Once You Make Cabbage The Jacques Pépin Way, You'll Never Go Back

Are your tried and true cabbage recipes starting to feel a little "blah?" There's no better-equipped rescuer than chef Jacques Pépin to save the day. In an Instagram post by The Jacques Pépin Foundation, the chef shares his go-to technique for preparing braised cabbage. Forget bland, steamed ribbons of limp leaf. The recipient of three Michelin stars, multiple James Beard awards, and France's most decorated honor makes his braised cabbage with a "sweet and sour" facelift.

To do it, Pépin starts with diced, toothy, thick-cut bacon, browned in a skillet with vegetable or peanut oil. From there, Pépin adds aromatic chunks of garlic and onion, cooking the ingredients down before adding an entire head of savory green cabbage sliced into half-inch-thick strips. Now for the "pièces de résistance" (as the French chef himself might say): An acidic moisture component of water and apple cider vinegar, plus salt, red pepper flakes, and a generous scoop of brown sugar — hence the "sweet and sour" in Pépin's dish. To cook, he simply covers the pan with a lid, then leaves it alone to slowly reduce and braise for 40 to 45 minutes. The result is a dimensional, low-prep-work side dish that totally transforms regular old cabbage. As a fan writes in the comments section of the video post, "I think what I love most about Jacques is that he takes simple ingredients and makes the most beautiful, delicious dishes."

Pépin has many tips for home cooks, but when it comes to the chef's approach to cooking with vegetables, his dogma is one that most foodies can probably get behind: Be frugal, resourceful, and use every part of the vegetable to save money and reduce food waste. To get the most out of that head of cabbage, Pépin slices off the stem using a large chef's knife, then (rather than discarding it) cuts the tough stem into small, bite-sized pieces to soften up in the pan during that long, slow braise.

As Pépin shares with Tasting Table in an exclusive interview, he's an outspoken advocate of seasonal cooking. But, happily, because cabbage can be grown in different regions across the U.S., the crop is in peak season throughout the entire year, depending on where it is cultivated. Per the video, Pépin makes braised cabbage during the winter months as a versatile accompaniment to myriad dishes, specifically mentioning using it as a garnish for a roast.

To get your brainstorm rolling, we've rounded up 16 of our favorite pot roast recipes, perfect for topping with a bed of Pépin's sweet and sour cabbage. This dimensional, veggie-forward accouterment would also pair fabulously alongside our crispy, sweet and sour pork recipe, really driving the juxtaposed flavor contrast home.