Instant pot buttered cabbage with garlic using whole cabbage head (which is shredded) is so simple and easy to make and its a very delicious, buttery vegetable side dish you can prepare quickly and it is an easy vegetarian version of the popular Southern dish.
I tried this recipe with a full head of cabbage as well as a half head of cabbage and either way, its so easy to make in the instant pot.
How Long To Cook Cabbage In Instant Pot
In this simple recipe for buttered cabbage, we only cook the cabbage for 2 minutes and do a natural pressure release for 7 minutes which is perfect. It is soft in texture and buttery. However, if you like your cabbage more crispy and not soft, cook just for 1 minute and do a a natural pressure release for only 3 to 4 minutes and then do a gradual controlled manual release.
Keep in mind that we shred the cabbage roughly for this recipe , prior to cooking the cabbage in the instant pot.
So the time needed to cook the cabbage in the instant pot can change if you are trying to cook larger pieces, wedges or whole cabbage.
If you wonder the cabbage looks lightly browned in this photo, I guess that's because we use onion and garlic powders and also because I used white cabbage while I took this photo.
If you use regular green cabbage, that will look more colorful.
What Kind Of Cabbage Is Best For Instant Pot Buttered Cabbage Recipe?
I prefer using firm white cabbage to make the instant pot buttered cabbage but regular green cabbage will also work. I have tried both white cabbage and green cabbage in this recipe, and personally I loved the flavor of the white cabbage in this dish.
The white cabbage had a natural sweet flavor which pairs well with the buttery flavor. Some green cabbages tend to have a bitter taste which is not very pleasant, so if the cabbage you use have a slight bitter taste, it can affect the taste of the dish.
If you only have green cabbage and in case it has a slight bitter taste, I suggest soaking the cabbage in salt water (and discard the water used for soaking) prior to cooking the cabbage which might help.
Also, another way to reduce the bitterness in cabbage is to use a little apple juice. So if your cabbage is bitter, you may try adding about 2 tablespoons of apple juice along with the broth or water that you use for cooking the cabbage, but make sure to adjust the amount of water or broth used accordingly, if you do not want to end up with too much liquid once the cabbage is cooked.
Whether you use white cabbage or green cabbage, make sure to use firm cabbages like those with firm leaves since we do not want too soft or mushy cabbage.
Some kind of green cabbages like Napa cabbage is not appropriate for this recipe, because they tend to be on the softer side and also sometimes they tend to be bitter.
So for the best results, I suggest using white cabbages that have firm leaves though you can use green cabbages with firm leaves too.
How Does Buttered Cabbage Taste Like?
This buttered cabbage has a soft (not too soft) melt in your mouth texture and also a very buttery, garlicky flavor.
Its not crunchy but its soft.
If you prefer not so soft cabbage leaves, as I mentioned earlier, reduce the cooking time and also reduce the natural pressure release time accordingly, depending on how soft you prefer the cooked cabbage to be.
Also I added garlic and onion powders for flavor, but this is just a preference and you may adjust the flavors based on what you prefer. You can also make this using just salt, butter and black pepper which tastes great as well.
Using vegetable broth instead of water will increase the flavor so much more.
How To Make Instant Pot Buttered Cabbage
Ingredients For Buttered Cabbage In Instant Pot
cabbage
butter
water or broth
salt
garlic powder
onion powder
black pepper powder
Steps To Follow (The Process)
First you wash the cabbage very well and remove any outer layers if needed.
Shred the cabbage and add the shredded cabbage to the instant pot.
Add liquid (broth or water), salt, garlic and onion powder, stir. Also add 4 tablespoons of butter.
Close the instant pot with lid in sealing position and cook for 2 minutes.
Do a natural pressure release for 7 minutes and then do a gradual manual pressure release.
Stir, add more butter, sprinkle with black pepper and serve hot!
Tips To Make Best Instant Pot Cabbage
We use garlic and onion powder to add even more flavor to this instant pot butter cabbage (vegetarian recipe) and its very delicious and easy to make.
If you are using a full head of cabbage, as in the recipe (the video uses half the head of a cabbage), add 4 tablespoons of butter before cooking and add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter after the cooking is done, since I do not recommend adding more butter to the pressure cooker.
Once the buttered cabbage is prepared, you can always taste test and add more garlic or any spices of your choice as you desire.
I have found that adding a little lemon juice makes the buttered cabbage even more delicious, so go ahead and add the juice from about half of medium sized lemon and see how you like it.
You can add even more lemon juice if you like the lemony flavor.
This is a very simple vegetable side dish (the vegetarian version of a Southern favorite, but personally I like to serve it with rice and other side dishes or curry) and you can even increase the flavor by adding more spices or flavors of your choice, like lemon juice or even more garlic if you wish.
If you are looking for an easy, quick and delicious vegetable side dish (or vegetarian meatless side dish) that you can serve with your main course, try this easy buttered cabbage in your instant pot and see how quick and easy it is.
The cabbage prepared in the instant pot using this recipe is so buttery and delicious. This can be made using a 6 quart instant pot Lux or Duo.
See more easy instant pot vegetarian recipes here:
easy instant pot buttered noodles
instant pot sauteed broccoli florets
If you love vegetarian cabbage recipes, try this easy cabbage egg breakfast scramble, cabbage with green peas, tomato cabbage soup, shredded cabbage stir fry with spices which are all delicious as well!
Below you can read the instant pot buttered cabbage recipe in detail.
Instant Pot Buttered Cabbage With Garlic
Ingredients
- 1 medium sized cabbage about 8 to 10 cups shredded cabbage
- 1 stick butter
- ¼ cup water or vegetable broth
- salt as needed
- 1 teaspoon black pepper powder adjust to taste
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Wash the cabbage and remove any outer layers that are not fresh.
- Chop or shred the cabbage in slightly thick slices. If you slice the cabbage in small, they may get mushy and too soft.
- Transfer the shredded cabbage to the instant pot.
- Add the broth or water, salt, garlic powder and onion powder, stir into make sure the water has reached at the bottom of the pot (to avoid burning). Alternatively, you can add the water at the beginning and then add the cabbage and the remaining ingredients.
- Add 4 tablespoons of butter also to the instant pot.
- Close the instant pot with lid in sealing position and cook in high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Once the cooking is finished and the pot beeps, wait for a natural pressure release for about 7 minutes. After that, carefully do a gradual controlled manual release of pressure.
- Open the instant pot carefully, add the remaining butter and also black pepper, stir well and serve hot! You can also squeeze in the juice of about half of a medium sized lemon and add even more garlic powder or any spices as you desire to try different flavors.
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