Cabbage with relish - Salvadorean cookery specialty - Brief Article

Sunset, March, 2001 by Jerry Anne Di Vecchio

* When I was Sunset's bureau chief in Los Angeles, a number of El Salvadoran restaurants near the office were our favorite lunch spots because pupusas (a tacolike packet of filled and grilled masa dough) outshone the local sandwiches. At each table there was a jar of curtido, a crunchy, piquant relish of cabbage cured briefly in a salt-and-vinegar brine. You ladled out the relish to munch along with your warm, crusty pupusas or to eat in more generous portions as a salad.

Curtido is easy to make at home, and this would be a good month to expand its international role: Serve it as a companion for corned beef on St. Patrick's Day In fact, it's great on a corned beef sandwich any time of year.

Red Cabbage Curtido

PREP TIME: About 10 minutes, plus at least 4 hours to chill

NOTES: Curtido stays fresh and crisp up to 1 week; store airtight in the refrigerator.

MAKES: Drained, 3 to 3 1/2 cups

1/3 cup white vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 fresh jalapeno chili (about 1 oz.), rinsed, stemmed, seeded, and minced

3 cups shredded red cabbage

1 carrot (1/4 lb.), peeled and shredded

1/3 cup chopped onion

1. In a bowl or jar (at least 4 cup), mix vinegar, salt, oregano, chili, and 1 3/4 cups water. Combine cabbage, carrot, and onion; add to bowl and push mixture down into liquid.

2. Cover and chill 4 hours or up to 1 week; mix occasionally to keep vegetables immersed in liquid.

3. To serve, lift out relish with a slotted spoon and drain.

Per 1/2 cup: 20 cal., 4.5% (0.9 cal.) from fat; 0.7 g protein; 0.1 g fat (0 g sat.); 4.8 g carbo (1.2 g fiber); 342 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.