Braising cabbage, and homemade seasoned salt

I've been pretty busy with work the last few weeks, so I've been keeping my cooking more simple just to cut down on stress. Specifically I've learned a braising technique that makes excellent cabbage (and works on any types of veggies).

I also ran out of seasoned salt in the middle of the week and decided to whip up my own batch. It's based on a recipe I found online, but customized to my ingredient selection and taste. I'll share that recipe here.

This is a good combo post because seasoned salt is awesome for seasoning meat in a jiffy, and a side of braised veggies is (especially with something as filling as cabbage) really all you need for a complete, healthy, and delicious meal.

Seasoned salt also goes great on eggs, and cheese toast.  I use it that way for breakfast a lot because my brain is too dead to think hard.

Braised red cabbage, served alongside pan-fried drumsticks, seasoned with cracked black pepper, and homemade seasoned salt.

Generic cabbage recipe:

~1/3 of a large cabbage per serving after mixed with some veg

PREP
cut off just the dirty part of the root
peel the outer leaves that are damaged and covered in pesticide
wash the rest (wash it after chopping)
remove the root and dice it, cook it as if it were onions

SEASONING GREEN CABBAGE
(seasoning is per 3 servings)
* 3~4 md cloves of garlic crushed and chopped
* 1/2 lg or 1 md onion
* other veggies if desired (recommended: cauliflower, carrots)
* ~2 tsp chicken boullion
* 1~1.5 tsp chili flakes
* ~0.5 tsp cracked black pepper
* 0.5~1 tsp fennel seeds
* water as needed
* pinch of salt or as needed

SEASONING RED CABBAGE
(seasoning is per 3 servings)
* 3~4 cloves of garlic crushed and chopped
* 1/2 lg or 1 md onion
* other veggies if desired (recommended: carrots)
* ~ 2 tsp tomato boullion with chicken flavor
* ~0.5 tsp cracked black pepper
* spoon of dark fruit jam (i.e. blueberry or blackberry)
* water as needed
* pinch of salt or as needed


COOKING EITHER TYPE
heat a high edge pan on medium until hot
add generous amount of EVOO (~2 tsp per serving) and let it heat

add ALL THE VEGGIES
let them fry and caramelize slightly
add the water (start with around 1/4 cup per 1/3 large cabbage if not sure)
add all the seasonings
stir the top into the bottom regularly until it all wilts
once cabbage is nearly as tender as desired, taste test and adjust
add more water if more cook time is needed for tender cabbage

Braising green cabbage, this time with cauliflower.  A really easy and effective combo, I think.  I just let all the veggies brown a bit while adding the seasonings.

Frying some meat on one burner, while braising some cabbage on the other.  So easy :)

Green cabbage dish, served alongside dry marinated pork chops (just added more spices to Chef John's recipe, here: https://youtu.be/lVD7aVl4570 ).  I also made some homemade applesauce, using braeburn apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and brown sugar.  Served it with some festbier.  It was an excellent meal :)  Those pork chops were a bit bigger than I thought they were, though.

Seasoned salt blend:

3 Tbsp idiozied salt
1 Tbsp tomato boullion with chicken flavor
2 tsp spanish paprika
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp fine cracked black pepper
1/8 tsp tumeric powder
1/8 tsp corn starch
pinch of sugar
pinch of white pepper powder

Just put it all into a bowl and whisk it together.

Use a spoon or a funnel to transfer into some spice containers, you can even re-use old ones if you want.  I thought mine was better than Lawry's though, so I didn't do that.

I'd like to point out that Lawry's seasoned salt contains a food coloring agent that makes their blend appear more colorful than it actually is.  You'll find that my blend has a less uniform color (the salt stands out more).  But at the same time, it's actually less salty.