Buttered slow cooker cabbage recipe that is the perfect vegetable side dish to serve with any meal, not just corned beef brisket at St. Patricks Day. We will show you how to cook cabbage low and slow step by step.

A fork holds a portion of slow cooker cabbage seasoned with black pepper. The light green cabbage appears soft and tender, with a focus on the fork and cabbage in the foreground against a blurred background.
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If youโ€™re looking for a vegetarian Crockpot recipe, this slow cooker cabbage is great. We eat meat and love this just the same. Throw in your favorite seasonings with or without salted butter and it will surely make your mouth water. One of our favorite easy Crockpot recipes on our site. (affiliate links present)

Cabbage in Crockpot

If you only think about this green vegetable during St. Patrickโ€™s Day, shame on you! There are SO many great and simple cabbage recipes you can make all year long. We make air fryer cabbage with chicken all the time, and even my kids clean their plates. ๐Ÿ˜‰

I mean buttered cabbage just melts in your mouth and is so easy to throw together. If you want to spend less time standing at the stovetop, let it cook in your slow cooker instead!

I was not a fan of this growing up. Every time I went to visit my Grandmother she served this with everything, I mean every thing. It literally took me into my late 30s before I bought a head myself and started working with it. I found that the leaves really soaked up a lot of flavor, but you had to find the right consistency for sure.

You donโ€™t want it too firm or wilted and soggy. A fine balance for sure is necessary to really enjoy it but once you get the hang of that perfect cook time youโ€™ll be a new cabbage lover too I tell you.

With that you would get to enjoy our slow cooker cabbage and ham dish you can serve as a whole meal. Meat will give your leaves even more flavor with the broth and seasonings. You can add chicken too like we did with old fashioned cabbage soup. Want to keep it vegetarian? Use vegetable broth and just some garlic salt.

A heap of slow cooker cabbage rests inside a sleek black cooker, primed for a delicious transformation.

Ingredient & Recipe Notes

  1. Head of green cabbage sliced with stem removed. The thinner the slices are the softer they will become so keep that in mind when you decide how wide you want them to be.
  2. Stick of salted butter is suggested for flavor and make it a bit creamy. I like Kerrigold the best, dairy free sticks that are plant based work too but they donโ€™t offer as much flavor as we have found with our baked cabbage steaks.
  3. Seasonings of your choice but salt and black pepper are givens, sometimes will add Old Bay too
  4. We use chicken broth instead of water to give it more flavor and a little bit extra salt
  5. Diced onions and garlic are optional but nice add ins, diced really fine to incorporate into the dish nicely
  6. You could add bacon bits and a bit of bacon grease while youโ€™re at it for an over the top wow. Apple cider vinegar will add a zing of flavor if you like that.

If you wanted to transition this from a side to a main dish you could make this as an easy leftover ham recipe with diced pieces into the mix at the beginning. A great way to add protein and a lot of flavor For a heartier dish you can add protein like we did with our Crockpot cabbage and sausage recipe.

Depending on how much you want to make and how large your pot is you may use only 1/2 or the whole head. This is very simple to double if you have a really large machine for sure. Only want enough for dinner, use a casserole size Crockpot and cut this in half, simple.

Crockpot Cabbage recipe

Steaming it quickly can also keep it a bit firmer. Try a few of our Instant Pot cabbage recipes and see which you prefer too and go with that.

With tons of flavor but low in calories and carbs itโ€™s kindaโ€™ the perfect easy side dish. Now there are different colors of this baby too, sometimes. The most popular is green as you see here but you can find red or purpleish colorwhich is much firmer and used more in things like coleslaw.

A white plate filled with slow cooker cabbage, seasoned with black pepper. A silver spoon rests on the edge of the plate.
A white plate filled with slow cooker cabbage, seasoned with black pepper. A silver spoon rests on the edge of the plate.
5 from 11 votes

Slow Cooker Cabbage

By Justine
Buttered slow cooker cabbage recipe that is the perfect vegetable side dish to serve with any meal, not just corned beef brisket.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 6 hours
Servings:

Equipment

  • 1 slow cooker
  • 1 knife

Ingredients 

  • 6 c cabbage, sliced into ribbons
  • 2 c chicken broth
  • 1 stick butter, 1/2 cup
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
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Instructions 

  • Remove stem from cabbage and slice in half. Then chop again into 3/4" ribbons. Put into Crockpot.
  • Pour in broth. Slice butter into 6 equal pieces and place on top sprinkled with salt and pepper.
  • Cook on low for 6 hours. Ideally fold together halfway thru cook time.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 2oz, Calories: 160kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 437mg, Potassium: 187mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 552IU, Vitamin C: 31mg, Calcium: 38mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish
Cuisine: American, irish
Tried this recipe?Mention @thetypical_mom or tag #thetypicalmom!

Looking for more Crockpot cabbage recipes? Check out our roundup of more here. Jump to recipe below and get your cabbage and onions all prepped. There is nutritional information there too with calories, saturated fat, etcโ€ฆ You could fry up some fresh bacon and chop it up, or throw in some already precooked out of a bag. Print recipe to keep it handy or just come back time and time again. ๐Ÿ˜‰

How do you make cabbage not soggy?

Well I mean you do want it to get soft, but not too much. Cook time and the amount of liquid it is sitting in will change the texture of it the most. If you donโ€™t want it as soft then cut the timing, you can also gently move the bottom layer to the top so the texture is more evenly distributed.

Slow Cooker Cabbage

About Justine

Justine is the creative mind behind The Typical Mom and The Typical Family on YouTube. She began blogging about easy recipes, budget friendly activities for kids, and fun family travel destinations in September 2012.

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5 from 11 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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25 Comments

  1. A neighbor gave me a napa cabbage so here I am scrolling trying to find a recipe to use it. Iโ€™ve never had this kind of cabbage. This recipe seems pretty basic so Iโ€™ll give it a try. Thank you

    1. You could but may take longer to get more tender and if you have a white pot it will stain the insides.

  2. Excellent! My husband said this should be our cooked cabbage recipe going forward. I already printed a copy and added it to my personal recipe binder. I added a half pound of carrots, a sliced white onion, and a little bacon grease as well and it turned out spectacular. We stirred it a few hours in and it was perfect so we finished it on warm.