Cabbage is a very popular winter vegetable. Here is an overview of the most important species and cultivated forms.
The perceived selection of food has never been greater than it is today, but in our opinion this appearance is a bit deceptive. Because high-quality means of living have become an exception. Consequently, we are happy to be able to cover part of our need for herbs, fruit and vegetables from our own garden. After all, doesn't the tomato from your own garden smell better than the mass-produced product from the Dutch greenhouse? And doesn't it taste a lot more intense?
In addition to tomatoes, cabbage (lat. brassica) in its various forms has also grown dear to our hearts. Cabbage is a genus of cruciferous plants. Today's term Kohl goes back to the Germans and their word chôl, which in turn was derived from the Latin caulis. Caulis means something like stalk or stalk, which suggests that cabbage was already known as a cultivated plant back then.
There are about 40 types of cabbage in total, which in turn contain countless cultivated forms. In addition to various wild species, there are also a handful of species that are of economic importance. This article is intended to give an initial overview of the most important types and cultivated forms of cabbage - some of which are quite unknown, but all the more tasty:
1. Kale (Brassica oleracea):
Probably the type of cabbage that includes the most important cultivated forms in our latitudes. Depending on the form of cultivation, cabbage has been a valued vegetable for many centuries or even millennia. Cabbage was mentioned in Greek literature as early as the 5th century BC. Vegetable cabbage includes:
Cauliflower: This type of cabbage develops tightly packed flower sprouts, which are an integral part of our kitchen. In contrast to many other types of cabbage, the inflorescence forms in the first year of cultivation. While only white cauliflower is known in Germany, there are a large number of colored varieties that are particularly popular in the Mediterranean countries. A variety of cauliflower is the Romanesco, also nicknamedCarrying minaret cabbage.
Broccoli: The cultivated form, also known as sprout cabbage, is closely related to cauliflower. As with cauliflower, flower sprouts (so-called florets) form in the first year of cultivation. However, the flower buds are clearly visible and are also greenish to greenish-purple.
Espigall: This is a regional and very old cultivated form of cabbage. Originally created in Catalonia, this variety has almost disappeared into obscurity. It is only thanks to the efforts of a gourmet restaurant and a few Catalan foundations that Espigall is still available in the Barcelona area today. The taste is significantly milder than that of kale. The texture is very crisp due to the high stem to leaf ratio. Espigall is fried briefly and is often served as a spicy side dish with pasta and meat. It can also be made into tasty Espigall chips.
Flower Sprout: Also known as florets, this novelty is a real eye-catcher. This cultivated form was created by crossing Brussels sprouts and kale, which also explains the similarity to Brussels sprouts. Flower Sprout has a much milder taste and only needs to be cooked for a short time, which preserves many of its valuable vitamins.
Green cabbage: Green cabbage, also known as brown cabbage or curly cabbage, is probably one of the oldest cultivated forms of cabbage. As early as a few centuries before Christ, one finds images with a very similar appearance in Greek records.
Kohlrabi: In some regions, kohlrabi is also known under the names turnip cabbage or stem turnip, which it owes to its thickened stem. In addition to the white to light green kohlrabi bulbs, there are also varieties with a violet skin, which hardly differ in taste.
Head cabbage: This type of cabbage was voted Vegetable of the Year in Germany in 2006. Maybe you can't imagine anything more specific under headed cabbage, but certainly under its characteristics. Headed cabbage includes red, white, pointed cabbage and savoy cabbage. A particularly rare variety is butter cabbage, which already exists in Germanyalmost extinct and is only cultivated by a few farms.
Palm cabbage: This type of cabbage, also known as black cabbage, has a particularly delicate taste. It is slightly reminiscent of kale, but is milder and more varied in taste. Especially in Italy, palm cabbage is served raw with salads (cf. palm cabbage salad) or briefly fried with pasta and meat.
Brussels sprouts: Brussels sprouts, which are particularly unpopular with children, are nutritionally valuable due to their extremely high vitamin C content. The up to 120 cm high stalks form the so-called roses between the leaf axils in autumn, which are best harvested after the first night frosts. The flower sprouts (or floret cabbage) is very similar in habit.
Ornamental cabbage: Ornamental cabbage is a more than welcome plant for all hobby gardeners who would like to harvest magnificent beds and vegetables at the same time. This type of cabbage forms the cabbage heads in different color facets and various shapes. Decorative cabbage not only adorns the garden bed in the truest sense of the word, but also decorates food plates. If you grow it from seed, making sure it's free of chemical sprays (likely used by garden centers), you can also cook it like regular head cabbage.
2. Canola (Brassica napus)
Rapeseed: The classic oilseed rape (Brassica napus subsp. napus) with its well-known and striking yellow flowers also belongs to the cabbage family. This is mainly cultivated for the production of rapeseed oil, both as cooking oil and as biofuel. A by-product is rapeseed cake, which is mainly fed to animals. Rapeseed is often confused with yellow mustard, which from a distance looks very similar when it is in bloom.
Scheerkohl: The type of cabbage, also known as Scheerkohl, has been particularly popular in Germany over the past few centuries. Because it was one of the first vegetables to be harvested in the new year. The young and tender leaves are usually 5 to 10cm long and can be harvested as early as a month and a half after sowing. The leaves can likespinach and has a slightly cabbage and delicate taste.
Red turnip: The type of rapeseed, also known as swede or kohlrabi, served as a staple food or food reserve in times of need by being processed into so-called beet flour. The rounded to oval swedes usually have a white to greenish-yellow skin and white to yellowish flesh. The plant is considered to be quite undemanding in cultivation and is now increasingly being cultivated and marketed again.
3. Turnip rape (Brassica rapa)
Chinese cabbage: This type of cabbage, also known as Peking or Japanese cabbage, is characterized by the slightly curled leaf veins and its white to light green leaves. Its taste is quite mild, which makes it a popular raw food. In Asia, it is also traditionally added to wok dishes. In general, Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis) should not be confused with Pak Choi (Brassica rapa chinensis). become.
Cime di rapa: There are many names for this vegetable, which we rarely find here: cabbage, rappa, rapini or broccoli raab are some of the names for cime di rapa (Brassica rapa var. cymosa). As with broccoli and cauliflower, the inflorescences form in the first year. However, while broccoli usually develops a clear main inflorescence, cime di rapa forms several inflorescences and also has the curly leaves typical of turnips. Especially in Italy, kale is a popular side dish during the winter months.
Autumn turnip: The autumn turnip, which is closely related to the May turnip, is one of the turnips. A distinction is usually made between two different types: the spherical and the elongated-oval autumn turnip. This type can be white, white-reddish or white-violet in colour. While the autumn turnip used to be of great importance as a staple food, it was almost completely replaced by the potato in the course of the 18th and 19th centuries.
May turnip: The may turnip, also known as may turnip, is closely related to the autumn turnip, but does not grow quite as large. Harvest time is also much earlier, from May to June. Visually, the turnips are very attractive with their completely white or white-purple skin. Also theThe taste is significantly more delicate than that of the autumn turnip. It reminds me of radishes. In addition to the root, the foliage can also be processed like spinach.
Pak Choi: The Pak Choi, also known as Chinese leaf or mustard cabbage, which is mainly grown in Asia, is particularly characterized by its dominant, white or light green leaf stalks. Pak choi is often confused with the visually very similar chard, which, however, belongs to a completely different plant genus. This type of cabbage can either be eaten raw or made into a stir-fry. The very tender and juicy leaf stalks are also used for this.
You can find out how to grow the Asian Pak Choi in the garden as well as helpful tips on varieties and harvesting in our special article.