Eliminating the bitter taste of cabbage?

[uniqueenigma]

I tried cabbage raw in a salad as part of my lunch today. It was very bitter and I didn't care for the flavor at all; I hate anything bitter, that's just my palate and a personal preference.

Is there anyway to get rid of the bitter flavor cabbage has? Are there certain varieties that have a less bitter flavor and/or are milder? I want to incorporate cabbage into my diet as a regular, veggie, and eat it cooked as well as raw. However if i can't rid of the bitter flavor it has raw, there's no way I'm touching it. I want to eat it because it's good for me, and because of the fact that I love veggies. I enjoy trying new vegetables and incorporating them into my diet.

 

[larry_stewart]

Nappa cabbage , is more of a lettuce-like cabbage. Very Mild flavor. Lettuce like leaves. No bitterness, if anthing, maybe even a little sweet.

 

[Andy M.]

How do you feel about cole slaw?

 

[CharlieD]

That is very interesting; I have never tasted bitterness in the cabbage. However I am not disputing what you are saying. And the reason I am not is because, well, I red another thread about egg plants where people were arguing about egg plant being bitter. Personally, I agree with that statement, however there was one person who was screaming at everybody telling them they do not know what they are talking about, and that egg plant is never bitter. It sounded pretty rude, even to me.
Now having said that I again would like to say that I trust you and understand your frustration, however I do not have an advice for you, because, again, I have never encounter cabbage to be bitter, as the matter of fact I love raw cabbage. The only thing that I can think of is that the cabbage you had was too young. When buying cabbage try to buy the one that is the whitest one in the bunch.

 

[BreezyCooking]

I've never found raw cabbage bitter either. However, if you simply don't enjoy it raw, just enjoy it cooked. I prefer it sliced up & sauteed/braised in butter with salt & freshly-ground black pepper myself.

And Charlie, it may well have been me (or I was at least one) of the folks arguing about eggplant bitterness. In my lifetime I've never ever come across a bitter eggplant. Older ones have sometimes been seedier, but never bitter. I've never been able to understand why folks feel the need to go thru that ridiculous salting ritual. And then the rinsing & the draining - lol! All the salting does is add unneeded/wanted sodium to the vegetable, & then the following rinse just allows the eggplant (which is a serious sponge) to soak up a lot of water that any amount of draining isn't going to remove. It's all so unnecessary. But, to each his own.

 

[snack_pack85]

You could try mixing it with sweet or savory ingredients. I have a recipe for asian chicken salad that is very good. It's a ton of shredded cabbage, shredded chopped peanuts, chopped cooked terriyaki chicken tossed with asian dressing. It's sweet, it's savory and the cabbage is a great bed for this salad.

 

[GB]

I find red cabbage to be bitter, but other cabbage I have not found to be bitter. Are you using red cabbage or a different type? Try using different types.

 

[pugger]

If it's raw, I'd rather have it in slaw - limerick.

Otherwise I'd rather have cabbage cooked, it's sweet (though the smell is not so great).

 

[elaine l]

Maybe you just had a cabbage that wasn't so good? I never notice raw cabbage to have a lot of flavor. I do add it to certain things for the nice crunch.

 

[Jeff G.]

I have run into cabbages that were bitter. Most are not. I actually like a little salt on raw cabbage. If you want a fast hot fix, fry it up quickly in a sweetened butter.

 

[BreezyCooking]

Cooking cabbage always smells if it's just plain steamed or boiled.

Saute it in some butter, or in some extra-virgin olive oil with onions & garlic - nothing smells other than some great cooking going on.

 

[CharlieD]

Breezy it was not you, I was actually on my other, Russian, cooking site.

 

[turquoise623]

It does taste bitter and here's why:

You and I are what geneticists refer to as "super tasters". We have the ability to taste certain toxins in food products that other people can't. This is an ability passed to you genetically by your parents.

In Biology classes, students are given a piece of paper with a chemical called PTC on it and determine whether they carry the "super taster" gene or not. Those with the gene taste PTC as horribly bitter, while those without the gene (the majority) taste nothing. Because the toxic chemical in cabbage, broccoli, tobacco, and other foodstuffs resembles PTC, super tasters taste bitterness.

Google "PTC: Genes and Bitter Taste" to learn more.

 

[mcnerd]

If you're planning on using the cabbage raw (as in a coleslaw), try soaking the shredded cabbage in cold water for a half an hour. Much like red onions, this leaches out some of the bitter flavor compounds. It also crisps up the leaves ...

Also cut out the core of the cabbage which is where you will find most of the bitterness.