This slow cooker red cabbage with apples turns glossy and deep burgundy as it cooks. The kitchen will smell like the holidays. It's sweet-tart, fork-tender, and right at home next to roast pork or a glazed holiday ham. Best of all, the slow cooker handles it while you negotiate custody of the oven with three casseroles and a pie.
Table of Contents
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🥰 Is this slow cooker red cabbage recipe for you?
- You like a sweet-and-sour side. Tart Granny Smith apples and cider vinegar balance the sweetness of the ruby port and brown sugar. It's especially good with a salty slice of ham.
- Your oven is already booked solid. Slice the cabbage, apples, and onion, then let the slow cooker take it from there. The dinner rolls can stop fighting for a rack.
- You like to get a head start on holiday dinner. Make it the day before and reheat it gently with a splash of its cooking liquid. The flavors have a little more time to get acquainted overnight.
🧾 Ingredients
A head of red cabbage looks innocent enough on the counter. Give it a splash of ruby port and suddenly it's acting like it has a standing invitation to Christmas dinner.
- Red cabbage. Cut out the tough core and slice the cabbage thinly so it cooks evenly.
- Granny Smith apples. Leave the peels on and cut the apples into thick wedges so they have a fighting chance of holding their shape.
- Sweet onion. Slice it thin so it softens right into the cabbage as it cooks.
- Ruby port wine. It brings a dark berry flavor that's lovely with the apples.
- Apple cider vinegar. This gives the cooking liquid its tang and helps keep the cabbage a deep burgundy.
- Dark brown sugar. A little molasses flavor rounds out the vinegar's bite.
- Bacon grease. It adds a little smoky richness. Use extra butter if the bacon grease jar is empty.
- Butter. Cut it into small pieces and dot them over the cabbage so the butter melts down through the layers.
- Kosher salt and black pepper. Season before cooking, then taste again just before serving.
- Ground cinnamon. Just enough to add warmth without sending the whole slow cooker into apple pie territory.
- Ground cloves. A tiny pinch is plenty. Cloves have never once used their indoor voice.
- Bay leaf. Tuck it in before cooking and fish it out before serving.
📖 Recipe
Slow Cooker Red Cabbage with Apples
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- 2 pounds red cabbage, about 1 medium head, cored and thinly sliced
- 2 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into thick wedges, peels left on
- 1 cup sweet onion, thinly sliced
- ½ cup ruby port wine, reserve 2 tablespoons for just before serving
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon bacon grease, may substitute butter
- 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Lightly grease a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, if desired.
- Add the sliced red cabbage, apple wedges, and onion to the slow cooker. Toss gently to distribute the ingredients.
- In a small bowl, whisk together ⅓ cup of the ruby port, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and cloves.
- Pour the mixture evenly over the cabbage.
- Dot the top with bacon grease and butter (or just butter). Tuck the bay leaf into the cabbage.
- Cover and cook on LOW for about 6 hours, until the cabbage is tender and the apples are soft. Your slow cooker may take a little less or a little more time. Avoid lifting the lid unnecessarily.
- Remove the bay leaf. Gently toss the cabbage with the cooking juices.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. Add another teaspoon or two of cider vinegar if you'd like a sharper sweet-and-sour finish.
- Stir in the other 2 tablespoons of port if it needs a little more flavor.
- Serve warm, spooning a little of the rich cooking liquid over each portion.
Notes
- The cabbage is ready when the thicker ribbons are tender all the way through. Mine takes a little over 6 hours.
- The 2 tablespoons of packed dark brown sugar balances the cider vinegar to my taste. If your cabbage tastes sweeter than you'd like, stir in a teaspoon of cider vinegar and taste again.
- Use a slotted spoon to serve. Fish out the bay leaf first, then spoon just enough of the cooking juices over the cabbage to keep it glossy.
- You can't substitute green/white cabbage for the red in this recipe.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
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😱 What can go wrong (and how to fix it)
🍏 The cabbage is still chewy. Slow cookers have their own opinions about what LOW means. If the thicker ribbons still have a raw crunch, put the lid back on and give them another 30 minutes before checking again.
🍏 The apples disappeared. Some of the apple will melt into the cooking juices. If you want recognizable pieces, leave the peels on and cut the apples into thick wedges. Sometimes they disappear anyway, the rascals.
🍏 There's more liquid than you expected. Cabbage releases water as it cooks, and the slow cooker lid keeps that moisture in. Lift the cabbage into a serving bowl with a slotted spoon, then spoon a little of the cooking liquid over it. The cabbage can have a bath. Your mashed potatoes don't need one.
🍏 The sweet-tart balance is off. Taste a bite of cabbage with a little of the cooking liquid. If it's too sweet, stir in a teaspoon of cider vinegar. If it's too sharp, add a small pinch of brown sugar. Stir and taste again before adding more.
👩🏻🍳 FAQs
Tawny port will work, too. For an alcohol-free swap, try unsweetened red grape juice. Hold the brown sugar until you've tasted the cabbage at the end. The juice may bring all the sweetness you need.
Yes, as long as it's plain shredded red cabbage. If it's cut finer than you'd slice it by hand, start checking for tenderness a little early. Those skinny shreds have places to be.
🍽 More side dish recipes
🏡 I'd put this on the Christmas table for that gorgeous burgundy color alone. But the bite I'd go back for is the one where the sweet-tart juices run into the mashed potatoes. I know what I said about giving the potatoes a bath. A little splash is between you and your plate.
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