Vegetarian cooking: a tasty recipe for sweet-and-sour cabbage

Cabbage goes from plain-Jane to party-pretty in this four-vegetable toss. Carrots, red pepper and red onion — all nutritional superstars in their own right — join in to brighten this variation on a tangy, traditional German-style side dish.

• Preparation time: 15 minutes.
• Cooking time: 25 minutes.
• Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 10 ml (2 tsp) olive oil
• 1 large red onion, cut into small chunks
• 2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
• 1 red pepper, cut into small chunks
• 1.5 kg (6 c) thickly shredded green cabbage (1 small head)
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) packed light brown sugar
• Salt to taste1 ml (1/4 tsp) sage
• 1 ml (1/4 tsp) black pepper
• 50 ml (1/4 c) cider or rice vinegar

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add carrots and red pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in cabbage. Sprinkle brown sugar, salt, sage and black pepper over cabbage and cook, stirring frequently, until cabbage is wilted, about 10 minutes.
3. Add vinegar, increase heat to medium-high, and cook until cabbage is well coated, about 3 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

• Immunity-boosting vitamin C supplied by the red pepper and the cabbage, beta-carotene donated by the carrots and the blood pressure-lowering benefits of onions make this dish highly nutritious!

Each serving provides:

• Key nutrients: 110 calories, 25 calories from fat, 3 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat, 3 g protein, 22 g carbohydrates, 5 g fibre, 35 mg sodium.
• Blood pressure nutrients: 96 mg vitamin C, 33 mg magnesium, 509 mg potassium, 76 mg calcium.

• Red cabbage can be used as a colourful substitute for green cabbage in this recipe. Add 5 more minutes to the cooking time. The texture of red cabbage may be a little tougher than green, but it has more vitamin C, so it's a wise choice to make.
• In place of sage, try using dried thyme.

This dish is a bevy of nutrients! Serve this cabbage dish over cooked brown rice and add sautéed tofu cubes for a vegetarian meal that can't be beat.