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Low Carb, Keto, Gluten Free and simple to make easy fried cabbage with bacon recipe. Made with a few ingredients in 30 minutes. Quick to make with minimal prep work, this cabbage with bacon is perfectly cooked and makes a great weeknight dinner. Looking to make it without the bacon – yes, you can easily do so and end up with a nutritious low calorie fried cabbage that is vegetarian or meat free.

Fried cabbage with bacon in a cast iron skillet

Cabbage is widely available, easy to find year round vegetable, that could be used in so many different dishes like – salads, stews, soups, bakes and stir fries.

Totally inexpensive and long lasting.

Remember that head of cabbage that stayed in the fridge for a week and then it was still good enough to use for cooking? I just love how versatile it is.

This one pan meal is made with just 5 main ingredients, 5 g net carbs and is by far my favorite cabbage recipe. The second place goes to my Keto cabbage soup, that I make almost every week. This fried cabbage also makes a great side dish, if you are not planning to serve it as a main.

Ingredients needed to make Fried Cabbage With Bacon:

Fresh chopped or shredded cabbage. Cabbage chopped into 1/2 to 1/4 -inch pieces is ideal, but finely shredded cabbage also works and cooks faster.
Onions – they add sweetness and great flavor
Garlic – optional
Bacon – ideally this recipe is made with bacon, but you can use pancetta, ham or sausage instead.
Tomato sauce (optional, but I like the sweetness and sourness it brings to the dish). A lot of recipes call for brown sugar, but I prefer not to use any. Instead I use tomato sauce, which has light sweetness to it and works well with cabbage.
Water (optional), to help with softening the cabbage and prevent burning when frying
Seasoning – keep it simple, I only use salt and pepper and sometimes some thyme

How many cups of shredded cabbage are in one head of cabbage?

Many recipes call for a specific amounts of cups of shredded cabbage, but it is important to have an idea of how many cups of cabbage you get from a whole or half of head of cabbage.

When finely shredded, you end up with 8 cups of cabbage per one medium head of it. For 1 cup of shredded cabbage, you need about 1/8 of a medium head of cabbage.

How to keep the bacon crunchy when making fried bacon and cabbage?

What I like the most about this recipe (besides the perfectly cooked cabbage) is to bite into pieces of crunchy bacon. I’m not a fan of soft ad chewy bacon at all.

It is important that you crisp the bacon in the pot (or pan) first, then remove it and transfer to a plate, lined with paper towel.

Reserve the bacon fat and if it seems less than 2 tablespoons, add 2 more tablespoons of vegetable oil.

Continue with the recipe and add the crunchy bacon at the end, when cabbage is cooked and soft.

How to make cabbage with bacon?

Make this fried cabbage with bacon recipe in just a few easy steps.

Start by coring and shredding the cabbage. You can finely chop it or chop into 1/2-inch chunks or use a mandolin slicer for shredding. I like to use my food processor for shredding cabbage, it is quick and effortless.
Chop the onion and bacon into small pieces.
Set a large pan or pot over medium-high heat. Make sure the bottom is hot and add bacon pieces.
Cook for 3-4 minutes, until they are cooked and crispy. Using a slotted spoon remove from the pan and transfer to a plate.
Keep the bacon fat in the pan. Add onion. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant. Add garlic (optional). Cook for 1 minute.
Add the shredded cabbage, tomato sauce, salt, black pepper, thyme (optional) and 1/4 cup of water.
Cook until the cabbage is wilted and softened, for about 10-15 minutes. Add more water if necessary, to prevent burning.
Cabbage needs to reduce its size by half and turn slightly translucent. Make sure it is soft enough for your taste and seasoned with enough salt to taste.
Add the bacon bits and stir. Serve.

Can you freeze this fried cabbage with bacon and onions?

The great news is that – yes, this fried cabbage and bacon can be frozen in air tight containers (or zip lock bags) for up to 2 months.

Thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat on the stove top or in the microwave.

I don’t own a microwave and always recommend reheating on the stove top.

Add 3-4 tablespoons of water when reheating on the stove top, so the cabbage doesn’t stick to the pan and burn.

Tips to make the best fried cabbage:

For best results, chop cabbage into 1/2 -inch pieces. This will prevent it from overcooking quickly.
If you don’t have bacon on hand, substitute with sausage, ham or pancetta. Turkey or even vegan bacon can be used.
Make sure you reserve the bacon fat for frying the cabbage, but if it is less than 2-3 tablespoons, add about 2 more tablespoons of oil to it.
In addition to the seasoning mentioned in the recipe, add more spices if you’d like.
Fried cabbage is perfect for meal planning and makes great leftovers, so you can double the recipe and refrigerate or freeze some for later.
Use water to prevent cabbage from burning if it starts to brown too quickly.

More cabbage recipes:

If you are a follower of my blog, you may already know that we love cooking with cabbage and sauerkraut in my house.

Here are some more simple recipe ideas, if you want to incorporate more cabbage recipes into your cooking.

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