Smothered Cabbage

Smothered cabbage more than makes up for its looks with its bold flavor. It warms the soul with its smoky, sweet, and buttery notes.

The key to smothered cabbage is a well-seasoned smoked meat. Tasso is hands down my favorite choice in cabbage. As always, I recommend getting it from Wayne Jacob’s smokehouse. If you can’t get that, a smoked ham hock is a good choice. While bacon seems like a good option (and will taste fine), it doesn’t get the cabbage as smoky as what it should be. Tasso is a lean meat so if you use ham hock or bacon, you can skip the butter.

Smothered Cabbage Ingredients
1 head of cabbage 
½ small onion (½ c chopped)
3 cloves garlic
1/3 c tasso
½ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp red pepper (cayenne)
¾ -1 tsp tsp salt
2 Tbl butter

Smothered Cabbage Directions
Cut off the exterior stem. Slice the cabbage in half top to bottom. Cut out the stem. Slice the stem into ¼” cubes. Lay a cabbage half on its flat side. Slice into 2 inch strips then slice across to create 2” cubes. Repeat on the second half of the cabbage.

Slice off both stems of the onion. Slice it in half pole to pole and remove the dry skin. Slice it pole to pole and then across to create a dice. You want ½ c of it chopped.

Cut off the dry ends of 3 cloves of garlic. Lay a knife flat on top of the garlic and give it a good whack. Remove the dry skin. Rock a knife back and forth to create a mince.

Slice tasso into 1/4 “ strips then cut the strips in ¼” cubes. You want ⅓ c.

Mix ½ tsp black pepper, ¼ tsp red pepper, and ¾ tsp salt (you can add more if you have a large cabbage). Add half of the cabbage to a heavy bottom pot. Top it with ½ of the other ingredients except for the butter. Repeat. Put the butter on top.

Put the cabbage on medium heat and cover. Allow it to sweat. After 30 minutes, take a quick peak and stir. If it is sticking, add a ¼ c of water. Cook about 60-75 minutes in total. The cabbage will be slightly translucent and extremely soft. The cabbage just take on a brown hue.