worth it

I love it when five ingredients come together to create something that's so enjoyable to put in your mouth.


On the flipside, I hate it when a dish takes a good deal of time and physical exertion to put together.

In the case of pepper slaw, both are true. The question, then, is whether the end result is worth the taxing process.

The answer? Absolutely.

Unless you have a massive, full-size food processor, shredding or grating a head of cabbage is tedious and time-consuming work. To add insult to injury, there's no instant gratification--for the best results, you really should wait for the slaw to chill and marinate.


It's totally worth it, though. After some time in the fridge, the crisp, cool cabbage and crunchy peppers are the perfect accompaniment to many dishes, from hot dogs to ham. Heck, the slaw is plenty tasty on its own. Right now, I'm thinking about a juicy, saucy pulled chicken barbecue sandwich loaded down with the stuff (insert Homer Simpson drool face and noise here).

There are two versions displayed here. One makes use of regular ol’ homegrown white cabbage and green bell pepper (thanks Merlin!) and the other is a bit more colorful, using purple cabbage and some purple bell peppers I bought at my local farmer’s market. Truth be told, the white version tastes better, but I just love that purple hue.

Pepper Slaw
(recipe from Mammicus Maximus)

1/2 cup vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 head cabbage, shredded
1-3 bell peppers, diced

Combine vinegar, sugar, and salt and heat until the sugar dissolves. Pour over the cabbage and peppers and let the mixture marinate for a day or so before digging in.