Cabbage Fritters

Make these easy cabbage fritters with just 5 simple ingredients. These fritters are pan-fried until golden brown and can be served with as side dish or appetizer. 

These wonderful and easy cabbage fritters has been around in our home for a long time. My mom was a master of fritters, and although my favorite ones were made with meat (AKA kotletas), these were one of the most memorable from my childhood. The thing is, we did not always had fresh meat to make kotletas or chicken fritters, and I just needed them in my life so my mom would come out with vegetable fritters. So to keep the tradition going, I often make potato fritters, zucchini and corn fritters, and halloumi and zucchini fritters for my family.

I have been making these cabbage fritters since I became a wife and a mom. Don't we always look for new ways to serve vegetables? Green cabbage is often overlooked in America, unless you need to make coleslaw. But you can make so much with this affordable, year-round vegetable. Just look at these golden crispy cabbage fritters! Someone even mentioned that they look like Japanese cabbage fritters (Okonomiyaki), which I won't argue with. These fritters are super easy to make and they go well with sauces, as a vegetable side dish or even as a light meal.

What you'll need

• Green cabbage: Smaller cabbages are more tender as they is younger. Perfect for raw and slightly cooked dishes like fritters. 
• Egg: Egg binds the ingredients and helps fritters to hold their shape.
• Flour: I use all-purpose flour. But any other flour works well in this recipe. If you need to make them gluten-free, use rice flour.
• Seasonings: I use as simple as salt and black pepper. You can add smoked paprika, Italian or other dried herbs.
• Avocado oil: you can also use olive oil or vegetable oil for frying.

Easy Cabbage fritters recipe

You can find the ingredients quantities in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

1)Prep the cabbage. Remove outer or any lose cabbage leaves. Cut the cabbage into four wedges and remove the core. Slice each wedge into thin shreds. Make them as tin as possible. Roughly chop shreds into smaller pieces. Shorter shreds helps the batter bind well and the fritters will cook more evenly.

2)Make the fritters mixture. In a large bowl, add one egg and briefly whisk it. Add shredded cabbage salt and pepper and toss well. Sprinkle it with flour and mix to combine. I like to use a fork here, as it coats the shreds of cabbage evenly. Let the cabbage mixture rest for 10 minutes. 

3)Fry in batches. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Test by dropping a tiny bit of batter, if it sizzles, it's good to go. Scoop the batter with a spoon or a cookie scoop ( about 2 tablespoons per fritter) and place it in a hot pan. Flatten each fritter gently with the back of the spoon. Fry for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Flip them carefully with the spatula. Repeat with the rest of the batter.

4)Absorb excess oil. Transfer cooked fritters to a plate lined with paper towels to catch any extra oil.

Recipe tips

• Shred cabbage a thin as possible, so it softens during the cooking process.
• The batter should coat the cabbage shreds well. If it looks to thin, you can add an extra 1-2 tablespoons of flour.
• Cook the fritters on medium heat with a generous amount of oil, so they cook through and have crispy edges

Storage and reheating instructions

• To refrigerate: Store in airtight an container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• To reheat: Warm them up in a preheated oven (350°F) on a parchment-lined baking pan for 5-7 minutes. You can also use a microwave, but they won't be as crispy.
• To freeze: Arrange cooked fritters on a baking sheet in a single layer and freeze until solid (1-2 hours), so they do not stick. Transfer them in freezer bags or containers and place some parchment paper between the layers. 

Recipe variations

You can have a lot of fun by adding different ingredients, flours, herbs and different spices to the fritters. 

• Add any vegetable leftovers: great way to use any leftover carrots, zucchini, bell peppers, corn or onions.
• Spices: Add garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme or other spices.
• Spicy: add about ½ teaspoons of red pepper flakes or chopped green chili pepper.
• Cheese: Add some grated cheddar cheese to the batter for the cheesy version. 
• Herbs: Use up any fresh herbs you have, such as Italian parsley, dill, cilantro.
• Gluten-free flours: you can use rice or other gluten-free flour instead of wheat flour for those who need them to be gluten-free.

More cabbage recipes to try

• Savory cabbage pie
• Ukrainian braised cabbage
• Lazy cabbage rolls
• Classic cabbage rolls