Serves 8-12 as an accompaniment

Not so much luxury ingredients here, as stunning presentation. The only tricky part is preparing the cabbage for stuffing. You are aiming to keep the outer leaves connected to the base of the cabbage, while you carve out the cabbage head whole to shred. Adapt this recipe by stuffing it with nut roast for a vegetarian alternative.

1 large savoy cabbage
1 tbsp duck or goose fat
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp golden caster sugar
Handful of thyme sprigs, leaves picked
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
200g pancetta, sliced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
500g quality sausage meat
1 tbsp finely chopped sage leaves

1 First prepare the cabbage for stuffing. Peel a few of the outer cabbage leaves open, bending them back gently. Holding the outer leaves open, take a small sharp knife and cut the cabbage head from the middle, removing it from its base. You can also try twisting the cabbage head with your hands while holding the base.

2 Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Blanch the cabbage shell for 2 minutes or until tender. Remove and plunge into cold water. Drain well. Finely shred half of the cabbage head and set aside.

3 In a large, deep frying pan, heat the duck or goose fat over a moderate heat. Add the sliced onion, sugar, thyme and garlic and stir well. Cover with a damp piece of crumpled greaseproof paper and reduce the heat to low. Cook gently for 10 minutes, stirring every so often, dampening the greaseproof with more water if it dries out.

4 Once the onions are very soft, remove the greaseproof paper and add the pancetta. Sauté over a moderate heat for about 5 minutes until the pancetta is lightly golden. Splash the vinegar into the pan and cook until the liquid has bubbled away. Tip on to a plate and leave to cool.

5 In a large mixing bowl, combine the sausage meat, sage and onion mixture and shredded cabbage with some seasoning. Press the stuffing firmly together and shape into a ball. Place the stuffing inside the blanched cabbage leaves. Wrap the leaves around the filling to encase completely, then wrap tightly in a double layer of clingfilm.

6 Heat a 3cm depth of water in the base of a steaming pan or saucepan and bring to boiling point. Place the clingfilm-wrapped cabbage in a metal or Chinese-style bamboo steamer, cover with a lid and place on top of the pan. Steam for 1½-2 hours, topping up the water when needed, until the sausage meat is cooked and piping hot in the centre.

7 Lift out of the steamer and remove the clingfilm. Place the cabbage on a serving plate. Peel the outer cabbage leaves open and cut into slices to serve with a roast.

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