Cabbages Cabbages & Cabbages

Cabbages & Mustards (Botanists call them all Mustards) are a huge family (Brassicaceae or Brassicas (formerly Cruciferae)) that accounts for most of the winter greens and root vegetables humanity has depended on to make it through 'till spring. The formal family.

Cabbages

History & General Information

Americans, with a limitless supply of beef and potatoes, don't hold cabbages in the high esteem Europe and Asia do. In China, even today apartments with balconies are preferred so there's a cool place to store a mountain of cabbages for the winter. Koreans bury huge jars in the ground in which to make chili lacedsauerkraut (kimchi) without which no meal would be complete. Germany wouldn't really be Germany without sauerkaraut, would it, or the Slavic countries without beets. In times past these vegetables meant the difference between survival and not.

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Working with Cabbages
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Varieties

 Of the thousands of varieties worldwide, we have listed those easily available in the United States.

Broccoli

(Brassica oleracea)

Broccoli Rabe
seeds .


Arugula [Arugula (us) Rocket (uk), Roquette (fr), Rucola (it), Rughetta (it), Eruca vesicaria sativa and related]
A popular salad and soup green in the Medeterranian area since at least Roman times. The leaves are small and tender but have a distinctly peppery mustard bite. There are a number of varieties including common weeds, and most have more deply cut leaves (resembling elongated oak leaves) than the variety in the photo.

Cauliflower
This is a cabbage plant (Brassica oleracea) that grows a huge cluster of flower buds that never mature. Called the "curd", this cluster may be white, lime green or purple depending on variety. For white varieties, leaves are tied over the curd to protect it from the sun so it will remain white and tasty.

Cauliflower and Broccoli are different varieties of the same species of cabbage native to the Medeterranean and were both developed only a few hundred years ago. While the curd is sterile, a plant left to grow will eventually develop viable seeds.

Caluliflower leaves are used in some cuisines, but are never available in supermarkets (or even at most vegetable stands) here.

Many U.S./European cauliflower recipes are uninspired, but it's a very popular vegetable in India and many recipes from mild to spicy have been developed there.

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Health Considerations
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Links
  • A1 - href="http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Cruciferae"> TheFreeDictionary.com Cruciferae.

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