Here's What Happens When You Cook Cabbage In Your Instant Pot

With cabbage's social media star on the rise, finding new methods for preparing this cruciferous veggie has become a delightful exercise in culinary creativity. There are several simple ways to cook cabbage, including steaming, grilling, and roasting. And, if you own an Instant Pot, you can try using it to make cabbage. This delicious dish that requires minimal effort and time, while still yielding mouthwatering results.

The advantage of an Instant Pot is twofold when it comes to cabbage. For one, its larger capacity means you can de-stem and place an average-sized head of cabbage into your Instant Pot and cook the whole thing in a matter of minutes. This makes it much easier to slice after carefully retrieving it from the pot and letting it cool briefly on a cutting board. Second, the pressure cooking style tenderizes the dense and nutrient-rich vegetable to perfection, leaving you with just a few simple choices to make about chopping, seasoning, and serving.

You can cook just about any type of cabbage in your Instant Pot as long as you mind the timing so as not to overcook more delicate varieties. Whether you leave your cabbage mostly whole or roughly chop it, you should start by adding water or broth to the pot before placing your cabbage directly on top or placing it in a trivet or steamer basket. Top with salt, pepper, and butter, and cook for four to seven minutes, depending on the size of your cabbage and desired level of firmness.

While using your Instant Pot is both simple and effective, there are still a number of mistakes everyone makes when cooking cabbage, which you should be mindful of. Overcooking and not using enough seasonings or fats for flavor are two major concerns. 

As far as liquids are concerned, you can make this a fully vegetarian or vegan dish by using vegetable broth. Add a nutritious plant-based fat like extra virgin olive oil for flavor. For those who eat animal products, you can add butter, homemade chicken broth, and spices to the Instant Pot and serve the cabbage with a sprinkle of chopped bacon on top. 

Don't limit yourself to seasoning with just salt and pepper, either. Microplane fresh nutmeg into your Instant Pot to season the cabbage with earthy, warming spices before cooking. For extra heat, add ground paprika or cayenne pepper. If you want to add other sauces, try a bold soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce. Using your Instant Pot to cook cabbage is a great way to streamline your meal prep.