The cabbage (Brassica oleracea Capitata Group) is a plant of the Family Brassicaceae (or Cruciferae). It is herbaceous, biennial, and a dicotyledonous flowering plant with leaves forming a characteristic compact cluster. This so-called cabbage head is widely consumed — raw, cooked, or preserved — in a great variety of dishes.
The cabbage head was bred into the species from the leafy wild plant, found in the Mediterranean region around 100 AD. The English name derives from the French caboche ("head"). Varieties include red cabbage and savoy cabbage.
Besides cabbage proper, the species, Brassica oleracea has many distinctive cultivars, which are commonly known by other names: broccoli (Italica Group), cauliflower (Botrytis Group), kale, collard greens, and spring greens (Acephala Group), kohlrabi (Gongylodes Group), brussels sprouts (Gemmifera Group), Chinese kale or Chinese broccoli (Alboglabra Group), broccolini (Italica × Alboglabra Group), and broccoflower (Italica × Botrytis Group).
Chinese cabbage, while resembling cabbage, is an independent development from a different Brassica species. Kerguelen cabbage is yet another unrelated species.
Uses
The only part of the plant that is normally eaten is the leafy head; more precisely, the spherical cluster of immature leaves, excluding the partially unfolded outer leaves. Cabbages are commonly used both cooked and as a salad vegetable. Sauerkraut is a fermented cabbage often used as a condiment or side dish.
Salads
Cabbage leaves are considered too tough to be used whole in salads, so they are usually sliced into thin strips or chopped, as in coleslaw.
Cooking
Cabbage is often prepared by boiling, usually as part of soups or stews such as the Central and Eastern European borscht.
Boiling tenderizes the leaves, converts some of their starch to sugars, and develops a characteristic "cabbage" aroma. Indeed, boiled cabbage seem to have fallen out of favor in North America, possibly due to the strong smell released during the cooking, to its image as a food of the poor, or to its reputation for promoting flatulence. Boiled cabbage as an accompainiment to meats and other dishes can be an opportune source of umami, sugars and dietary fiber.
Fermented and preserved
Cabbage is often consumed as sauerkraut, a preserve made from sliced, cooked, and fermented heads. Sauerkraut was historically prepared at home, as a way of storing food for the winter; but its production is time-consuming and smelly, so nowadays it is mainly an industrialized product.