You guys know how I feel about cabbage, right? It’s like, the best thing ever. It’s super cheap, doesn’t spoil quickly, is super healthful, and can easily bulk out a meal. Braised Red Cabbage is one of those super simple side dishes that takes very little effort and can work as a side to a variety of meals. In the summer you have coleslaw, in the winter you have braised cabbage.
This post contains some affiliate links, which means that we make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
(pictured above with Pressure Cooker Chicken and mashed potatoes)
I love serving Braised Red Cabbage with savory dishes like roasted meat and mashed potatoes and find that it’s light, tangy flavor helps lighten the sometimes heavy feel of fall and winter meals.
Plus the color! OMG the color. It’s like have a pile of jewels on your plate. If you want to enhance the color even more and happen to be opening a bottle of red wine to serve with your dinner, try adding a splash of the wine to the liquid during the braising. 👌
Braised Red Cabbage
Servings 5 1 cup eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.26)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.32)
- 2 lbs red cabbage (about 6-8 cups shredded) ($1.09)
- 1 granny smith apple ($0.70)
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar ($0.24)
- 1/4 cup water (or more as needed) ($0.00)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.03)
Instructions
- Finely dice the onion and add it to a large pot along with the butter. Sauté over medium to medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft and transparent.
- While the onions are sautéing, finely shred the cabbage and thinly slice the apple. Add the cabbage, apple, vinegar, water, and salt to the pot. Turn the heat to medium, place a lid on the pot, and let the cabbage cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender (20-30 minutes, depending on your desired texture). If the bottom of the pot begins to dry up, add another 1/4 cup water.
- Taste the cabbage and season with freshly cracked pepper or more salt or vinegar if desired.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Braised Red Cabbage – Step by Step Photos
Finely dice a yellow onion and add it to a large pot with 2 Tbsp butter. Sauté over medium to medium-low heat for about five minutes, or until the onions are tender and transparent.
While the onions are sautéing, finely shred one head of red cabbage (about 2 lbs. or 6-8 cups shredded) and thinly slice one granny smith apple. Add them to the pot along with 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 tsp and 1/2 tsp salt.
Place the lid on the pot, turn the heat to medium (if not already) and cook the cabbage, stirring every few minutes or so, until it’s wilted. Depending on how soft you like it, you’ll want to cook the cabbage for about 20-30 minutes. If the bottom of the pot begins to dry up, add another 1/4 cup water. Once finished, taste the cabbage and add some freshly cracked pepper, and more salt or vinegar if desired.
SO GOOD. (and so cheap.) ;)
I cook it longer, about 45 minutes and like it softer and chopped finer. I was shocked at how much my family liked it and now want to have it very often. I remember being in Germany for a couple of months fifty years ago and it seemed this was on about every
Very plain and blend. Yes , it’s cheap.And nothing more.
I think you mean ‘bland’.
I’d never had anything like this before, but I really enjoyed it! The apple is vital, and I might even add a second apple next time.
A great, easy recipe that re-introduced me to an old favorite and makes a LOT of food. Thanks, Beth!
It was tasty. Just needed a bit more salt. Cooked it for about 35 minutes.
Yummy. We used the apples we had on-hand (gala) and added approx 2 tbsp of fennel seeds. We also made this a day ahea, as my German mother recommends. Was soo good! Thank you! No sugar needed as other recipes suggest!
Best cabbage ever I added a bit of chilllies coz I love hot food and I must tell you best ever love it
I used leeks instead of onion, a dash of red wine as suggested, no apple, sherry vinegar and some left over chicken broth for the liquid. My husband who does not really like cabbage, ate three servings and said it was the best cabbage recipe I’d ever made!
I used leeks instead of onion, a dash of red wine as suggested, no apple, sherry vinegar and some left over chicken broth for the liquid and a few tablespoons of Splenda brown sugar. My husband who does not really like cabbage, ate three servings and said it was the best cabbage recipe I’d ever made!
I was somewhat disappointed with this recipe but that was my own fault due to my expectations of it. There is nothing at all wrong with this recipe, it was just different than I imagined. I had “Sweet and sour cabbage” years ago and I think that’s what I expected this to taste like but it’s definitely not sweet! It’s not my personal favorite way to eat cabbage, but my brother and husband both enjoyed it. I will probably only make it again if one of them requests it.
Being from Germany – a secret ingredient in braised red cabbage is a spoonful of quince or currant jelly to make it glossy and round out the flavors!
Yum! That sounds incredible!
An excellent recipe it all came out without a hitch, especially how to use the right amount of water.
the good taste stayed in the cabbage instead of the drain
I plan on making this for Christmas! Looks great! Can it be made a day ahead and stored in the fridge?
I do find that this one holds up well in the fridge.
This froze and thawed well, for anyone wondering. Because it’s already softened from cooking I didn’t notice much of a texture change. I thawed in the fridge and had to revive the flavor a bit once it was heated. I added more butter and salt after reheating and it was good.
This was a good way to use a lot of cabbage. It wasn’t my favorite dish, but I don’t think that was an issue with the recipe, I think this preparation just isn’t my favorite.
the taste just jumps out of the computer!
Hi , I never thought that red cabbage could be cooked like we do with the green ones, the other day my husband asked me to cook it and I laughed at him , now I’m going to surprice him. Thank you for the recipe.
Rose
This was so simple and delicious! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m doing low carb so what can u use besides an apple?
The apple really gives it a tang and sweetness but you could omit it.
This was so delicious and super easy! I’ve never been a fan of cabbage until now- thanks for this recipe!
I’ve never had braised cabbage before, but I loved this! I seared some bratwurst I got on super sale first, cooked the cabbage for about ten minutes, then added the seared but not cooked through brats back in with them. Super yummy with lots of mustard!!
I love hearing when people are trying new things. Glad you like it Artie!
Hey, guys. LOVE this recipe.
I added ripe mango, and the color and sweetness worked!(I think). 😬
With smoked baby back ribs and scalloped potatoes, I felt like a real chef.
🤔
Mark
My 13 year old son LOVES red cabbage! Haha he hasn’t realized that people think he’s strange to say that it’s his favorite vegetable! Looking forward to trying your version!
Now THAT’S A WIN!
Tried it out-was good! Can I freeze it as I have a glut on the allotment
I haven’t tried freezing this one, but since the cabbage is already cooked down and soft, it might not have that much more of a texture change after freezing and thawing.
Hi there, how long would this keep in a sealed glass jar in the fridge?
Probably about 4 to 5 days.
Love this recipe! We make it often.
Always add a sprinkle of caraway seeds… yum!
But that chicken though! Where’s the recipe for that!
I think it was part of a rotisserie chicken that I bought at the store. 😂 Sometimes I take shortcuts, too. Haha! But check out this pressure cooker chicken recipe. It comes out very similar to rotisserie chicken, IMHO.
Delicious! I couldn’t get enough.
This was incredible! I loved the flavor. Even one of my pickiest kids was eating it when he thought I wasn’t looking. :) My husband is extremely picky, and he wasn’t a fan, but I think it is delicious and I could eat it all day! Thank you so much for this recipe.
Made this last week with a couple of minor edits due to the state of my pantry. My cabbage was closer to 3lbs than 2 so I used 2 apples instead of one, and substituted balsamic vinegar for apple cider vinegar (as I had none of the latter). Made a small pork roast I had bought on sale to eat with the cabbage, and had a series of very hearty, delicious and reasonably healthy dinners for the next week and a half :D
Made this for mixed company tonight, and it was VERY well received. I picked this recipe because it doesn’t use bacon and doesn’t have sugar (except what’s in the apple, and Granny Smiths aren’t that sweet); that ticked boxes for me and for my husband. I had to add water a few times, but it came out good. When I offered leftovers to others, I got “Oh, yes!” Yummy.
Just made this but accidentally with green cabbage instead of purple. It still tastes good very tart and sour but that what I expect from cabbage, so its good.
I fixed this last night and it was delicious! I had to cook it a little longer than the recommended time, probably because I didn’t cut the cabbage fine enough, but that was no problem. I skipped the added sugar because I’ve sworn off added sugar, but the apple did the trick. This is a very nice fall recipe to have, and next time I’ll start with the bacon as others have suggested!
Do you know how long it would take in the Instant Pot? I love red cabbage and this looks delicious! I’m an IP newbie and using it for everything right now!
Hmm, I’m not sure. I feel like it might get kind of soupy if you try to pressure cook it because there is no evaporation. You could certainly use the sauté function on the IP, but that would be just like doing it on the stove top.
I made this yesterday in the Instant Pot. 7 minutes with quick release. Perfect!! (And I used a tsp. of EVOO instead of butter. Just put everything in the pot and stirred it around.)
I would also like to make this on a pressure cooker. Did you use high pressure? I am very new to pressure cooking.
Thank you
Yum! Like Elizabeth, I use a couple of chopped slices of bacon and and then proceed with a recipe virtually identical to yours. While I’m not going to entice a vegetarian into using a bit of bacon fat, for everyone else on the planet, it isn’t any more evil than butter, margarine, or commercial vegetable oil–and delivers way more flavor. I don’t add sugar
Bacon isn’t any more evil than butter, margarine or vegetable oil? You need to educate yourself on factory farmed pigs and the cruelty involved. Ditto for butter in the dairy industry. Sorry…not trying to lecture but couldn’t let that comment pass. Hopefully you will take it in the spirit in which it is intended, and also do some research.
This is really nice, but prefer it as a salad, with a little bit of cherry vinegar, oil, salt and pepper next to some duck or chicken and mash.
https://asparklingjourney.com/
Well, guess what I made for dinner tonight? Yes, red cabbage. We had “fake” fish sandwiches because we are no longer eating animal products at all. The red cabbage was a great side dish. I sauteed it with red onion, golden raisins, and half a pear. Red wine vinegar, too, salt and pepper. Almost your recipe and I had not seen your post when I made this. I really appreciate your “vegan” recipes, Beth,. Not eating animal products has helped my hubby recover from an “almost” heart attack almost two years ago. This week I also made your lentil, chickpea and cauliflower stew. We loved it! I like to make pots of soups and stews so I have meals for at least two nights and and all I have to do is reheat the leftovers a night or two later. Saves me lots of time and cleanup, too. Hubby also takes leftover dinners for lunch at work. Everybody is always saying to him, “What’s that you’re eating? It smells so good!”
I love the idea of using pear and golden raisins!! I’m totally doing that next time.
Caterina B, reading your comment compelled me to say how much I admire what you did in altering your diet to the saving of your dear husband’s health! He is surely lucky to have your love, concern and cooking talents! Kudos to you, Ma’am.
This takes me back to my childhood! I don’t recall onions or apples in her version (I might not have noticed them), but I distinctly remember whole cloves – and the admonition not to eat them!
This is very close to my family’s traditional German Red Cabbage. We cook bacon first, then braise the red cabbage and apple in the drippings. We add sugar along with the vinegar. No extra added water as well. And this is best made the night before served. We make a big pot of it, cook it slowly on the stove, then let it sit overnight once it is cooked through. Reheat it the next day and serve! Delicious!
Sounds amazing! I’ll have to try it with bacon next time. :)