A Teaspoon Of This Pantry Staple Turns Cabbage From Bland To Packed With Flavor

When it comes to exciting ways to prepare cabbage, treating it like you would a protein generally gets successful results. For example, flavor-bombing your cabbage with steak seasoning or copying the viral cabbage boil hack implements both flavors and cooking methods you'd usually reserve for steak and shellfish, respectively. And you can add another trick to your list, because even something as simple as chicken bouillon powder can make your cabbage craveable. You can use the chicken bouillon to make a paste and add it to the cabbage for a flavor-packed result.

Chicken bouillon powder is so flavorful because it's made from seasoned, dehydrated chicken stock. It's sometimes compressed into little individual cubes or sold in powder form alongside the other dry seasonings in the grocery store. Normally used to add savory, meaty umami to soups and stews, those bouillon granules can also be turned into a paste if you mix them with a little fat. Butter works well as the added fat of choice, but cooking your cabbage in beef tallow brings a ton of additional flavor and makes the leaves beautifully tender — either is a fine option. Both fats are fairly solid at room temperature but quickly melt into silky pools when exposed to heat. 

Fat also enhances and carries flavor, meaning it'll intensify all that tasty nuance to help ensure your cabbage becomes evenly coated with silky texture and beautifully meaty flavor. Additionally, rather than hiding the cabbage's natural earthy sweetness, the bouillon blends with it to create a hearty richness that completely overcomes this veggie's reputation for being bland and bitter. Bonus points if you choose to fry your cabbage to give it crispy, bouillon-flavored edges.

The traditional method of using chicken bouillon granules is to dissolve them in a little warm water before adding them to your dish, but creating a lush, fatty paste — like this method calls for — actually makes the bouillon more versatile. For instance, you couldn't fry cabbage in a pool of bouillon liquid with no fat, as it would simply steam. The same goes for roasting and any other cooking method meant to create a crisp, golden exterior. You can also use the fat-based bouillon paste to coat cabbage before grilling it to get gorgeous, perfect grill marks. 

Whether fried, roasted, grilled, and so on, chicken bouillon powder and cabbage are a perfect pairing as a side dish to grilled sausage, roasted chicken, or as a main dish with potatoes and onions. Additionally, if you love using leftover cabbage, this is the perfect way to season a really big batch for make-ahead meals. Not only will it be flavorful if eaten immediately, but it'll add that much more deliciousness to soups, stir-fries, and dishes like colcannon.

While it may seem wise to simply purchase premade bouillon paste to flavor your cabbage rather than keep the granules on hand, it's important to note that the powder is shelf stable, while the paste needs to be refrigerated after opening. That means it's much more cost effective and prudent to keep a canister of the powder or a container of the individual cubes in your pantry, so when a cabbage craving hits, you can put it to work without creating leftovers you might not finish in time.