We grilled over Memorial Day weekend, and I was so excited to make this cabbage steak recipe again. I’ll admit my friend did the actual grilling, but I came up with the recipe and watched the time. (Totally counts, right?) And, I’m happy to report that the grilled cabbage steaks turned out just as amazing as the oven roasted cabbage steaks version I’ve made in the past. I’ll show you how to make both versions!
What Is Cabbage Steak?
Cabbage steaks are thick slices of cabbage that can be grilled, roasted, or even fried. Today I’ll show you how to make grilled and roasted versions. If you haven’t tried grilling cabbage slices before, you might be wondering, are they any good? (Definitely.) And are cabbage steaks healthy? (Totally yes.) And instead of being mushy or lifeless, like you might picture a boiled vegetable, these are caramelized and crispy at the edges.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for cabbage steaks with bacon, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
Bacon – I order clean-ingredient bacon from here, but any kind will do. Don’t use precooked, though, because we’ll use the bacon grease for the marinade. If you want a vegetarian option, omit the bacon, and increase the olive oil in the recipe by 2 additional tablespoons.Cabbage – I prefer green cabbage for this recipe, but red cabbage will work if you like. Any size head of cabbage is fine to use. Just be sure you remove the outer leaves.Garlic – Use fresh garlic for best flavor or jarred garlic for convenience.Olive Oil – Or avocado oil.Lemon Juice – Use fresh lemon juice for best flavor or bottled for convenience. The acidity helps with both flavor and tenderness. To change it up, try swapping the juice with balsamic vinegar instead.Sea Salt (or kosher salt) & Black Pepper
How To Cut Cabbage Steaks
Marinating Instructions
How To Make Roasted Cabbage Steaks In The Oven
How To Make Grilled Cabbage Steaks
Storage Instructions
Store: Keep leftover baked cabbage steaks in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.Reheat: Reheat leftovers in a 350 degree F oven or a hot skillet. You can also microwave them until hot. Reheating on the grill is also an option, though a grill basket may work best so they don’t fall apart.Freeze: Store the cabbage in an airtight container in the freezer for 2-3 months.
What To Serve With Cabbage Steaks
Are your grilled or roasted cabbage steaks your main course, or a side dish? You can do either, but we usually serve them as a side dish with: Instead, simply whisk the marinade ingredients in a small bowl, then brush the marinade over both sides of the cabbage steaks. However, I find they are more flavorful if you have time to marinate for 30 minutes.
425 degrees is a good oven temp. How long to roast cabbage steaks depends on the oven temperature and thickness of the cabbage, but this high temperature allows them to caramelize nicely and cook quickly. Line with foil or leave the pan unlined. Avoid parchment paper, which will prevent browning and caramelization. I use this non-stick sheet pan. It has a silicone coating that is PTFE, PFOA and BPA free, and the non-stick surface is awesome. Save on cleanup by using the same pan for the bacon. If you want to have fewer dishes to wash, you can use the same pan for baking the bacon and then roasting the cabbage. Baked cabbage steaks are done when the edges are crispy and caramelized. This takes about 30-35 minutes.
Do not grill cabbage on foil. Trust me, I tried! You get mushy cabbage that doesn’t get crispy or caramelized. You need to place the cabbage steaks directly onto the grill. You’ll have some leftover pieces. Since you are placing the cabbage on the grill directly, smaller pieces would fall through. So for the grilled version of the cabbage steak recipe, make sure to only place the pieces on the grill that stay together well. You can reserve the smaller pieces and pan fry them later, if you want. The cabbage is done when it starts to soften and the edges get a bit charred. A general guideline is 4-7 minutes on each side over medium heat, but ultimately, how long to grill cabbage steaks depends on your grill temperature and thickness of the cabbage.
Grilling Recipes – The most classic and logical way to serve grilled cabbage is to pair it with other grilled foods! Try grilled cod, grilled bruschetta chicken, or for a fancier meal, grilled lamb chops.Chicken – If you’re making roasted cabbage steaks, then baked chicken legs, juicy chicken breasts, or spinach stuffed chicken breast can all be made in the oven as well.Beef and Pork – Air fryer filet mignon, juicy burgers, or pan seared pork chops pair well with grilled cabbage steaks and don’t require turning on the oven.Seafood – Serve the cabbage with seafood recipes, like garlic butter shrimp, surf and turf, and pan seared salmon.
More Healthy Cabbage Recipes
If you like this recipe for cabbage, you might also like some of these other healthy cabbage recipes: Share your recipe picture by tagging @wholesomeyum and hashtag it #wholesomeyum on Instagram, or in our Facebook support group, too – I’d love to see it!
