Island Style Sweet and Spicy Cabbage - Recipe

Island Style Sweet and Spicy Cabbage

More than 20 years ago, I lived in an odd little shared house in Oakland, and one of the other renters was a guy named John, from one of the Caribbean islands. Sad to say, I can't recall which island (possibly Barbados?), but I do remember that he moonlighted in a steel drum band, and we would often cook simple dinners together and hang out in his room watching Golden State Warriors games.

He had this unlabeled bottle of hot sauce that friends would smuggle in when they came from home, and it was unlike any other I'd tasted. There was lots of chili heat, but almost an equal hit of mustard, so much so that the sauce was yellow. Probably similar to this bottle of Lottie's. This sauce could be used at the table, but what I loved even more was how he cooked with it.

The first thing to go in the pan with the oil was always minced onions and brown sugar. After the sugar caramelized a bit, in would go the hot sauce. Then the main ingredient, whatever it was, would be fried in this intensely flavored base.

I don't have this type of hot sauce on hand, and you probably don't either, so I decided to see if I could get a similar result by building the sauce directly in the pan. I liked the result a lot; it was hot, sweet, full of spice, and quite close to how I remember the taste of John's cooking. Today I used this technique on napa cabbage, but you could adapt it to just about anything from potatoes to paneer. Okra would be amazing.

I served this cabbage with dhal puri roti (an Indo-Caribbean flatbread filled with yellow splitpea dal), and Jamaican rice & peas.

I'd love to hear from anyone who is familiar with this style of cooking that begins with sugar and hot sauce in the pan. Are there other niceties to this technique? Is it particular to certain islands?

Island Style Sweet and Spicy Cabbage
Vegetarian, vegan and gluten free
Serves 4 as a small side dish
5 minutes active, 15 total

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 medium white onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno, thinly sliced (or some part of a habanero or scotch bonnet if you dare)
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 heaping tablespoon prepared Dijon mustard (double check if you need gluten-free)
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• several grinds fresh black pepper
• 1 head napa cabbage, cut across the head in 3" wide ribbons

1. In a wok or large skillet, heat the vegetable oil over a medium high flame. Add the brown sugar and onion, and cook for 1 minute; do not let the sugar burn.
2. Add the garlic, jalapeno, ginger, mustard, vinegar, thyme, salt, and pepper; stir and cook for a couple of minutes until it is thick, dark and fragrant.
3. Add the cabbage. Stir it through the sauce, and cover and cook for 3 minutes. Remove the lid, stir again, and then cook until tender. Taste and adjust seasoning and serve immediately.

Tomato Jam With Rosemary and Saffron - Recipe

Tomato Jam With Rosemary and Saffron (on a Grilled Cheese Sandwich)

Tomato jam. Sounds kind of funny, right? But then when you think about it, a tomato is a fruit after all. Cook them down with sugar and seasonings and you get a piquant jam, though you might think of it more as a chutney.

Whatever you call it, this tomato jam is amazing on a grilled cheese with seriously sharp cheddar, or with the chickpea fritters I'll tell you about next week.

For flavorings, I opted for rosemary, saffron and chili flakes. It could be equally delicious with garlic and lemon zest, or with coriander, turmeric and black pepper.

It is important to peel the tomatoes before making the jam, otherwise you will have unpleasant stringy bits in it. To peel them, you simply make an X in the skin at the end away from the stem, dunk 'em in boiling water for 10 seconds, let 'em cool, and you can zip the skin right off. Doing this for half a dozen tomatoes just takes a few minutes. When I was stageing at Canlis, I cored, peeled and seeded two cases of Roma's. That takes more than a few minutes.

Since you don't need picture perfect tomatoes for this jam, you might ask at your farmer's market to see if you can buy seconds that are a little bruised or otherwise unloved. At my market, they are about half the price of the number ones.

This recipe will make about a cup of jam, which will keep in your fridge for a few days. I'm not a canner (yet), so I don't know whether it is suitable for processing and longer-term storage.

Tomato Jam With Rosemary and Saffron
Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free
Makes about a cup

• 24 ounces (by weight) tomatoes, cored and peeled (see above), roughly diced
• 1/2 cup white onion, finely diced
• 1/2 teaspoon rosemary leaves, very finely chopped
• 3/4 cup sugar (you could also try a little less)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• pinch of chili flakes
• pinch of saffron, crumbled
• a few grind of black pepper
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. How about this for easy? Bring all ingredients to a simmer (the liquid will all come out of the tomatoes, you don't need to add any). Cook for about an hour, until thick and syrupy. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Spicy Nori Popcorn Seasoning - Recipe

Spicy nori furikake seasoning for popcorn

I apologize that it has been a little quiet here at the veg shed, and it probably will be hit and miss for the next few weeks, as family priorities and enjoying the summer take precedence over late night blogging sessions for a bit.

I think you'll enjoy this simple condiment for popcorn, whether you simply eat the heck out of it while watching Forbidden Planet or offering it on the side of a Japanese fusion veggie ceviche.

Technically what we are making here is a very simple furikake, a dry seasoning usually used on rice but actually delicious in many contexts. Gomashio is another example. A good Japanese grocer will sell many such blends, some vegetarian and others not. Making your own opens up a world of possibilities. Grinding the seasoning very finely allows it to adhere to the popcorn.

This will take you all of 5 minutes, you can pretty much knock it out while the corn finishes popping. After you've made it once you'll be easily able to adjust the salt/umami/heat ratio to your own preference.

Spicy Nori Popcorn Seasoning
Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free
Makes enough for many, many servings of popcorn

• 2 sheets nori
• 1 dry chili pepper of your choice (morita is nice), seeds and ribs removed
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (fleur de sel is a good choice)

1. Hold a sheet of nori in a pair of tongs and toast lightly over an open medium flame, being careful not to set it on fire or burn your hands. Toast for maybe 20 seconds, moving it around to get the whole sheet. Repeat with the other sheet.
2. Do the same thing with the chili pepper.
3. Break up the nori and the chili pepper small enough to put into a spice grinder, add the salt, and whiz for a long time, until it is a completely fine powder. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
4. Sprinkle liberally on freshly popped corn, tossing to coat.