As a self-confessed “sour” addict, I often find store-bought pickles too sweet, and worst of all, soft. Yet to find a brand of pickled vegetables that are consistently good, I created this pickled cabbage recipe. It is made without sugar- relying instead on apple cider vinegar’s natural sweetness to balance the sour.
I eat this cabbage nearly every day; it goes with so many things. It makes a great side to a cheese omelette, spruces up any salad, and cuts through the richness of grilled meat.
Another great way to use the cabbage is to make coleslaw with it. I find traditional mayonnaise coleslaw unsettling. Something about all that mayo just seems wrong to me. Try using ¾ fresh cabbage, ¼ pickled cabbage, Greek yoghurt, chives, salt and pepper for a lighter, refreshing coleslaw. Once the cabbage is all gone, you can even use the pickling liquid to make salad dressings- or in any other way that you may use vinegar.

Apple Cider Vinegar – It’s good for you!
Some research suggests that Apple Cider Vinegar lowers the body’s insulin response to food which is excellent news if you’re trying to lose weight. But, if you’ve ever tried drinking apple cider vinegar(in water), you will know that is is genuinely gag-inducing. Much better to eat some of this with your meal to get the benefits. As a bonus, the cabbage also has tons of fibre – which incidentally, is also helpful when you’re trying to shed some pounds.
The pickled cabbage will be ready to use after a few days of soaking. It also keeps for a very long time and retains it’s crunch when stored in the refrigerator.
As a side note, white cabbage is literally the cheapest vegetable where I live- so not only is this recipe healthy, it’s also frugal! – win-win!
Equipment
Aside from the standard equipment in your kitchen you will need:
- A seal-able jar. I used a 1.8L mason style, clip top jar in this recipe. If you don’t have a large jar, you could always use a few smaller jars.
- Something to squash the cabbage down with. I use a pickle packer (a.k.a the most amusingly named kitchen utensil ever) for this job. You could use the end of a rolling pin, a cocktail muddler, a potato masher- anything really.
Apple Cider Vinegar Pickled Cabbage
Ingredients
- 750g Shredded White Cabbage (about 1 medium cabbage)
- 1 White Onion - Finely sliced
- 1 Garlic Clove- Smashed
- 400ml Organic Apple Cider Vinegar - with Mother
- 200ml Water
- 2 Tbsp Fine Sea Salt
- 1 Tbsp Mustard Seeds
- 1 Tsp Whole Peppercorns
- 1 Small bunch of dill
Instructions
Wash the jar in hot soapy water and set aside to dry.
Combine the vinegar, water, salt, mustard seeds, and peppercorns in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.
Mix the shredded cabbage, garlic and sliced onion together with the dill.
Start to fill the jar with the cabbage mixture, squashing it down as you go so that you can fit all the cabbage in the jar.
Pour the hot pickling liquid over the cabbage- squashing down so that all the cabbage is submerged.
To keep everything submerged in the liquid you can add a circle of baking paper and push it down so that it creates a seal.
Seal the jar and allow it to cool to room temperature before storing in the fridge.
Leave the pickle to mature for a few days before using.
Notes
You can keep the pickles in the fridge for several weeks without spoilage.
1 Comment
Sarah Ramadhan
December 12, 2022 at 2:23 pmFantastic recipe. Don’t want to sweet pickle. Thought about using apple cider vinegar.
Thanks.