Napa cabbage au gratin

Years ago, I asked Husband-then-Boyfriend to pick up a head of cabbage on the way home from work. I thought this would be fairly straightforward for an Irish lad. He came home with cabbage alright, but rather than the green or white variety that's commonly found in Ireland, he presented me with a head of napa cabbage. When I asked him how come he picked this 'exotic' variety, he said, rather logically, that he assumed I'd want it as I was Asian ...

So years later, whenever I see napa cabbage in the shops, I'm reminded of the incident and would enjoy an inner chuckle.

A few weeks ago, I picked up a beautiful head of napa cabbage and smokey cubed pancetta. For dinner, I made a dish that my mum used to make when I was a kid -- napa cabbage au gratin, complete with homemade, wheat-free Bechamel.

Napa cabbage au gratin

Ingredients for the cabbage

1 medium-size head of napa cabbage, broken into pieces
150g cubed pancetta or bacon
2 tsp minced garlic
pink salt, to taste
fresh ground pepper, to taste
Bechamel sauce (see below)
1 C cheddar cheese (or mozzarella for milder flavour), grated

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
2. In a wok or deep casserole frying pan, sauté the pancetta till the fat starts rendering. Mix in the minced garlic and sauté.
3. Mix in the cabbage and sauté light and season.
4. Cover with lid and cook for 3-5 minutes, till the cabbage softens slightly.
5. Turn off the heat and move the cabbage to a dish for later. Keep the cabbage juice in a separate bowl to use for loosening up the Bechamel later.
   
6. Prepare the Bechamel (see below).
7. In a deep baking dish, pour in the cabbage and pancetta. Then pour the Bechamel over and top with the grated cheese.
   
8. Cover the dish with aluminium foil and bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
9. Remove the aluminium foil and bake for another 2-3 minutes, until the cheese turns golden.
10. Serve immediately.
    

Basic recipe for a wheat/gluten-free Bechamel 

(adjust accordingly for portion)

1 tbsp + 1 tsp gluten-free flour (I use sweet rice flour)
1 tbsp butter/fat 
1 C whole milk
1 tsp milled chia seeds, optional
salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Melt the butter/fat in a small saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add the flour, and stir to ensure the flour is fully coated with the fat. 
3. Continue to stir until the roux begins to dry out a bit and just starts to become golden, about 3-5 minutes. 
4. Add ¼ cup of the milk, stirring well to loosen the roux. The mixture will begin to thicken into a paste as it heats up.
5. Stir in the milled chia if using.
6. Stir in the remaining milk and mix well with a whisk, stirring to avoid clumps forming. Season as needed. Continue to whisk as the mixture thickens. It will be ready when your whisk leaves 'tracks' in the sauce.
7. If the sauce becomes too thick, loosen it up with some liquid (like the natural juice from the cooking of cabbage).

Napa cabbage au gratin