The Best Fried Cabbage Recipe is a simple six-ingredient recipe that combines cabbage, onions, and bacon cooked in butter and bacon drippings. This low-carb, easy side dish is full of flavor, low in calories, and loaded with fiber.
Fried Cabbage: The Perfect Side Dish
Get ready to wow your tastebuds with this simple and tasty fried cabbage recipe. It’s the perfect side dish for any meal and will quickly become a favorite. It is the perfect side dish for roasted chicken, grilled bratwurst, smoked sausage, and ham steak.
My family and I love cabbage. We are one crazy cabbage-loving family. It is just so nutritious, versatile, delicious, and quite economical. If you love cabbage like we do, try braised cabbage, cabbage soup, cabbage stir fry, and cabbage rolls.
Fried Cabbage Ingredients
For this recipe, you need bacon, butter, yellow onion, green cabbage, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and, if desired, Cajun seasoning and red pepper flakes.
How to make Fried Cabbage
Start by browning your slices of bacon until crisp. You can do this either in a large skillet, a large cast-iron skillet, or in the oven. Do whatever is easier for you, but reserve the bacon grease. Next, chop the browned bacon. Then melt a little butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat and add the reserved bacon grease. Add the onion and cook until tender. Add the bacon to the skillet and stir to combine with butter and onions. Increase to medium-high heat and add the cabbage. Cook until tender, stirring several times to ensure it does not burn and cooks evenly. Season to taste with salt, black pepper, and, if desired, a little Cajun seasoning and red pepper flakes.
Recipe Tips
- If available, use nitrate-free smoked bacon. It is healthier and tastes better.
- Reserve the bacon grease and add it to the skillet with the butter.
- Slice your cabbage thin to cook evenly, and soak up all that good butter and bacon grease.
- Are you in a big hurry and have to get supper on the table? No problem. Chop the raw bacon and place it in the skillet over medium heat. Cook it for 2-3 minutes, stirring several times, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Then add the butter and onions and cook as directed. The bacon will not be as crispy, but it will still be delicious.
- Add a splash of apple cider vinegar for a zippy tang.
- Serve this dish promptly. If held in the skillet too long, the cabbage will overcook.
- We like our cabbage with just a bit of crispiness and structure left, but you can adjust the cooking time to your preference for texture.
Recipe Variations
- Add 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon Cajun Seasoning and a pinch of cayenne for some spice and pizzazz.
- Add a little sweetness with 2 pinches of brown sugar and 2 cloves of minced garlic.
- Make it a complete meal with thin slices of Polska Kielbasa or all-natural chicken sausage.
- For more color and nutrition, chop some red, orange, or yellow bell pepper and add them at the same time as the chopped onion.
- To reduce the saturated fat, use turkey bacon or vegan bacon. Omit the butter and bacon grease. Cook the onion and cabbage in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Storage and Reheat
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. They can be reheated in the microwave at reduced power or on the stovetop over low heat.
To freeze fried cabbage, fully cool it, then store it in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
More delicious cabbage recipes you will love!
Fried Cabbage
Ingredients
- 6 slices smoked bacon
- 2 tablespoons butter salted or unsalted
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 1 head green cabbage cored and thinly sliced
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/4 -1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning optional
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- In a large skillet or Dutch Oven over medium heat, brown the bacon (alternately, you can do this in the stove on a baking sheet). Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon. Reserve the bacon grease. Coarsely chop the bacon.
- Melt butter and heat bacon grease in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add the chopped bacon to the skillet and stir to combine with butter and onions. Add the cabbage and cook until tender, stirring several times to make sure it does not burn and that it cooks evenly; approximately 5-7 minutes. Season to taste with salt, black pepper, and, if desired, Cajun seasoning and red pepper flakes.
Notes
- If available, use nitrate-free smoked bacon. It is healthier and really does taste better.
- Reserve the bacon grease and add it to the skillet with the butter.
- Slice your cabbage thin, so it cooks evenly and soaks up all that good butter and bacon grease.
- Are you in a super big hurry, and you have to get supper on the table? No problem. Chop the raw bacon and place it in the skillet over medium heat. Cook it for 2-3 minutes stirring several times, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Then add the butter and onions and cook as directed. The bacon will not be as crispy, but it will still be delicious.
- For a zippy tang, add a splash or two of apple cider vinegar.
- This dish is best served promptly. If held in the skillet too long, the cabbage will overcook.
- We like our cabbage with just a tiny little bit of crispiness and structure left, but you can adjust the cooking time to your texture preference.
Nutrition
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Mayuri
Yummm…this was delicious and easy! A new family favorite. Added to my rotation list. Thanks for sharing.
angie
yummy for sure thanks for sharing we do have southern roots as well as English and German so goes to figure this is one of my favorite side dishes.
Heather
My husband is a cabbage lover. He loved this fried recipe. Definitely will make again.
LisaLisa
This is one of my favorite recipes. My sister makes this and man it tastes soooo good. I love fried cabbage.
Levi Cyr-Redcross
I love Fried cabbage and this is pretty much exactly how I make it minus the meat. Sometimes I use Field Roast Sausage as a replacement. 🙂
Beth Pierce
Thanks for the tip, Levi!
Debbie
I love this fried cabbage recipe. I could eat this once a week for the rest of my life. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Claudia
This was incredibly delicious! I’m living keto, so I make this recipe quite often. It is so yummy and easy to make.
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this is very perfect
Clarice
This is my husband’s favorite but I love that you added bacon to it. Can’t wait to try it. This looks delicious.
Thank you for sharing the recipe. I think the cajun seasoning is a nice addition too.
Barbie Ritzman
Oh yummy! We love this side dish and make it often. It is a family favorite.
Gervin Khan
Oh my, this cabbage recipe was incredibly delicious and very yummy! It’s so easy to prepare and cook which is a big thumbs up! Many will definitely love this! Thanks for sharing this recipe with us!
Ntensibe Edgar
I usually like my cabbage to look like this or something similar to it. I want to try them out the southern fried way! Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Stephanie
Another great recipe from this site! We enjoyed having this for dinner – I had never fried cabbage before!
Yolanda
Baby this Southern Fried Cabbage looks so good. I don’t eat bacon but I shared it with my parents and my mom and she is going to cook this on Sunday. Great post!
Debbie
I’m so excited to find this recipe. I LOVE cabbage and every recipe I can get my hands on – I make. I can’t wait to try this!
Rich
My Mama made this recipe for years.
Fantastic, Mouth Watering, Delicious and Memorable!!!
I’m making this dish 2 to 3 times a year.
Simple to make.
Perfect side to all Meats, Poltrey and Fried Fish.
Beth Pierce
I could not agree more!