Get a “head” of dinner with Fried Cabbage—a delicious appetizer made from simple yet savory ingredients!
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True story: my family used to be enamored with cabbages in a way that baffled me as a child. In my opinion, the superior leafy head was lettuce (always a refreshingly light low-calorie bite!) but for some reason the matriarchs in my family would even substitute that with leaves of cabbage! If it was on the stove for too long, it would fill the kitchen with that sulfuric odor (as you get from overcooked hard-boiled eggs), but everything from cabbage rolls to corned beef and cabbage were made multiple times a week. I worried that I would never really enjoy cabbage the way my mother (and her mother) all seemed to, until I found out what was wrong—it was never the cabbage, but the cooks! They failed to be tender with the cooking process and, consequently, made a noxious meal of their favorite veg.
I started to make some of my family’s recipes on my own with a more careful eye. Now, I finally get it! My distaste for cabbage had risen from my parents’ busy lives of taking care of kids, working full time, and taking online courses throughout the night. Making cabbage for myself helped me appreciate my family’s fascination with the vegetable while also appreciating everything they did for me and my sibs.
Ever since, I’ve been handling (and eating!) delicious cabbage dishes carefully cooked to ensure that caustic scent never reaches my nose, like today’s recipe for fried cabbage! Mixing delightfully bright cabbage and onion with savory bacon in a pan with a little oil brings the best out of every ingredient, especially the otherwise notoriously noxious cabbage! Fall in love with cabbage (like my family and I) and make yours fantastic!
Is Fried Cabbage Healthy?
Cabbage is rich in vitamins K and C, onions are full of minerals, and bacon brings that savory protein. As a result, this simple dish is packed with nutrients. It’s a keto-friendly low-carb food and can be made flavorfully vegan with bacon substitutes (just be careful which subs you use!).
Cabbage vs. Lettuce – A head-to-Head Comparison
Though alike in appearance, cabbage heads and heads of lettuce are very different both in flavor and in nutrition. Cabbage is a member of the genus Brassica and comes in a variety of shapes and colors, though, most notably, light and rich greens. As mentioned above, cabbage is rich in vitamins C and K and is also a good source of plant fiber, which makes it great for gut health! The flavor of your most common cabbage is bright and slightly astringent, which works well with the fatty flavor of the bacon!
Lettuce is a part of the Asteraceae family and is typically a shade of green. The shape ranges from tightly wound heads to parallel-aligned leaves. Unlike cabbage, lettuce is mostly made of water, so the caloric content is negligible (only 5 calories per cup!). While it contains vitamins A and K, lettuce is most known for its crisp and cool texture that makes it a hit with burgers and sandwiches.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 slices bacon, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 head of green cabbage, cored and sliced
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Cook
Render bacon to crisp; set aside.
Sauté
Cook onion until translucent.
Combine
Add cabbage, season, and cook until tender.
Finish
Mix in bacon and heat through.
Devour!
FAQs & Tips
Making fried cabbage ahead and storing it for later is perfect for when you want a bright lunch for tomorrow or a seasoned side for supper! Store your fried cabbage salad in a sealed container and carefully reheat in a microwave when you’re ready to serve—too long and you’ll end up with a pungent odor that might fill the room!
Cabbage has the same problem as eggs, in that they contain compounds that can turn into hydrogen sulfide, a noxious gas that doesn’t quickly vacate a room or come off of clothes. Hard-boiled eggs, especially when overcooked, will develop a green-ish ring around the yolk where non-enzymic reactions have done the same thing—that’s why cabbage smells like rotten eggs, sometimes!
Olive oil and bacon fat are both types of fat, but one is much better for you than the other! If you’re simply looking to cut down on the fat content, you can cook your cabbage and onions in the bacon fat after it renders; alternatively, if you’re looking for a healthier dish, use a low-fat turkey bacon or trim your pork bacon to ensure it’s as lean as it can be.
Serving Suggestions
Fried cabbage tastes great with other savory dishes! Plate up a side of fried cabbage next time you’re making burgers like our Cajun sweet potato bun burgers (or keep it veggie with black-bean power burgers)! If you’re like me and love your cabbage with a side of chicken, you can’t go wrong with keto chicken tenders right out of your air fryer! Serve it with a side of dippable mustard and DEVOUR!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 slices bacon chopped
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 head green cabbage cored and sliced
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the bacon until crisp. Remove bacon and set aside on a paper towel to drain.
- In the same skillet, sauté the onion until translucent, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the sliced cabbage to the skillet, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is tender and some pieces are lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
- Return the bacon to the skillet, stir to combine with the cabbage, and cook for an additional 2 minutes to reheat the bacon.
Nutrition Info:
Recipes written and produced on Food Faith Fitness are for informational purposes only.
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