Braised red cabbage: how much it costs to make, per portion
Braised red cabbage costs £0.20 a portion in ingredients (£1.99 for a batch of 10), from UK pack prices dated 25 October 2026. To reach 68% GP, the UK food benchmark, it needs to sell for at least £0.75 including 20% VAT (£0.62 without).
A make-ahead Christmas side that holds and reheats well: red cabbage braised slowly with apple, onion, sugar, red wine vinegar and mixed spice. Ten portions, costed from JJ Foodservice and Morrisons prices read on 25 October 2026.
The lowest price is the one that just reaches 68% GP, the UK food GP benchmark (UKHospitality × Christie & Co, 2022: 65.9–69% food GP across every segment). It covers the ingredients at a normal margin, not staff, rent or energy, and most cafés, pubs and takeaways charge more for simple dishes. Check what places near you charge. GP is worked out on the ex-VAT price.
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Ingredients and cost, 10 portions
| Ingredient | Pack price | Pack size | Used | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red cabbage | £7.99 | 10000 g | 1100 g | £0.88 |
| Apples | £16.99 | 12000 g | 300 g | £0.42 |
| Brown onions | £7.49 | 10000 g | 200 g | £0.15 |
| Granulated sugar | £15.79 | 10000 g | 60 g | £0.09 |
| Red wine vinegar | £1.49 | 1000 ml | 80 ml | £0.12 |
| Salted butter | £29.99 | 5000 g | 40 g | £0.24 |
| Ground mixed spice | £1.09 | 28 g | 2 g | £0.08 |
| Table salt | £8.99 | 12500 g | 5 g | £0.00 |
| Batch total | £1.99 | |||
| Per portion (÷ 10) | £0.20 | |||
Cost per line is pack price × (amount used ÷ pack size), the same sum the tool runs. Change one pack price and every line that uses it moves.
What it really costs: waste and staff time
| Ingredients | £0.20 |
| Waste allowance, 5% (trim, ends, the odd one binned) | £0.01 |
| Staff time: 20 min hands-on for the batch of 10 at £12.71/hr + 25% on-cost | £0.53 |
| Food, waste and staff per portion | £0.74 |
At the lowest price (£0.62 ex VAT) that is 119% of the price, before rent, energy and everything else. Many UK sites aim to keep food plus staff (prime cost) at or under 60–65% of sales. The staff line counts hands-on prep only, not unattended cooking, and uses the April 2026 National Living Wage; put your own rate, minutes and waste in the calculator's real cost section or the prime cost calculator. Every dish side by side: the UK dish cost index.
Method
- Quarter, core and finely shred the cabbage; peel, core and dice the apples; slice the onion.
- Soften the onion in the butter, then add everything else with 100 ml water.
- Cover and braise at 160 °C, or on a low hob, for 1½ hours, stirring now and then, until soft and glossy.
Costing notes
Trim is costed in. The cabbage is priced at the weight bought; trimming the outer leaves and core leaves about 80% (cabbage yield), so 1.1 kg bought gives about 880 g shredded.
Where the prices came from
JJ Foodservice collection prices (single-unit price, no multi-buy tiers) and Morrisons shelf prices, read on 25 October 2026. Morrisons lines are used where JJ Foodservice listed no equivalent that day; wholesale is usually lower, so treat those lines as cautious. Prices are as listed; JJ does not label VAT on most lines, and most raw food is zero-rated in the UK while alcohol and some ingredients carry standard-rate VAT. Your supplier's price is the one that matters: open the recipe and type it in.
- Red cabbage: Red cabbage (VEG001), 10 kg, £7.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Apples: Green apples (FRU161), 12 kg, £16.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Brown onions: Brown cooking onions (VEG655), 10 kg, £7.49 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Granulated sugar: Tate & Lyle granulated sugar (SPI021), 10 kg, £15.79 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Red wine vinegar: Red wine vinegar (SAU315), 1 litre, £1.49 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Salted butter: Lakeland salted butter, 20 x 250 g (DAI185), 5 kg, £29.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
- Ground mixed spice: Morrisons Ground Mixed Spice (retail), 28 g, £1.09 shelf price — Morrisons (retail), accessed 2026-10-25
- Table salt: JJ table salt (SPI019), 12.5 kg, £8.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-25
More costed dishes: seasonal
- Smoked salmon starter — £1.87 a portion
- Prawn cocktail — £1.41 a portion
- Chicken liver pâté with toast — £0.78 a portion
- Sherry trifle — £0.81 a portion