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Smothered Cabbage

Source of Recipe


From "Mosquito Supper Club" by Melissa Martin



List of Ingredients



• 1 tablespoon canola oil
  
• 6 ounces salt pork, cut into ½-inch cubes
  
• 1 (2- to 3-pound) green cabbage
  
• Kosher salt (optional)
  
• Cayenne pepper or hot sauce (optional)
  
• Cooked rice, for serving
  






Instructions



1. Warm a heavy-bottomed 6-quart pot over medium heat for about 2 minutes, then add the oil and heat for 30 seconds. Add the salt pork and cook until it's brown and a little crispy on all sides, 8 to 15 minutes. Leave it firmly planted in the pot on the first side until this happens, then carefully use tongs to flip the pieces to brown the other sides.
   
   
2. While the salt pork is browning, rinse and dry the cabbage, then coarsely chop it into large pieces — bigger than a large marshmallow, smaller than a deck of cards.
   
   
3. When the salt pork is browned, add the cabbage to the pot and stir to combine. (I'm partial to stirring with a wooden spoon.) Cover the pot, reduce the heat to its lowet setting, and let the cabbage smother for about 2 hours, carefully lifting the lid and giving it a stir every 20 minutes. When you lift the lid, there should be some steam — this means you're properly smothering. If the cabbage looks dry in the pot, add water 1 tablespoon at a time as needed. Smothering is a low, slow process. Trust it.
   
   
4. Taste the cabbage. Because all salt pork is different, I can't tell you if you'll need to add salt. Some salt pork is really salty; other salt pork, not so much. If you'd like some heat, add a little cayenne or hot sauce.
   
   
5. Serve the cabbage over rice.
   
   
   Serves 4 to 6