Sarson's Red Cabbage - 460g

Pickled red cabbage belongs to the sharp end of British food, alongside the pickled onions and the piccalilli. It is the thing that sits next to a hotpot, a bowl of scouse, a slab of pork pie or a ploughman's, and makes the whole plate make sense.

People in Canada go looking for it by name because the taste is particular. It has to be that sharpness and that colour, the Sarson's one, or the hotpot your mum made just does not come out the same.

It comes in a 460g glass jar that sits quietly in the cupboard until you need it. Once it is open, most people keep it in the fridge, drain off a forkful at a time, and somehow find a reason to have it with nearly everything that week.

The Sarson's name is the one on the malt vinegar bottle by every chip shop counter, so it rarely travels alone. A pork pie, a block of strong Cheddar and a jar of pickled onions tend to end up in the same basket.