Delicious sweet and sour red cabbage from the crock-pot. With apples, herbs and stewed in a sweet and sour sauce. The whole house smells wonderful! And thanks to the slow cooker, you can quickly and easily get a very simple cooked red cabbage with a lot of taste.

Crock-Pot Red Cabbage {German-Style}
I make the most delicious stews with my slow cooker. So ideal and easy! Dutch Granny's Hachee or Pulled beef from the crock-pot, all equally tasty and simple to make. But vegetables, I had never made that before.
Red cabbage is a vegetable that I always stew for a long time to get a great taste. In addition to apples, a dash of vinegar and sugar, a regular ingredient is always cloves, juniper berries, bay leaves, and a cinnamon stick. Because that's how you get that traditional delicious deep taste.
And what was really nice about this red cabbage from the slow cooker was that I didn't have to stay near the stove. It might take a little longer, but I could spend my time any way I wanted. I didn't have to check if the red cabbage boiled dry or if it didn't rise too long (and I got red cabbage purée). The red cabbage comes out perfectly cooked every time I make it in the crock-pot.
What do you need for Red Cabbage with Apples?
For the preparation of crock-pot red cabbage you need the following ingredients (you can find the correct amounts in the recipe card at the bottom of the blog):
Red cabbage, sliced or whole?
Because red cabbage is a hardy cabbage, it is quite a bit of work to clean it. And the cutting is also quite a chore. Although you can do the latter in a food processor with a knife and suitable for shredding. But this is one of those typical vegetables that you can buy well-cut in the supermarkets around here and that saves you a lot of work.
Which apples do you use?
Suitable apples for the German-Style red cabbage are Honeycrisp, Jonagold, Pink Lady, or Braeburn. They are nice and sweet.
How to make Slow Cooker Red Cabbage with Apple and Cinnamon
A recipe with extensive steps, the right amount of ingredients, and which you can also easily print can be found at the bottom of the blog.
An easy recipe for making red cabbage in the slow cooker. Place the red cabbage, onion, garlic, apples, sugar, honey, vinegar, stock, and spices in the slow cooker and turn it on low. Let it cook for 7 to 8 hours. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Spices - Remove cloves and juniper berries and bay leaves from the red cabbage stew before serving. To make it really easy now, I use a tea infuser to collect the herbs. You can easily find it. The bay leaf and cinnamon stick are large enough to be quickly retrieved.
- Crock-pot High or Low - Normally you make the recipe on a low setting for 8 hours. Then the flavors are optimally withdrawn. But if you have less time, you can also use it on High for 4 hours.
- Serve it with - Mashed potatoes, applesauce and Old Fashioned Dutch Hachee. A great combination!
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https://www.youtube.com/c/ByAndréaJanssenCrock-Pot Red Cabbage {German Style}
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 juniper berries
- 2 cloves
- 1¼ Pound red cabbage sliced
- 1 red onion finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 Apples Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Jonagold or Braeburn apples, peeled and cored. Cut in pieces.
- 1½ tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- salt and pepper to taste
Ingredients you need per step are listed below the step in Italic
Instructions
- Optional: Place the juniper berries and cloves in a tea infuser (or bag). That way you can easily remove them at the end.2 juniper berries, 2 cloves
- Place the red cabbage, onion, garlic, brown sugar, honey, tomato paste, apple cubes, red wine vinegar in the slow cooker and mix well.1¼ Pound red cabbage, 1 red onion, 1 clove garlic, 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 2 Apples, 1½ tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 cup vegetable stock
- Place the bay leaves, cinnamon stick, juniper berries and cloves on top.2 juniper berries, 2 bay leaves, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 cloves
- Turn on the slow cooker on low for 8 hours.
- Remove the juniper berries, cloves, cinnamon sticks, and bay leaves.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper.salt and pepper
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- Refrigerator - Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days
- Frozen - Put the red cabbage in a freezer box and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let thaw in the refrigerator.
- Reheating - Place the red cabbage in a saucepan and heat over medium heat while stirring until warm.
Padma says
Have been looking for a good and easy recipe for red cabbage. Glad that I have found one! Thanks!
Megane says
There is so much flavor in this very simple dish. Thanks for sharing and giving me a new go-to recipe.
Jacqueline Debono says
I love the German way of making red cabbage. I've had it made by German friends (at Chrismas with goose!) but have never made it myself. Now I'm going to try it myself!
Jerika says
Thank you for this Crock-Pot Red Cabbage recipe.:) I will be making this tomorrow. It's simple to prepare and nutritious.
Deborah Leader says
The combination of apples and herbs was divine. Loved this recipe.
Andréa says
Great to hear!