Southern Fried Cabbage & Bacon
“Southern fried cabbage full of smokey bacon, caramelized onions, and garlic! An easy main meal or side dish!”
Visual learner? Watch me make this Southern Fried Cabbage from start to finish!
Amazon boxes have been coming to my house left and right! I’m sure my neighbors are wondering what the heck is going on. Well, I’m knee-deep in decorating my Woman-Cave!!
It’s not a fancy she-shed like Sheryl’s that burned down, but it’s my little magical sanctuary that I don’t have to share with anyone! I think every woman deserves a space that is just about her and is decorated with everything fun and girly.
For the past 2 weeks, this woman-cave has been my labor of love project. As soon as my husband finished putting up the drywall, painting, hardwood floors, and all the other stuff that goes into turning a cold dormer attic room into living space, I was chomping at the bit to start decorating.
I’ve decked it out in all white with a girly purple couch, crystal chandelier, fluffy white fur rug, and fresh purple tulips. Everything that makes me smile. Sometimes I go in that room and don’t want to leave. It’s so restoring & peaceful. Pics soon ok.
What does a Woman-Cave have to do with fried cabbage ? Umm…well….nothing really. It’s what I made for lunch after a long day of putting together furniture and thought ohhh, let me do a video on this real quick.
So here we are! About to make some bomb diggity cabbage overflowing with BACON!
Southern-fried cabbage with bacon is everything!!! It’s a quick, easy, hearty, and a delicious meal or side dish. It’s so loaded with flavor!
How does Southern Fried Cabbage taste?
Southern-fried cabbage tastes like pure contentment. It’s one of those meals that make you wanna do a happy dance when you eat it. And then relax back in your chair and say “now that’s some good eating” when you’re done and full as a tick. It’s smokey and salty from all that bacon, it has pops of sweetness from those caramelized onions, a little bit of heat from the red pepper flakes and black pepper, and tons of savoriness from garlic and butter. It’s sooooo good!
What goes good with fried cabbage?
Southern fried cabbage with bacon is a hearty enough meal to serve as it! Add a side of cornbread and ice tea for an amazing meal. If you want to serve this fried cabbage as a side dish, it goes great with meatloaf or roasted chicken.
How do you cut cabbage for fried cabbage?
To cut cabbage, first remove those large, flimsy outer leaves. Give the cabbage a good rinsing. Cut the cabbage in half and then in fourths. Next, cut out the hard core from each piece. Then cut each quarter into 1-inch thick strips. (see video)
I add A LOT of bacon to this fried cabbage. A LOT. Because well…I felt like that’s what God wanted me to do. And I need lots of bacon with every single bit of savory cabbage. It makes me happy, and it’ll probably make you happy to so don’t be shy.
Cook this dish in a super large, cast-iron or stainless steel deep skillet. That will get you your perfect crispiness way better than a non-stick skillet.
Betcha can’t eat just one bowl!
Get the Recipe: Southern Fried Cabbage and Bacon
Ingredients
- 1 head of cabbage (about 3 lb cabbage), cut, cored & sliced into strips
- 16 oz bacon, diced into small pieces
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 2-3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- sea salt, cracked black pepper, onion powder, & garlic powder, to season
Instructions
- Heat a very large stainless steel or cast iron deep skillet, and add bacon. (You may need to add a little olive oil if using a turkey bacon)
- Cook bacon pieces until extra crispy and remove from pan with a slotted spoon.
- Leave about a tablespoon of bacon grease in the pan along with any burnt pieces stuck to the bottom of the pan (this has lots of flavor)
- Add onions to pan and toss onions with sugar.
- Cook until onions are tender and caramelized.
- Add garlic and cook until garlic is fragrant.
- Add butter and stir until butter is melted.
- Stir in red pepper flakes.
- Add cabbage to pot and toss so that cabbage is coated in the butter mixture.
- Let cabbage fry until tender, stirring frequently.
- Season cabbage generously with sea salt/seasoning salt, cracked black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.
- When ready to serve stir in bacon (or add it to individual bowls if you want it to remain extra crispy)
- Enjoy!
I have used a similar recipe for years. I find addition of balsamic vinegar adds a lot to the flavor!
Phenomenal dish. I did add turkey sausage as well and it was a hit and gone in seconds
Simply delicious!
I looove fried cabbage and have been making a version of it for years, I can’t wait to try your recipe, my mouth is already watering….Okay, I need to get to the store. Cheers!
I cooked everything on that picture 3 days in a row! Now on the third day, I tried it with bacon for that flavor, and corn beef hash, and it was to awesome! The cornbread was such a grand prize! They ate like hogs and now, I’ve been told 2 days a week it’s a must!
You are a great cook, I love your recipes and I am a southern diva as well. Most people think because you are somewhat of a diva, that you can’t possibly cook. Keep proving them wrong.