Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Bacon- a combination of sugar, cider vinegar and crispy, salty bacon bits makes this one of the most delicious cabbage side dished ever.
Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Bacon Recipe
I love any kind of sautéed cabbage, but this Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Bacon may be my favorite. When I make it, I find myself picking the last pieces out of the pan with my fingers. It’s that good.
With crunchy bacon, onion, sweetness from a hefty dose of sugar, tang from cider vinegar, and saltiness from soy sauce, this side dish will wake up every taste bud in your mouth. So much so that you might wish it was the main dish instead of just a side.
Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Bacon is a simple side dish, but it is big on flavor. Only a handful of ingredients are needed. It’s a German-style side dish that is popular in the south. The part of North Carolian I am from had a lot of German immigrants and you can see the influences in southern home cooking.
How To Serve
I love to serve it with Bratwurst and Knockwurst. I slice them in half horizontally, place them in a skillet with a drizzle of olive oil and brown them up a little bit. But you could slice them and cook them with the cabbage for a one dish meal. Easy peasy!
This amazing side dish goes great with a side of Buttermilk Cornbread.
Recipe Tip
Red cabbage can be used instead of green cabbage.
Make it Spicy
If you want to make this cabbage recipe spicy, add crushed red pepper flakes to taste
Storage
Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days and can be reheated in a microwave.
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Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Bacon
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 4 slices bacon,, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 onion,, thinly sliced
- 1 medium green cabbage,, cored and cut into 1 to 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- black pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large, heavy pot (I use a Dutch oven) over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crisp, stirring frequently.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer bacon to a plate. Add onion and cabbage to pot and cook, stirring often, until cabbage is wilted (about 10 minutes).
- Add vinegar, sugar, and soy sauce and cook until cabbage is crisp-tender, about 10 more minutes.
- Stir in bacon.Add black pepper to taste and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Source: Martha Stewart
Originally published Oct 29, 2013.
Loved this recipe. Served it with rouladen tonight. I also added a chopped apple otherwise made the recipe as written. Will definitely make this again. I’ll be serving the leftovers tomorrow with smoked brisket. Thank you.
I am not a cabbage fan, however, I do love kraut.
This was a very tasty recipe.
I did add an apple and sausage
It is my one dish, tasty dinner!
Thank you!!
I doubled the cider vinegar, the soy sauce & the sugar
I think i would too. It didn’t seem enough to create a sauce.
Quite good but I tweaked it just a touch. Doubled the bacon, omitted the vegetable oil (the bacon fat was perfect), used a large onion and then added a handful of dried onion right at the end, and a good hit of paprika (I used my favorite smoked paprika) and a heavy dash of cayenne pepper. Mmmm!
This recipe has been in my family for years,it put a smile on my face when I saw it online I thought Nana made it up,but there was never onion thats a great twist.
Easy to make. Delicious!
So good the best
This is a really good recipe! I’ve made it more than a dozen times, so I’ve started getting a little creative towards the end I add diced apples, sometimes cranberries too.
The idea of adding apples, or cranberries toward the end sounds perfect. I might even add some chopped walnuts to sprinkle on top. With the crispy bacon. This is slightly different from the sweet and sour recipe i grew up on.God help me, l just can’t get it to match my Grandmother or Mom’s recipes. But this definitely has grest flavor and the twists you add is perfect to make it ‘mine’ or more current!!
Add caraway seeds. they make all the difference.
Love this! So light yet so flavorful!! Making for Thanksgiving 👍👍
it is awesome i omitted soy sauce tho and added tons of bacon