Sweet, sour, and downright delicious, German Red Cabbage is a simple side that’s perfect with so many main courses! The cabbage is braised with apples, onions, and cloves and is so easy to make. It’s the easy side dish you’ll come back to again and again!
Traditional German Red Cabbage, or Rotkohl, is the quintessential Fall side dish!
The cabbage is gently braised until tender with onions, apples, cloves, cider vinegar, and sugar, yielding the ultimate sweet and sour flavor.
It’s great with your favorite Oktoberfest-inspired recipes such as beef rouladen, spaetzle, and sauerbraten, but is also great alongside other fare, such as pot roast, brown gravy meatloaf, and chicken cutlets!
Recipe Ingredients
All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.
- Cabbage. Purple or red cabbage is the cabbage of choice for this German braised cabbage. Save your green cabbage for stuffed cabbage rolls or corned beef and cabbage.
- Vinegar. I prefer to use cider vinegar here as I think it best complements the other flavors, but you can also use white or red wine vinegar.
- Sugar. German red cabbage is known for it’s sweet and sour flavor. The sweetness comes from the apples, but also from sugar. You can tweak the amount of sugar depending on how sweet you like it but it is an important component of the recipe.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make it
Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.
- Slice 1 medium red onion, core and chop 2 Granny Smith apples, core and slice 1 large red cabbage into 1/4-inch thick pieces.
- Heat a large pot to medium with 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter. Add the onion and saute until soft, about 7-10 minutes. Add the apples and cook for another 3 minutes.
- In a small bowl combine 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup of cider vinegar, 5 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt, and 6 whole cloves (or 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves). Pour the mixture over the cabbage and apples and stir to combine. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until the cabbage is soft, about 60-90 minutes.
- Remove the lid and cook until some of the excess liquid evaporates. Taste test and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with your favorite main course and enjoy!
Recipe tip
If you can make this red cabbage a day in advance of serving it, it will taste even better!
More great side dishes
Here are a few more of our favorite side dish recipes. We hope you love them!
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German Red Cabbage (Rotkohl)
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 medium red onion sliced
- 2 Granny Smith apples cored and chopped
- 1 large red cabbage cored and sliced into 1/4-inch thick pieces
- 1/2 cup cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 6 whole cloves or 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat a large pot to medium with the butter. Add the onion and saute until soft (about 7-10 minutes). Add the apple and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Add the cabbage and mix to combine.
- Combine the water, vinegar, sugar, fine sea salt, and cloves. Pour the mixture over the cabbage and mix to combine. Cover with a tight fitting lid and reduce heat to a simmer and cook until soft (about 60-90 minutes).
- Remove the lid and cook until some of the excess liquid evaporates. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe can be made ahead and tastes even better the next day.
- Leftovers can be saved for up to 5 days and can be reheated on the stovetop until warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe has the perfect balance of sweet and sour. Super delicious!
So happy you enjoyed, Ann!
I served this with your Sauerbraten recipe the other night and it was the perfect pairing. The combo of the sour and sweet was perfect (and yes, you’re spot on with the 5 tbsp sugar, I wasn’t sure at first but ended up adding it all). It’s the perfect cabbage dish. Thank you!
Thanks for the comment, Jaye, and happy you liked this one as well!
I cannot find this in any store or deli near me. Making your own is always the better option. Love your channel!
We’re so happy you enjoyed the recipe!
This is going to be a staple side dish for our family from now on. Super easy to make and so delicious! Took just a few minutes to prep and get on the stove and while it’s cooking you have plenty of time to make the rest of your meal. And the results are insanely delicious. I’ve never seen my husband eat so much cabbage in one sitting, lol.
We’re so happy you all enjoyed the cabbage, Crystal!
I made this for a potluck dinner with friends – everyone loved it. May have gotten more comments than the main dish! Super easy to make (I whipped it up over lunch then just put in the fridge and re-heated before serving) and tasty as anything! My wife was very doubtful this would taste good but upon tasting…”This…isn’t bad.” Thank you for this one!! I may put slightly less sugar in next time, but that’s just personal taste, it’s almost perfect as is.
We’re so happy you all enjoyed it, James!
We had this dish in Germany last year when we visited the Christmas markets. Your recipe was better. More flavorful. The hint of clove was perfect. The recipe makes A LOT but I read that cooked cabbage freezes well so am hoping to enjoy this for the next couple weeks of months. My advice is: Try it. You won’t be disappointed. Thanks!
Thanks for the great comment, Madeline! We’re so happy you enjoyed it!
So good!!! No surprise!
We’re happy to hear that!
Jim, can the German red cabbage recipe be made in a slow cooker rather than on top of the stove?
Thanks.
Absolutely! Just cook until tender.
Jim I would love an authentic German goulash recipe like they made at Zumstammtisch in Glendale. All the recipes I goggled have pasta in them- I am looking for the real deal like your red cabbage recipe. Any help would be great.
Thanks for the comment, Connie! We will add German goulash to our list of to-dos!
It’s be a very long time since I’ve had homemade Red Cabbage. With a German father and an Austrian mother, I was raised on it. While I have yet to ever make it, your research of authentic German cuisine seems to be spot on. Just from reading your ingredients, I can smell and taste it!