I get SO MANY awesome ideas from the wonderfully creative minds of my readers. You offer so much inspiration, expertise, and ideas, which makes blogging so much fun. :) One reader shared with me recently that she put a southwest spin on my classic Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry. I was so in love with that idea that I had to try it myself. I’m happy to report that this Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry is a tasty way to change things up if and when you get tired of Asian flavors. It’s just as easy and delicious as the original… ‘cept different. ;)
And I regret to say that I can’t find the original comment where the idea for a Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry was shared with me (was it on Facebook? Instagram? An email? I can’t find it!) to thank you personally here, so if you’re reading this, THANK YOU.
Keep it Simple or Jazz it Up!
I kept this Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry very simple to make the preparation easy, but you could go a little further and add things like sliced black olives or even some crispy tortilla strips. I think thin little crunchy tortilla strips would be an amazing texture addition to this stir fry (add after cooking). A few thinly sliced fresh jalapeños would also be amazing on top for those of you who like things spicy (hi, me!). You can really go crazy with this one and top it with just about anything that you like on tacos or taco salad.
But Dont’ Make Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry Without These…
The two things that I think wouldn’t skip, though, are the taco sauce and green onions. That tangy taco sauce really brightens the flavors and adds another dimension that takes the dish up about ten levels. You can sub your favorite hot sauce if you don’t have taco sauce, as long as it has a vinegar base.
Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1/2 head green cabbage, shredded (about 5 cups) ($0.85)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1/2 lb ground beef ($1.99)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp chili powder* ($0.30)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.05)
- Salt to taste ($0.05)
- 10 oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles** ($0.99)
- 1 cup frozen corn kernels ($0.44)
- 2 green onions, sliced ($0.21)
- Taco sauce or hot sauce to taste ($0.60)
Instructions
- Remove any damaged outer leaves from the cabbage and give it a good rinse. Remove the core, then finely shred the leaves. Set the shredded cabbage aside.
- Add the cooking oil, ground beef, minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, and a pinch of salt to a large skillet. Cook over medium heat, breaking up the beef as you go, until the beef is fully browned. If using a higher fat content beef, drain the excess fat from the skillet.
- Drain most of the liquid from the diced tomatoes, then add them to the skillet along with the frozen corn kernels. Sauté over medium heat until the corn is heated through and most of the liquid on the bottom of the skillet has evaporated. Taste the mixture and add more salt as needed.
- Add the shredded cabbage and sauté for just a couple minutes more, or until the cabbage just becomes slightly wilted. Top with sliced green onions and a drizzle of taco sauce or hot sauce, then serve.
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Notes
Nutrition
Cabbage is really becoming one of my favorite versatile ingredients!
How to Make Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry – Step by Step Photos
Begin by finely shredding 1/2 head of green cabbage, or about 5 cups once shredded. If needed, you can use bagged pre-shredded cabbage.
Add 1 Tbsp cooking oil, 1/2 lb. ground beef, 2 cloves of garlic (minced), 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, and a pinch of salt to a large skillet. Sauté over medium heat until the beef is fully browned. If you’re using a high fat content beef, drain the excess fat away before the next step.
Add one cup frozen corn kernels and a drained 10oz. can of diced tomatoes with chiles.
I used a generic brand of diced tomatoes with chiles, but this is basically Rotel tomatoes. If you can’t find something similar, you can use a small can of petite diced tomatoes and a small can of diced green chiles.
Sauté the ingredients in the skillet for a few minutes, or until the corn is heated through and most of the liquid in the bottom of the skillet has evaporated (it’s okay for there to be a bit of saucy moisture, just not puddles of liquid). Taste the mixture and adjust the salt. You’ll want it to be slightly on the salty side so that it doesn’t get too bland once all the cabbage is added.
Finally, add the shredded cabbage and sauté for just a couple minutes more (still over medium), or just until the cabbage begins to wilt. You want the raw edge taken off the cabbage, but for it to retain a little crunch.
Sprinkle a couple of fresh sliced green onions over top, then drizzle with taco sauce or your favorite hot sauce. You want a sauce that is nice and tangy. I’ll admit the store bought one I used left a little to be desired, so now I have to come up with a recipe for homemade taco sauce! :D
And that’s it! Southwest Beef and Cabbage Stir Fry is on the table!
This is truly tasty! I think I accidentally started with too much oil and probably lost some spices draining the meat, but it was still yummy. Will definitely try again with turkey. Thanks for the great, cheap eats. You save my food budget every month!
Made this tonight for dinner as I had a half head of cabbage and some frozen corn to finish off. It was seriously good. My people gobbled it up. I made it per the recipe. For garnish, chopped jalapeños, sour cream, Cotija cheese and some hot sauce. This is one of those recipes where the sum is greater than the parts.
Hey Beth! While looking for the original recipe, I came upon your Southwest version. I believe it was me that originally mentioned the idea to you, so you’re welcome! I’m glad to see you enjoyed the idea so much! I might make two half-batches of this tonight, one with Asian flavour and one with Southwest. Also, good call on the corn, I probably wouldn’t have thought to add it.
Thank you, Ashley!! I’m so glad you found this and saw that I couldn’t remember! Haha! :D
That was very tasty. Added quite a bit less cabbage and finished it as a dinner for two.
I did a quick google search for taco meat with cabbage, and this came up. i had a roll of taco flavored turkey meat, and thought i’d add some shredded cabbage to it since i don’t have any lettuce. i’m gonna make a bunch of this, and put it with cheese on top of a pile of chips for nachos.
This was really delicious. We opted to do ground turkey instead of beef but kept everything else as written. Served with a dallop of sour cream. Yum! Thank you for sharing.
Beth, I really do not know how you do it. Simple ingredients, quick and easy preparation, extraordinary result. This is soooooo good, and the alchemy that happens in the pan makes inexpensive cabbage abd ground beef into a great weeknight meal. Thank you!
Thank YOU! ❤️
At my son’s suggestion, the second time I made this I used ground pork and increased the sauce amount to serve over rice. It was totally amazing. I really prefer the taste of pork instead of beef.
Will try this for lunch today. I was put on a Paleo diet and this is prefect.
Excellent! Subbed in ground turkey and doubled the recipe. Didn’t think my husband would care for it, but he had two helpings and said it was a keeper!
Wow, this was amazing.
For lunch the next day I mixed the leftovers with rice & black beans (other leftovers) and threw it in a tortilla, which was great too.
I will definitely be making this again soon! Thanks for the awesome recipes!
I made extra of this because I was going to have it for lunch tomorrow; my husband devoured the whole thing.
I’m calling that a success!
Oh my god, this was SO GOOD! I’ve only ever encountered cabbage boiled or in coleslaw, neither of which I like, but it’s just perfectly crunchy and robust here. I subbed a red and a green pepper and white onion for the corn/green onion, added Ancho chili powder and a splash of worchestershire, and topped with spicy monterrey Jack and salsa verde.
PERFECTION! Can’t wait to try the original version.
I made this with some very thinly sliced steak instead and it was awesome. I used half a coleslaw bag and it was a 10 minute meal!
I didn’t have (and don’t care for) taco sauce but I used a bit of your Enchilada Sauce leftover that I had frozen from a different night. Thanks, Beth!
Made this last night. Subbed ground turkey for the beef and added some thin sliced jalepenos as toppings at the end. I loved it, and my boyfriend did, too. I do have to say, this made closer to three and a half servings for us (my boyfriend had 1.5 servings, I had one, and enough leftover for me to bring for lunch today), so anyone who is feeding a family of four, or who has a particularly hungry kid or partner might want to take that into account when cooking. Otherwise, great recipe as usual! Loved the Southwestern twist on stirfry — it tasted like a cabbage taco salad in the best possible way.