Healthy Cabbage Side Dish Recipes

Find healthy, delicious cabbage side dish recipes including boiled, roasted and stuffed cabbage. Healthier recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

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Simple Cabbage Salad

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Cabbage maintains a nice crunch when it's tossed with an easy dressing in this simple cabbage salad recipe. This easy salad is perfect for fall when cabbage is at its sweetest.
By Karen Rankin

Roasted Garlic-Parmesan Cabbage

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Cabbage gets transformed in the oven with garlic, Parmesan and olive oil in this simple vegetable side. This irresistible side dish would make a welcome addition to any meal—try serving it alongside chicken or steak.
By Wendy Lopez

Purple Power Slaw with Sesame-Ginger Vinaigrette

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Combining a trio of purple vegetables--cabbage, carrots and daikon--makes for a stunning slaw recipe. It would be equally delicious tossed with a classic creamy dressing.
By Becky Duffett

Eat-the-Rainbow Chopped Salad with Basil & Mozzarella

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This fresh and colorful salad has all of the delicious flavors you love from the classic caprese salad, plus even more healthy veggies. Double this and top each portion with 3 ounces grilled or roasted chicken to take it from a simple side to a quick main dish.
By Carolyn Casner

Melting Cabbage

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This velvety cabbage in this easy cabbage recipe melts in your mouth and picks up the flavors of caraway, cumin and garlic as it simmers in broth in the oven. Serve it alongside roasted pork or chicken.
By Carolyn Casner

Smothered Cabbage with Ham

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Use up your leftover ham in this comforting one-pot dish made with cabbage and potatoes. The simple flavors get brightened at the end with a splash of cider vinegar. Serve alongside roast chicken or pork.
By Carolyn Casner

Mushroom & Carolina Gold Rice Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

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These stuffed cabbage rolls are packed with veggies, including mushrooms and zucchini, and rice before being coated in a homemade marinara sauce.
By Shawn Kelly

Balsamic Roasted Cabbage

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These roasted cabbage wedges with honey and balsamic vinegar make an attractive and healthy side dish that's also very easy to prepare. You can use red or green cabbage--or make a double batch with one of each for a pretty presentation.
By Marianne Williams

Tea-Leaf Salad

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Traditionally, the star of this famous Burmese salad, laphet, is made by fermenting just-picked tea leaves for several months underground. While laphet is starting to be imported, it is still hard to find. This version, using readily available green tea, offers a quick alternative. Mix the salad at the table so everyone can appreciate the diversity of ingredients--from crunchy to savory--that make it so special.
By Kate Leahy

Copycat Chick-fil-A Kale Salad

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This copycat Chick-fil-A kale salad has a sweet and tangy dressing coating tender kale and cabbage leaves that have been gently massaged. This salad can sit for an hour or two; just be sure to toss it before serving to redistribute the dressing.
By Carolyn Casner

Comforting Cabbage Soup with Ginger

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Cabbage turns tender and flavorful in this comforting soup. The aromatic broth is full of spices, including ginger and turmeric, making it perfect for enjoying on a cold day or keeping you hydrated if you're sick.
By Carolyn Casner

Simple Sauerkraut

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This fermented food delivers a healthy dose of probiotics for gut health. Learn how to make sauerkraut at home and our favorite dish pairings.
By Kathy Gunst
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Inspiration and Ideas

18 Simple Cabbage Sides That Will Upstage Any Main
These simple cabbage side dishes are the perfect accompaniment to any meal. There are so many reasons to love cabbage: it's cheap, versatile and packed with vitamins. Whether you roast it, sauté it or keep it raw, cabbage adds a delicious crunch. Recipes like Smothered Cabbage with Ham and Honey-Mustard Roasted Cabbage will help feed your love affair with this super-healthy vegetable.
"Use a Spoon" Chopped Salad
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When Paul Newman and Michel Nischan opened their Westport, Connecticut, restaurant Dressing Room, Paul's request was that the menu always include a chopped salad that you could eat with a spoon. This chopped salad recipe is full of great flavors, colors and textures, featuring celery, carrots, red pepper, apple, cucumber, greens, cabbage, goat cheese and almonds. This is great for any holiday meal: you can let it stand and it stays crisp.
Cabbage Roll Chicken "Enchiladas"
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Slow-Cooked Sweet and Sour Cabbage
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Spicy Cabbage Slaw
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Sliced radishes add a peppery kick to this 10-minute slaw, which can serve as both a side and a topping for sandwiches.

All Healthy Cabbage Side Dish Recipes

Vinaigrette Coleslaw

If you prefer, make this salad with broccoli slaw mix instead of the coleslaw mix.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Lebanese Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Beef

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These cabbage rolls are stuffed with a mixture of ground beef, rice and warm spices and cooked in a savory tomato sauce seasoned with garlic and mint. Topping the rolls with lemon juice just before serving gives the dish a bright flavor. They would make a wonderful centerpiece for a Sunday supper. Read more about this recipe in the accompanying article Making My Grandmother's Cabbage Rolls Connects Me to My Lebanese Heritage.
By Emily Ackerman

Red Cabbage Salad with Blue Cheese & Maple-Glazed Walnuts

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Serve this hearty salad recipe--combining red cabbage, blue cheese and glazed walnuts--as an accompaniment to roast pork or chicken. To slice the cabbage quickly, cut the head into wedges and slice in your food processor. A mandoline is also a great tool for the job.
By Kathy Gunst

Air-Fryer Cabbage

Cabbage gets nice and crispy in this simple air-fryer cabbage recipe. The crumble of Parmesan and spices gets into the grooves of the cabbage, adding flavor throughout.
By Laura Kanya

Warm Cabbage Salad with Bacon

This warm cabbage salad bursts with flavor from a tangy Dijon vinaigrette and crispy bacon.
By Patsy Jamieson

Sour Apple Slaw

Michael Twitty, a food writer and culinary historian, celebrates Hanukkah's miracle of oil by making fried chicken and latkes. He serves up this sweet and tangy slaw alongside.
By Michael Twitty

Sauerkraut & Sausage Casserole

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One bite of this hearty sausage casserole recipe--full of sauerkraut, apples and kielbasa--and you'll be transported to a tiny pub in the Alsace region of northern France. Serve with extra mustard if you like.
By Carolyn Malcoun

Sautéed Cabbage

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This easy side dish takes only 20 minutes from start to finish. You can enjoy sautéed cabbage simply cooked with butter and onion or jazz it up with one of the variations (see below). Enjoy all the versions of this quick side dish with roasted pork or chicken.
By Sarah Epperson

Fattoush Salad

Red cabbage gives this fattoush salad extra crunch. Fattoush is a Levantine dish with roots in Lebanon and its defining characteristic is the inclusion of bits of toasted or fried flat bread in the salad. This recipe is adapted from New Arrival Supper Club chef Maysaa Kanjo.
By Laurel Randolf

Red Cabbage & Pomegranate Salad

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Honey helps balance out the harshness of cruciferous cabbage in this fresh and crunchy slaw recipe. The colors in this easy-to-make salad are enough to brighten one's spirits. In fact, research shows that simply looking at purple plants can fire up neurons that help us relax, so take a moment to appreciate this beautiful salad before you dig in.
By Julia Levy

Creamed Cabbage & Sauerkraut with Rye Breadcrumbs

Hot Hungarian paprika gives this casserole subtle heat but you could use sweet instead. Adding sauerkraut to the mix adds bites of salty tangy flavor throughout. Try leftovers layered with turkey, Swiss and Russian dressing on a panini for a Reuben-inspired sandwich.
By Carolyn Malcoun

Roasted Cabbage with Horseradish Cream

Our roasted cabbage wedges have a beautiful char on the outside while the insides get slightly tender.
By Devon O'Brien

Cilantro-Lime Green Cabbage Slaw

Green cabbage and carrots are transformed by a bright citrusy dressing made with olive oil, maple syrup, lime and cilantro. Serve this easy slaw alongside grilled chicken or fish.
By Wendy Lopez

Honey-Mustard Roasted Cabbage

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Roasting cabbage brings out its sweet and savory side. Caraway seed is a natural pairing with this cruciferous veggie, and a combination of honey and Dijon mustard deepens the flavor. Serve as a side to pork chops, burgers or roasted chicken.
By Carolyn Casner

Chicken Tacos in Cabbage "Tortillas"

Taco Tuesday goes low-carb with a tortilla made of veggies. Cabbage leaves are the perfect crispy taco shell alternative. Add your favorite taco toppings--pico de gallo, sour cream, avocado and jalapeño--and never miss the extra carbs and calories.
By Carolyn Casner

Skillet Cabbage with Bacon & Mushrooms

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Savoy cabbage, shiitake mushrooms and leeks are braised together in this earthy Italian side dish.
By Perla Meyers

Easy Pineapple Coleslaw

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This easy pineapple coleslaw is a fresh take on the traditional coleslaw recipe—it contains those familiar savory flavors plus a touch of sweetness thanks to the pineapple. If you prefer a more tart-tasting slaw, feel free to add an additional tablespoon of lemon juice. This recipe is part of our Juneteenth Family Cookout Menu.
By Andrea Mathis, M.A., RDN, LD

Mexican-Inspired Coleslaw

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Enjoy this crunchy, refreshing alternative to mayonnaise-based coleslaw on a taco or on the side.
By Stacy Fraser

Warm Red Cabbage Salad

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In this quick German-inspired side dish, red cabbage is cooked until just tender and combined with sweet apples, caraway and a tangy vinaigrette. Serve with roasted pork loin or turkey kielbasa.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Curried Cabbage

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This simple curried cabbage, which is inspired by spices often found in eastern Kenya by the port of Mombasa, is full of heat. Serve with rice. Read more about the story behind this recipe.
By Jessica B. Harris

Steamed Cabbage & Carrots

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It's been said that serving cabbage for New Year's promises prosperity, so adding a few carrot coins can only sweeten the purse.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Cabbage Salad with Lemon-Garlic Vinaigrette

This crisp cabbage salad with lemon-garlic vinaigrette feels like a lightened-up version of coleslaw with a tangy lemon dressing and a light mix of fresh herbs.
By Breana Lai Killeen, M.P.H., RD

Napa Cabbage & Carrots with Rice Wine-Oyster Sauce

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Napa--also known as Chinese cabbage--is the preferred cabbage in this healthy Asian stir-fry recipe because it's much sweeter and more tender than green cabbage. If napa cabbage isn't available at your grocery store, try Savoy cabbage or bok choy.
By Grace Young

Baked Red Cabbage Chips

Full of anti-inflammatory antioxidants, red cabbage makes a great healthy alternative to regular potato chips. The flavor of these crispy leaves is fortified with extra-virgin olive oil and everything bagel seasoning.
By Carolyn Casner
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