others with opinions about plant nutrition should usually be assumed to know more than me. :) Going clockwise starting with the top left bed: - I'd plant kale and chard in an 8-foot-long line down the center of the 8 X 3.5 half-sun bed. If I were going to let them get big, I'd plant a single row eighteen inches apart. If I were going to cut them young and let them resprout a couple of times, a double row eight to twelve inches apart in both directions. Then I'd run a row of cabbage down one side of them, and a row of bok choy down the other, at whatever spacing the seed packet wants. - I'd make the 3X3 bed (it's a half-sun bed, yes?) all salad greens, mostly lettuce. I wouldn't divide it into permanent squares. Instead, I'd buy lettuce starts and plant them one foot apart in both directions (starting six inches from the "wall" of the bed). Then I'd run quarter-inch soaker hose between the lettuces (so the soaker hose is running six inches from lettuce in each direction), I'd presprout lettuce seeds, and I'd plant them right next to the soaker hose so they get plenty of moisture to get started with. That would give me the first two rounds of lettuce. Then I'd probably be bored and would start playing with salad spinach, mache, pea sprouts, and so on. (If the little bed were in full sun, I would instead have devoted it entirely to carrots, so that I could cater to their prima donna carroty demands without distraction from other plants.) - I'd put a trellis down the center of both 8 X 4 full-sun beds, and grow peas up both sides of that trellis. In one bed, I'd plant leeks and onions and green garlic in a strip nearest the edges of the bed. In the other, I'd plant beets and radishes and carrots the same way. When the root crops come out, the peas may be taking up all the space. When the peas are done, it may or may not be a good time to plant fava beans in the whole bed. Continuing the "strip down the middle" theme, I'd plant three brussels sprout plants down the center of the 7 X 3.5 bed. I find young cabbage-family plants to be a little fragile, so I'd probably really plant groups of two or three, at the proper location, about three inches apart from one another, and then nip out all but one when it becomes fairly clear that one will survive. Then I'd plant spinach and arugula on the edges....See MoreStuffed Collard Rolls?
Comments (26)I always cook my rice first, because my very lean homegrown ground beef just doesn't have enough fat/moisture to property cook the rice, and I don't want it hard and crunchy in there. Here's my favorite recipe: Stuffed cabbage rolls Filling 1 pound lean ground beef 3/4 cup cooked rice 1/2 cup finely chopped onion 1 large egg 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1/4 cup milk Sauce 1 cans (8 ounces ) tomato sauce 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained 3 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons vinegar 1 tbls Worchestershire sauce Mix all the filling ingredients, stuff the cabbage rolls, mix all the sauce ingredients and pour over top. Bake at 350F for about an hour, or put them in the crockpot all day on low. I usually put a bed of sauerkraut under them. Elery just made a batch with burrito filling (no beans), and used enchilada sauce for baking and salsa and sour cream when serving. And there's this, which I haven't tried yet: Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Bacon and Cheese 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef 1/4 cup minced onion 1 teaspoon ground sage 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese 2/3 cup fine dry bread crumbs 1 cup milk 2 teaspoons salt 1 cup beef broth 6 strips bacon Mix beef, onion, sage, cheese, bread crumbs, milk and salt. Roll up into cabbage leaves, pour beef broth over rolls and top with bacon strips. Bake at 350F for 50-60 minutes. Sweet and sour? Yup, got that too, from America's Test Kitchen! Sweet and Sour cabbage Rolls 1 head green cabbage, cored 1/4 cup long-grain white rice 2 onions, grated on the large holes of a box grater 1 1/2 lbs ground beef pepper 1 (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes 1 (28 ounce) cans tomato puree 2 cups water 6 tablespoons light brown sugar 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1 onion, peeled 8 whole cloves 12 small gingersnaps, pounded into course crumbs 1/2 cup raisins (optional) DIRECTIONS Bring 4 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon of salt to boil in large dutch oven over high heat. Add cored cabbage and cook until outer leaves just begin to wilt, about 3 minutes. Use tongs to gently remove leaves (outer 20) one by one and transfer to a colander to cool. Remove any remaining head of cabbage and let cool. Do not discard water. Return water to boil over high heat. Add rice and cook until tender, about 13 minutes. Drain the rice through a strainer, rinse it to cool, and let drain thoroughly. In a medium bowl, combine cooked rice, onion, beef, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Trim tough ribs from cabbage leaves and tightly roll 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture into each leaf. Shred the remaining blanched cabbage both the head and any remaining leaves. DIRECTIONS: Scatter half the shredded cabbage leaves in a large dutch oven. Arrange rolls seam side down snugly on top of the shredded cabbage. Sprinkle any remaining shredded cabbage on top of rolls. Combine diced tomatoes w/ juice, tomato puree, water (I use water left over from rice) 3 tablespoons of brown sugar, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pour liquid over cabbage. Stud peeled onion with cloves and submerge in liquid. Bring mixture to boil, then reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes. Discard clove studded onion. Sprinkle crushed cookies and raisins (if using) into the pot and shake to incorporate them without disturbing rolls. Simmer uncovered until sauce begins to thicken, about 1 hour. If you desire more liquid, add 1 cup of beef broth. Transfer rolls to serving dish and add remaining 3 tablespoons of brown sugar to sauce and season with salt pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over rolls and top with sour cream and chopped parsley if desired. I like them all! Annie...See More
9 years ago
9 years ago- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 9 years ago
- 8 years ago
8 years ago- 8 years ago
8 years agolast modified: 8 years ago- 8 years ago
- 8 years agolast modified: 8 years ago
Napa cabbage (when I was growing up it used to be spelled nappa) is used in very
specific recipes as it has a high water content. Except for Western salads or
Asian pickles, it's most often seen in soups (think: leafy sub for winter
melon) or chopped in dumpling fillings.When I was growing up it was the traditional vegetable in making sukiyaki, which was a Japanese-American New Year's tradition. Otherwise it was sliced into dashi soup stock.
Chinese don't seem to use it as much. It's considered a cheaper vegetable and less desirable than the stronger flavored choys (greens). My Hong Kong in-laws avoided it, whether home cooking or restaurants.
One of the few stir-fry dishes it works very well in is the
stir-fried nian gao. It's one of our favorite Shanghainese dishes. We'll be
bringing it this weekend to a family celebration of Chinese New Year. The traditional recipe uses zha cai, preserved (salted) mustard green stem, but many restaurants sub the napa cabbage instead.The rounds of rice noodle dough are thought to resemble coins, and are thus "good luck" for the coming year.
(photo courtesy of SteamyKitchen.com)
Napa is not a good substitute for the stronger flavored choys, such as
ong choy, ji mao cai, yu choy, AA choy, lo bok, en choy or gai choy. If you're going to use it in place of regular cabbage, just be aware of its high moisture content - and the leafy part is also more fragile than cabbage, regular or Savoy, when cooked.
Related Stories
KITCHEN DESIGNKitchen Recipes: Secret Ingredients of 5 One-of-a-Kind Cooking Spaces
Learn what went into these cooks’ kitchens — and what comes out of them
Full Story
laceyvail 6A, WV