BBQ Cabbage and Bacon


This is one of my favorite things to eat, because it’s quick, easy and relatively healthy. It also tastes great, because it also includes several of my favorite foods: bacon, cabbage, onions and spice.

  • cabbage, 1 head, chopped
  • bacon, 9 ounces (about 6 thick-cut strips)
  • 2 small onions, smoked
  • dry rub of your choice
  • oil, as needed
  • 1 chile pepper of your choice (optional)

The unusual twist here is that the smoky flavor comes from the onions, not the bacon. Whenever I smoke meats, I try to get as much use out of the smoke as I can. So (among other things) I’ll throw a few onions in to absorb a few hours’ worth of smoke. Then I’ll store them for use in salsas or recipes like this one.

You could also use heavily smoked bacon here, but for this dish I like it pan-fried, allowing the bacon to contribute the fat that helps cook the cabbage (the onions already provide the smoke). Also make sure to use thick slices. The bacon at Whole Foods is sliced to the thickness I like, and they also carry a low fat bacon by Wellshire Farms that has only 4 grams of fat per thick slice, with a pretty good flavor.

Cut the bacon across the strips, making pieces about ½” wide. Use the whole width of the strip to ensure that each piece has some meat and some fat.

Heat the bacon in a deep pan, stirring as needed.

While the bacon is heating, peel and chop the onions. Then add to the pan.

Chop and add the cabbage. Stir often so that it gets coated with the bacon fat. If necessary, add some oil.

Add the dry rub according to your taste. This is a great time to test drive a new dry rub or experiment with some new chili powders or sliced chili peppers. Alternately, you can fine tune your taste buds by focusing on just one key herb, as in Flavor Bootcamp. There’s enough flavor in the onions and bacon that you could get by with nothing more than a little crushed red pepper and it will still taste good.

When all the ingredients are in, place the lid on the pan and cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage reaches your desired doneness (al dente or fully wilted).



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March 8th, 2007
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Comment Number:
1
Written by:
chilebrown
Posted on:
March 9, 2007 at 4:58 am

Bacon and Cabbage is a combo that cannot be beat. I was a little troubled by an ingredient of ‘Low Fat Bacon’. I went to Wellshire Farms sight, and they did not list it. Is that a ‘Whole Foods’ label of just real meaty bacon? I am just curious.

Comment Number:
2
Written by:
Gary Goldblatt
Posted on:
March 9, 2007 at 1:57 pm

The low fat bacon is by Wellshire Farms, in its own package. I get it at Whole Foods but I’ve seen it elsewhere.

On the Wellshire Farms site, they didn’t have the exact same package I used, but they had something that looked similar.

What I used: “Dry Rubbed Center Cut Salt Cured Bacon” (18 oz package).
The “40% less fat” claim is listed above the ingredients. I use half the package per head of cabbage.

What the Wellshire Farms site lists: “Dry Rubbed Center Cut Bacon” (18 oz package). The Details section on the site says, “18 Oz Pkgs Regular Sliced, Uncured, All Natural Pork Raised Without Antibiotics, 40% Less Fat Than USDA Data For Pork Bacon All Natural Ingredients No Nitrites, Nitrates Or Preservatives Added.”

Good luck. Ya gotta love bacon!