Napa Cabbage

​​Spicy Napa Cabbage Slaw with Cilantro Dressing
​From epicurious.com, via Gourmet, August 2008
Serves 4

1/4 cup rice vinegar (not seasoned)
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon grated peeled ginger
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 fresh serrano chile, finely chopped, with seeds
1 small head Napa cabbage (1 1/2 pounds), cored and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch slices
1 bunch scallions, sliced
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

Whisk together vinegar, sugar, ginger, oil, chile, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add remaining ingredients and toss well. Let stand, tossing occasionally, 10 minutes.

​Traditional Napa Cabbage Kimchi
From Eating Korean by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee

“This is the mother of all kimchi. When Koreans say “kimchi”, this is the kind that comes to everyone’s minds. Good either fresh or fermented, it goes with everything from meats to noodles. You will need a one-gallon glass jar or four 1-quart jars.”

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
Water
2 heads Napa cabbage, cut in quarters or 2-inch wedges, depending on size of cabbage
1 bulb garlic, cloves separated and peeled
1 (2-inch) piece of ginger root
¼ cup fish sauce or Korean salted shrimp
1 large or 2 medium radishes, peeled and grated
1 bunch of green onions, cut into 1-inch lengths
1 bunch of mustard greens, chopped into 1-inch pieces
½ cup Korean chili powder
1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
Sesame oil (optional)
Sesame seeds (optional)
​
Dissolve 1 cup salt in ½ gallon water. Soak cabbage in the salt water for 3 to 4 hours.
Combine garlic, ginger, and fish sauce or shrimp in food processor or blender until finely minced.
In a large bowl, combine radish, green onions, mustard greens, garlic mixture, chili powder, 1 tablespoon salt and optional sugar. Toss gently but thoroughly.
Remove cabbage from water and rinse thoroughly. Drain cabbage in colander, squeezing as much water from the leaves as possible. Take cabbage and stuff radish mixture between leaves, working from outside in, starting with the largest leaf to smallest. Do not overstuff, but make sure radish mixture adequately fills leaves. When entire cabbage is stuffed, take one of the larger leaves and wrap tightly around the rest of the cabbage. Divide cabbage among 4 (1-quart) jars or one 1-gallon jar, pressing down firmly to remove any air bubbles.
Let sit 2 to 3 days in a cool place before serving. Remove kimchi from jar and slice into 1-inch length pieces. If serving before kimchi is fermented, sprinkle with a little bit of sesame oil and sesame seeds. Refrigerate after opening.
The kimchi will be good enough to eat straight for up to about 3 weeks. After about 4 weeks, once the kimchi gets too fermented to eat by itself, use it to make hot pots, flatcakes, dumplings, or just plain fried rice.​

​
Napa Cabbage and Cucumber Slaw
From bonappetit.com
Makes 4 servings
 
6 cups thinly shaved or sliced cucumbers and/or Napa cabbage
¼ red or white onion, very thinly sliced
¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
 
Combine vegetables and onion in a medium bowl; season generously with salt. Let sit until they start to release their water, 8–10 minutes, then begin to massage, gently at first so they don’t break, then harder as they begin to expel their liquid, until softened to about the texture of coleslaw. Pour off all excess liquid and add vinegar and oil; toss to coat. Taste and season with more salt if needed.
Do Ahead: Slaw can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.
​

​Stir-Fried Napa Cabbage with Spicy Garlic Dressing
Serves 6
From foodandwine.com
“Serve this quick sauté with grilled pork chops, steak or fish and plenty of steamed rice to soak up the garlicky sauce.”
4 cloves garlic—two chopped and two minced
Kosher salt
4 scallions, finely chopped
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon coarse Korean hot red-pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
One 1 1/2-pound head Napa cabbage, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds, toasted
 
Mince and mash the chopped garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt. Stir together the scallions, minced garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, water, hot red-pepper flakes and sugar together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the cabbage, season with a pinch of salt, and stir-fry, using tongs to stir, until the cabbage is just wilted, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the dressing over the cabbage and toss gently to combine. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with the toasted sesame seeds.
Make Ahead: The sauce can be made 2 hours ahead and kept at room temperature.
Notes: Korean hot red-pepper flakes are available at Korean markets. Store any leftover flakes, tightly sealed, in the freezer.

Napa Cabbage with Carrot Ginger Dressing
From storyofakitchen.com
 
1 cup vegetable oil
½ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
⅛ to ¼ cup soy sauce (Sodium content between soy sauce brands can differ wildly. Add ⅛ cup first, then more if you think the dressing needs it.)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated ginger
2 medium (about 8 ounces) carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
½ medium onion (about 6 ounces), peeled and roughly chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
​
one large head of Napa cabbage, chopped into bite-sized pieces. (Savoy works, as well as other cabbages. Cucumbers are a nice pairing for flavor but are sometimes too juicy and slick for the dressing to "hold on." The crevices in Napa are just about perfect for this dressing.)
Put everything into food processor and run until fully blended. I prefer a little chunk in my dressing, but almost smooth. Blend how you like it.
Toss cabbage to coat with dressing and serve with more on side, if desired.
Unused dressing keeps for two weeks in a tightly-lidded jar in the fridge. Give it a shake before using.

Asian Slaw
From cooking.nytimes.com
 
4 cups finely shredded cored Napa cabbage
1 cup daikon in fine julienne
2 medium-size cucumbers, peeled, seeded and cut in julienne
1 tablespoon finely minced seeded fresh red chili, or to taste
6 scallions, finely chopped
⅓ cup rice vinegar
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons Asian sesame oil
2 tablespoons peanut or grapeseed oil
 Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
​
Place Napa cabbage, daikon, cucumbers, chili and scallions in large bowl, and mix.
Mix vinegar and ginger in small bowl. Beat in oils. Pour over cabbage mixture, and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper, fold in cilantro, and serve.