The short answer
Steamed cabbage is a quick, tasty Caribbean side dish of shredded cabbage cooked, or steamed, with onion, sweet pepper, carrot, thyme, scotch bonnet and seasonings until just tender but still with a little bite. Despite the name, it is usually more sauteed or braised than truly steamed, cooked quickly in a covered pan so it keeps its colour and freshness. It is a much loved everyday side, especially in Jamaica, served with rice and peas, fried or stewed chicken, fish and other mains, and it is often made with saltfish. In the UK the ingredients are sold by African and Caribbean food shops and supermarkets.
What to remember
- Steamed cabbage is a quick Caribbean side dish of shredded cabbage cooked with peppers and seasonings.
- It is usually sauteed or braised rather than truly steamed, so it keeps colour and a little bite.
- It is seasoned with onion, sweet pepper, carrot, thyme and scotch bonnet.
- It is a much loved everyday side, especially in Jamaica, and is often made with saltfish.
- The ingredients are sold by African and Caribbean food shops and supermarkets in the UK.
For Caribbean people in Britain, steamed cabbage is a homely, familiar taste of home. It is the quick, colourful side on the dinner plate, the cabbage and saltfish at breakfast, the tasty vegetable that rounds out the rice and peas and chicken, the simple dish cooked in countless family kitchens. Making steamed cabbage far from home brings back everyday meals and Sunday dinners, the comfort of home in every tasty forkful.
There is real heart in it too, in a dish so humble and so loved, showing the Caribbean gift for making simple ingredients sing with good seasoning. It reflects a whole culture of resourceful, flavourful, wholesome food, and to cook a pan of steamed cabbage is to keep that alive. Making it for family who grew up on it, or showing a friend how good a simple cabbage can be, is a small act of welcome. That tasty, homely taste of home is the gift of steamed cabbage.
What is steamed cabbage?
Steamed cabbage is a simple, popular Caribbean side dish, especially loved in Jamaica, of shredded cabbage cooked quickly with aromatics and seasonings into a tasty, colourful side. Despite the name, Caribbean steamed cabbage is usually cooked more like a saute or quick braise, the cabbage cooked in a covered pan with a little oil and its own moisture over a fairly high heat, so it softens but stays bright, fresh and slightly crisp rather than being boiled soft. This keeps its colour, texture and goodness.
What makes it distinctly Caribbean is the seasoning, as the cabbage is cooked with onion, sweet pepper, carrot, spring onion, thyme and a little scotch bonnet, which lift a plain vegetable into a flavourful, gently spiced side. It is quick, healthy, affordable and delicious, which is why it is such an everyday favourite. Steamed cabbage belongs to the world of Caribbean dishes we cover in our guide to Jamaican food, and it is a classic side for mains like rice and peas and dishes made with saltfish.
How are steamed cabbage made and eaten?
Making steamed cabbage is quick and easy. The cabbage is shredded or chopped, and aromatics, onion, garlic, sweet pepper, carrot, spring onion, thyme and a little scotch bonnet, are sauteed in a little oil to build flavour. The cabbage is then added, seasoned, and cooked in a covered pan over a fairly high heat, stirred now and then, for just a few minutes until it wilts and softens but keeps some bite and its bright colour. Cooking it briefly is the key, as overcooking makes it soggy and dull.
Steamed cabbage is wonderfully versatile as a side, and it is served alongside all sorts of Caribbean mains, rice and peas, fried or stewed chicken, brown stew or fried fish, and it is a common part of a plate of food or a Sunday dinner. A much loved variation is cabbage and saltfish, where flaked salt cod is cooked in with the cabbage to make a tasty dish that can be a side or a light main, often eaten at breakfast with fried dumplings or ground provisions. This is general food information rather than dietary advice, and versions with saltfish contain fish. Quick, colourful and tasty, steamed cabbage is a beloved Caribbean side.
Steamed cabbage in caribbean food culture
Steamed cabbage holds a warm, everyday place in Caribbean food culture, a humble but much loved side that appears on tables across the islands and the diaspora. In Jamaica it is a staple side dish, quick to make and endlessly useful, rounding out a plate of rice and peas and meat or fish, and the cabbage and saltfish version is a beloved, economical dish that has fed families for generations. It reflects the Caribbean way of turning simple, affordable ingredients into something tasty and satisfying with good seasoning.
Every cook has their own touch, some adding tomato, some more or less pepper, some making it with saltfish, but the quick-cooked, well-seasoned, colourful cabbage is always at its heart. For Caribbean people, steamed cabbage is a comforting, familiar taste of home, and for anyone exploring Caribbean food it is an easy, healthy and delicious side to try. This article is general food and cultural information. Quick, tasty and wholesome, steamed cabbage is a treasured Caribbean side dish.
Where to buy the ingredients in the UK
Making steamed cabbage at home in Britain is very easy, as the ingredients are everywhere. Cabbage, carrot, onion and sweet pepper are sold in every supermarket and greengrocer, and African and Caribbean food shops stock the scotch bonnet, thyme, spring onion and seasonings that give the dish its Caribbean flavour, along with saltfish for the popular cabbage and saltfish version. Fresh cabbage and good seasoning are all you really need.
If you want to make steamed cabbage, an African or Caribbean food shop can point you to the scotch bonnet, thyme and seasonings, and the saltfish if you want it, plus the rice and peas or mains to serve it with. You can find African food stores near you or look up Caribbean food stores near you, where these ingredients are familiar items. Quick, colourful and full of flavour, steamed cabbage brings a tasty taste of the Caribbean to your table.
Frequently asked questions
What is steamed cabbage?
Steamed cabbage is a quick, tasty Caribbean side dish of shredded cabbage cooked with onion, sweet pepper, carrot, thyme, scotch bonnet and seasonings until just tender but still with a little bite. Despite the name, it is usually more sauteed or braised than truly steamed, so it keeps its colour and freshness. It is a much loved everyday side, especially in Jamaica.
Is Caribbean steamed cabbage really steamed?
Not exactly. Despite the name, Caribbean steamed cabbage is usually cooked more like a quick saute or braise, cooked in a covered pan with a little oil and its own moisture over a fairly high heat, so it softens but stays bright and slightly crisp rather than being boiled or steamed soft. Cooking it briefly is the key to keeping its colour and bite.
How do you make steamed cabbage?
Onion, garlic, sweet pepper, carrot, spring onion, thyme and a little scotch bonnet are sauteed in a little oil, then the shredded cabbage is added, seasoned, and cooked in a covered pan over fairly high heat for just a few minutes until it wilts but keeps some bite and colour. Overcooking makes it soggy, so it is cooked quickly.
What is cabbage and saltfish?
Cabbage and saltfish is a much loved Caribbean variation of steamed cabbage where flaked salt cod, or saltfish, is cooked in with the seasoned cabbage. It makes a tasty dish that can be a side or a light main, and it is often eaten at breakfast with fried dumplings or ground provisions. As it contains fish, it is not suitable for those with a seafood allergy.
Where can I buy the ingredients in the UK?
Cabbage, carrot, onion and sweet pepper are sold in every supermarket and greengrocer, and African and Caribbean food shops stock the scotch bonnet, thyme, spring onion and seasonings for the Caribbean flavour, plus saltfish for the cabbage and saltfish version. You can find African food stores near you for the seasonings and saltfish and the mains to serve it with. African Stores lists African and Caribbean food shops across the UK, so you can find one near you.
