This Sautéed Cabbage recipe is ready in under 20 minutes and made with only a few simple ingredients for the BEST flavor. It’s an easy side dish that is rich in savory and subtly sweet flavor and gets beautifully caramelized when cooked in a skillet.
Simple Skillet Sautéed Cabbage Recipe
It wasn’t until I created this Egg Roll in a Bowl recipe that I realized what I had been missing out on for so many years…
Thinly sliced and sautéed cabbage is the EASIEST and most INCREDIBLE way to eat cabbage. (Just barely ahead of these Cabbage Steaks, but I’ll get to those in another post!)
The key to making the best sauteed cabbage? You’ll want to thinly slice the cabbage so more of the edges are exposed to heat and end up caramelizing. (More on that below!)
It gets this lovely soft texture, and subtly sweet flavor when it’s caramelized in a skillet with a bit of butter, fresh garlic, salt and pepper.
Yup, all you need is 5 simple ingredients to make this 20-minute side dish.
It’s also a great way to use up any leftover cabbage you have from another recipe.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Cabbage. While this recipe calls for using green, another type of cabbage can be subbed, as well. Green cabbage tends to have a nice balance of peppery notes and a subtly sweet flavor once sautéed. Red or purple cabbage tends to be a little bit on the sweeter side after it is cooked.
- Butter. This is my preferred fat of choice since it has a ton of flavor and browns up beautifully. Feel free to use olive oil or avocado oil if vegan or dairy-free.
- Garlic. Fresh garlic cloves deliver a wonderful punch of flavor without overwhelming the natural sweet flavors from the caramelized cabbage. You can substitute with garlic powder if that’s what you have on hand.
- Salt and Pepper. Add the recommended amount below and then season to taste!
How to Make Sautéed Cabbage
Please see the recipe card below for more detailed ingredient amounts.
1. Thinly Slice Cabbage
You can just go straight to slicing the cabbage without any prep-work and do a pretty decent job of shredding it. However, many of the slices will end up being too thick, too thin, too short, or too long.
Ideally, you want your slices to be about ¼-½” thick and 4-5 inches long.
Or, you can follow the simple steps outlined below that will show you how to shred cabbage like a pro so it all comes out a similar length and thickness:
Place the head of cabbage on a cutting board with the stem side-down and cut it in half and then into quarters.
Locate the stem in the center of each quarter and cut at an angle to remove it. Repeat with the remaining quarters
Place cabbage quarters flat side-down on the cutting board and cut into thin slices about ¼-½” thick.
Repeat until the entire head of cabbage is sliced. You should end up with roughly 6-8 cups of shredded cabbage.
2. Sauté Cabbage
It’s best to use a really large skillet or saucepan that is relatively shallow (no more than 3 inches in height). The more hot surface area the cabbage can contact, the more likely it is to caramelize. However, any heavy-bottomed pot will work.
Heat 2 tablespoons butter, or oil if used, over medium or medium-high heat in the skillet. Add crushed garlic and saute for 1 minute. You do not want to brown the garlic, just release the aromatics.
Next, add about half of the sliced cabbage to the pan. Continue to cook for about one or two minutes until it starts to wilt, become tender, and shrink in size.
Pour in the remaining cabbage. Season with a teaspoon or less of salt and pepper.
Allow cabbage mixture to cook for another 12-15 minutes. Ensure you stir every 2-3 minutes. Note, the longer the cabbage sits without stirring the more it will caramelize.
FAQs
Cabbage is already a healthy option, so keep it simple. In general, the longer you cook a vegetable, the more nutrients you lose. If using oil or better, look for natural options and use as little as possible. Or, enjoy raw in a salad.
It is best to shred cabbage before sautéing it. When it is sliced in thinner pieces, it will caramelize better and cook more evenly.
The best way to soften cabbage is to boil it. You can either cut the cabbage into wedges before boiling or boil the entire head to soften the leaves for cabbage rolls. Wedges will take about 10 minutes to soften whereas the leaves will be soft enough for rolls after a few minutes.
Sautéed cabbage can go with just about anything from chicken to pork chops to steak. Cook it with onions and herbs, like fresh parsley, and serve it by itself.
Make It a Meal
This sautéed cabbage recipe goes great alongside these main dishes:
- Instant Pot Corned Beef
- Teriyaki Glazed Salmon
- 30-Minute Lemon Chicken Piccata
- Bacon-Wrapped Scallops
- Filet Mignon
- Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken
Other Cabbage Recipes
Try these recipes that feature cabbage, as well:
- Reuben in a Bowl
- Roasted Cabbage Steaks
- Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Egg Roll in a Bowl Recipe
- Southern Coleslaw Recipe
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Simple Sautéed Cabbage Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1 medium head cabbage green
- 2 Tbsp. butter or oil
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- ½ tsp. salt to taste
- ¼ tsp. black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Shred the Cabbage: Cut entire head of cabbage into ¼-½” slices.* You should end up with roughly 7-8 cups of shredded cabbage. (Read recipe notes below to learn how to shred cabbage.)1 medium head cabbage
- Sauté the first Half: Place a large skillet over medium heat and add butter and crushed garlic. Sauté for 1 minute. Add in roughly half of the sliced cabbage and cook for a minute or two until it starts to wilt and shrink down some.2 Tbsp. butter, 1 clove garlic
- Add the Rest: Add in the remaining half of the cabbage along with the salt and pepper. Continue cooking for 12-15 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes. (Let it sit for a few minutes without stirring if you’d like it to caramelize.)½ tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. black pepper
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
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Notes
- Similar sized. Cut the cabbage into slices that are the same thickness so it all cooks up at the same rate.
- Do it twice. Add the cabbage into the skillet in two batches so it will all fit easily.
- Let it sit. Letting the cabbage cook in the skillet without stirring for a few minutes gives it time to contact the hot skillet and caramelize.
- Bigger is better. Use a larger skillet or saucepan so the most cabbage makes contact with the heat and can caramelize.
- Keep it fresh. Opt for whole garlic cloves when possible. In a pinch, garlic powder will work.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I cooked this recipe and it was delicious! I did add a Vidalia onion and since I have to eat low sodium I used unsalted butter and no table salt.
I added McCormick Garlic and Herb no salt seasoning to replace the salt. It needed some liquid to complete the cooking so I used very low sodium chicken broth. I am adding this to my menu options and I will cook this more often now!
Yay! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe, Jayne! I’m glad you could make it work for you. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment!
Having this for the 2nd time this week. Easy and delicious. Great sour of fiber and vitamin C too!
Yay! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe, Nancy! Twice in one week is high praise. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment!