Rye Berries with Roasted Cabbage

 

This recipe was driven by two factors: my desire, or rather need, to use up what’s in the overstuffed pantry closet, and my tendency to roast vegetables all winter long. There was a recipe in a magazine somewhere in which roasted cabbage was doused in a caraway-infused butter, and that just sounded so good. I had a big bag of rye berries, and they sounded like they’d make good companions to that cabbage.

Rye berries are just like wheat berries, which I’ve used in several recipes featured on these pages. If you ground them finely enough, you would have whole grain rye flour. If you cook them by simmering for a long time in water, you get chewy, starchy nuggets that are a great base for salads or pilafs, and a great addition to soups and stews. They can also be worked into breads and other baked goods. (They can be sprouted, too, but I haven’t tried that yet.) I tend to treat all of my favorite grains roughly the same in my cooking: wheat and rye, barley, farro, quinoa, rice. I love them all, but the rye berries seemed especially suited for use with buttery, toasty cabbage.

 

The result of this recipe fiddling was humble and rustic, but also pretty terrific. I sautéed cooked rye berries in some of the caraway butter with onions and garlic.  A splash of cider vinegar also went in to brighten the flavors. Once the cabbage was roasted to the point of browning on the edges, I stirred it into the warm rye berries, then covered it all in more caraway butter.

These are mild and subtle flavors that really work well together. Nothing screams, and nothing is drowned. The textures are nice as well, with the chewiness of the rye berries standing up with the tender-crisp cabbage. The creaminess of the butter covering everything adds some silky decadence to all that simplicity.

Probably my favorite part of this dish, however, was the toasty flavor from the charred bits of cabbage, the result of that extra roasting step. That nutty taste comes through in every bite. I loved it! And from now on, the making of this rustic, comforting, easy-to-make dish will be driven by me wanting to eat it again more than any other factor, no matter what’s in the pantry!

Rye Berries with Roasted Cabbage and Caraway Butter

I served this as a main dish, but you could serve is as a side dish with roasted meats or sausage or ham.

½ medium-size head green cabbage, coarsely chopped, about 5-6 cups

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 ½ teaspoons coarse salt, divided

 ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon caraway seed

½ cup diced onion

2 medium-size cloves garlic, finely minced

3 cups cooked rye berries

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. In a large bowl, toss together the cabbage, canola oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Transfer to a roasting pan. Roast at 400 F until the cabbage is tender, with a bit of bite to it, and gently charred on the edges. This should take about 30 minutes, but remove from the oven if it seems to be getting too dark.

2. While the cabbage is roasting, melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the caraway seeds and cook, stirring frequently for about 1 minute. Pour all but about 1 tablespoon of the melted butter and most of the caraway seeds into a bowl. (It’s okay if some of the seeds are still in the pan.) Keep the caraway butter warm until needed.

3. Return the pan to the heat and add the onion and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook and stir 8-10 minutes, or until the onion is soft. Add the garlic and saute about 1 minute more. Add the rye berries and the remaining salt and pepper and cook to heat them through. Stir in the cider vinegar. Keep warm until the cabbage is done.

4. When the cabbage roasting is completed, stir the cabbage into the rye berry mixture in the skillet. Pour the reserved caraway butter over the mixture and stir to coat well. Taste for seasoning and add additional salt or pepper if desired.

Makes about 4 main-dish servings.

Other recipes like this one: Sauteed Cabbage with Caraway and Cider Vinegar; Wilted Savoy Cabbage with Warm Walnut-Butter Vinaigrette; Spaetzle with Cabbage, Bacon and Onions

One year ago: Beet and Carrot Burgers