Hungarian cabbage and noodles is a humble, buttery skillet of wide egg noodles tossed with cabbage that has been cooked slowly until it turns soft, sweet and golden at the edges. It is a cheap, filling weeknight dinner or a side dish for sausage, pork chops or roast chicken.
How to make Hungarian cabbage and noodles: Melt butter in a large skillet and add thinly sliced cabbage with salt. Cover and cook until it starts to wilt, then uncover, raise the heat and cook until the cabbage turns amber and begins to caramelize. Fold it into separately cooked, well-drained egg noodles and serve with a sprinkle of sweet paprika.
Why You’ll Love It
- Five ingredients. Egg noodles, cabbage, butter, salt and pepper. Paprika is optional.
- Thirty minutes. Ten to slice the cabbage and twenty at the stove.
- Budget cooking. One head of cabbage and one bag of noodles feed 8.
- Sweet, golden cabbage. Slow browning in butter changes its flavor completely.
What Is Hungarian Cabbage and Noodles?
It is egg noodles mixed with cabbage that has been fried in butter until golden. In Hungarian it is called káposztás tészta. This recipe is the plain one, with only cabbage, butter and noodles. You will also see it made with onion, bacon or kielbasa.
Ingredient Notes
Egg noodles. One 12-ounce package.
Green cabbage. One large head, cored and sliced thinly.
Salted butter. Six tablespoons. It is the only fat in the dish, so do not cut it back.
Salt. One teaspoon, divided: half goes in at the start and half when the lid comes off.
Ground black pepper. A 1/4 teaspoon, stirred in near the end.
Hungarian sweet paprika. An optional sprinkle at the table.
Ingredients
- 12 ounces egg noodles (one package)
- 1 large head green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
- 6 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon salt, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Hungarian sweet paprika, optional, for serving
How to Make Hungarian Cabbage and Noodles
1. Start the cabbage. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced cabbage, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and stir.
2. Wilt, then brown. Cover and cook, stirring often, until the cabbage starts to wilt. Remove the lid, raise the heat to medium-high and add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook until the cabbage turns amber and begins to caramelize. Stir in the pepper when it is nearly done.
3. Cook the noodles. Meanwhile, cook the egg noodles in a pot of water according to the package instructions. Drain well.
4. Combine and serve. Fold the cabbage into the cooked noodles. Taste and add salt or pepper if needed. Serve immediately, with a sprinkle of Hungarian sweet paprika if you like.
How to Get Golden Cabbage Without Overcooking the Noodles
The cabbage and the noodles are cooked apart and only meet at the end. That is the whole trick. The cabbage gets the time it needs to brown, and the noodles are boiled just until done and drained before they are folded in.
The cabbage itself cooks in two stages.
| Stage | Lid | Heat | What to look for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilting | On | Medium | The cabbage starts to soften and sink in the pan |
| Browning | Off | Medium-high | The cabbage turns amber and begins to caramelize |
The recipe gives no number of minutes for either stage, and I will not make one up. Go by what you see. Under the lid the cabbage steams and shrinks. With the lid off, the moisture cooks away and the butter can brown it. Stir often so it colors evenly.
Drain the noodles well before they go in, as the recipe says, and fold the cabbage through them gently so the noodles stay whole.
Tips for Success
How do you cut the cabbage for cabbage and noodles?
Core it and slice it thinly. One easy way is to quarter the head, cut away the thickest white core sections, then slice each quarter into strips.
Do you cut the cabbage into noodles?
No. The cabbage is only sliced thin. The dish still uses real egg noodles.
What size skillet do I need?
A large one with a lid. A whole head of cabbage is a big pile before it wilts.
When does the pepper go in?
When the cabbage is nearly done browning.
What can you add to egg noodles to make them tasty?
Here, it is butter-browned cabbage, salt and pepper, with sweet paprika on top.
Variations
Onion. Many cabbage and noodle recipes cook an onion along with the cabbage.
Bacon or kielbasa. Bacon and garlic, or sliced kielbasa, turn it into a meatier dinner.
None of these are in this recipe, so I have no amounts for them here. They belong to their own versions of the dish.
How Long Does It Take?
About 30 minutes: 10 minutes to core and slice the cabbage and 20 minutes of cooking. Boil the noodles while the cabbage browns so both are ready together.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow, covered containers and to use them within 3 to 4 days. The general freezer time for leftovers is 3 to 4 months, though I cannot promise the noodles will keep their texture. Thaw in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave, not on the counter. Reheat leftovers to 165°F.
What to Serve With It
For more noodle comfort food, try slow cooker Amish buttered noodles, slow cooker Amish beef and noodles or the chicken pot pie noodle skillet. For more cabbage, there is 3-ingredient slow cooker bacon and cabbage, slow cooker savory cabbage pork belly and slow cooker unstuffed cabbage roll soup.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you get the cabbage golden while keeping the separately cooked noodles from overcooking?
Brown the cabbage in the skillet, covered first and then uncovered over higher heat. Boil the noodles in their own pot, drain them well and fold the two together at the end.
How do you cut the cabbage for cabbage and noodles?
Core the head and slice it thinly.
What kind of noodles do I use?
Egg noodles, one 12-ounce package.
How many does it serve?
Eight.
Final Notes
I take the lid off as soon as the cabbage has slumped and let it go until it is truly amber, because pale cabbage tastes flat next to the noodles. If you make it, leave a comment to tell me how it turned out or ask a question.
Hungarian Cabbage and Noodles
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Ingredients
- 12 ounces egg noodles one package
- 1 large head green cabbage cored and thinly sliced
- 6 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Hungarian sweet paprika optional sprinkle for serving
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced cabbage, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and stir.
- Cover and cook, stirring often, until the cabbage starts to wilt. Remove the lid, raise the heat to medium-high and add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook until the cabbage turns amber and begins to caramelize. Stir in the pepper when it is nearly done.
- Meanwhile, cook the egg noodles in a pot of water according to the package instructions. Drain well.
- Fold the cabbage into the cooked noodles. Taste and add salt or pepper if needed. Serve immediately, with a sprinkle of Hungarian sweet paprika if you like.
