Salvadoran Spicy Pickled Cabbage: Curtido

"Curtido" is a cousin to Korean "kimchi," as well as to "sauerkraut," because they are all types of fermented foods. In another sense, it is similar to coleslaw,* as it is a kind of slaw used as a topping for some Central American dishes, or as a side dish to accompany main dishes. While "curtido" has a strong connection to El Salvador, it is not uncommon in other Central American countries. I'm not a big fan of very sour foods, so I added a little sugar, and when I checked other curtido recipes, I found a few that added small amounts of sugar, although admittedly only 3 out of more than 20 I checked. While the amount of sugar is small, it does help to take a little of the sharp edge off of the high vinegar content. If you don't like "heat," you can reduce the amount of chili pepper, or just add a small amount of red chili flakes or a pinch of cayenne pepper, but "curtido" is meant to have a "kick" to it.

Ingredients:

1 bag cole slaw mix of shredded cabbage and shredded carrot (or you can shred your own slaw: 1 small to medium head of cabbage, cored and thinly shredded; 1 small carrot, shredded)
1 small white onion, chopped
1 hot chili pepper (like serrano or jalapeño, but use what you have or like), finely chopped
1 heaping tablespoon non iodized salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons oregano (Mexican oregano, if you have it) 
2/3 cup cider vinegar
(optional) 1 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup water

Use a non reactive bowl, like glass or stoneware. Add all of the ingredients to the bowl. Mix the ingredients together by hand, squeezing handfuls of the cabbage mixture, which will reduce the volume of the shredded and chopped vegetables. Make sure all of the mix gets bathed in the vinegary brine. In the picture below, the cabbage mix pretty much filled the bowl, at first, but some mixing and squeezing reduced it by about half. While you can't see it easily, most of the cabbage mix is in the brine. This slaw is best if covered with some plastic wrap and refrigerated for a few hours, or even better for about a day in advance of use.

* American coleslaw is a commonly offered side dish in many restaurants, diners and barbecue shops, but it is also made by many in their home kitchens. Most times, but certainly not exclusively, coleslaw is finely chopped cabbage and carrot mixed with a creamy sweet and sour dressing, with the creamy element usually coming from the addition of mayonnaise to the dressing. On the other hand, some individuals and restaurants use a vinegar-based dressing with no mayonnaise, that puts this type of coleslaw somewhat closer to "curtido." While coleslaw is most often used as a side dish or side salad, it is also added to various sandwiches as a topping.      

WORD HISTORY:
Tropic/Tropics-This word goes back to Indo European "trep," which had the notion of, "turn;" thus also, "change." This gave transliterated Ancient Greek "tropē," which meant, "turn, change, the times of year when the sun reaches farthest north or south; thus, solstice." This gave Ancient Greek the transliterated adjective "tropikós," meaning, "having to do with a change," "of or about the solstice," and this was borrowed by Latin as "tropicus," initially with the same meanings, but only the solstice meaning continued, and it came to be applied to the region around the equator. English borrowed the word from Latin in the second half of the 1300s.