Low-Carb Cajun Dirty Cabbage Recipe

If you've ever enjoyed dirty rice, then you can likely imagine how those earthy, smoky, spicy flavors pair with perfectly cooked, crispy-tender cabbage. Inspired by classic Cajun dirty rice, this low-carb Cajun dirty cabbage recipe swaps out the typical white rice for white cabbage — a swap that may lighten the carbs, but one that certainly doesn't lighten or lessen the rich, savory, distinctly Cajun flavor. Aside from the rice-to-cabbage swap, this recipe stays very true to traditional dirty rice, resulting in a dish that's just as delicious and a little more versatile for those who may be following a keto or low-carb diet.

Just about any dirty rice recipe starts with the Cajun holy trinity of onion, bell pepper, and celery, and this cabbage version is no different. That trio comes together with both ground beef and Italian sausage, and it all simmers with cabbage, chicken broth, and my homemade Cajun spice blend for optimal flavor. I love how this dish offers up those familiar cozy and comforting dirty rice notes, but with less carbs, and with the pleasing texture of cabbage that has been cooked long enough to be fork-tender but still retain a little crunch. Another great perk to this dirty cabbage is that it's hearty enough to serve as a main course, seeing as there are plenty of veggies and two types of meat packed in, so it's also ideal for busy weeknights when you need an entree on the table without much fuss.

Kick off this low-carb recipe with olive oil, ground beef, Italian sausage, diced onion, diced celery, diced green bell pepper, and minced garlic. For the homemade Cajun spice blend, you'll need oregano, thyme, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, celery seed, sea salt, and black pepper. To finish building the dish, reach for a head of white cabbage (cored and cut into 2-inch pieces), chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, and minced parsley to garnish.

Add the olive oil to a large skillet and place it over medium-high heat.

Add the beef and sausage to a large skillet. Cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until browned and cooked through.

Add the onion, celery, and green pepper. Stir and cook for 5 minutes until softened.

Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add the oregano, thyme, smoked paprika, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder, celery seed, salt, and pepper.

Add the cabbage, chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves. Stir to combine, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender and the broth has been absorbed.

Stir in the parsley and serve.

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There are plenty of ways to switch up this dirty cabbage recipe, and the first easy swap you could make is with the meat. Ground pork, turkey, or chicken would all work in place of the beef. If you don't have both beef and sausage on hand, opt for one or the other, or use Andouille sausage instead of Italian for a more Cajun-inspired twist. Another way to lean into the Cajun inspiration is to add finely chopped chicken livers to the mix, which will give the dish a more traditional feel and added richness.

As written, this recipe doesn't pack in a ton of heat, but there is a little bit of a kick from the cayenne and smoky depth from the smoked paprika. If you want to really play up the heat element, add some diced jalapeño to your holy trinity mix, or simply add a couple shakes of Tabasco to the mix towards the end of the cabbage-simmering period. And, of course, if carbs aren't a concern, you can serve the dirty cabbage over a bed of white rice for a heartier and familiar take on the classic dish.

Although a dish with the word cabbage in the name might seem like it'd be vegetarian by default, that isn't the case with this dirty cabbage recipe. The ground beef, Italian sausage, chicken broth, and possibly Worcestershire sauce keep this dish from being a vegetarian dish, but by making a few easy swaps, you can easily transform it into one.

The first thing to focus on eliminating is the meat itself. I wouldn't recommend simply nixing the beef and sausage and proceeding with the recipe as written, since you'll lose a lot of savory appeal, heartiness, and a big part of the "dirty" aspect. Instead, swap these proteins out for something like a plant-based ground meat, finely chopped veggie sausages, tofu, or evenly finely chopped mushrooms if you want to take a more veggie-forward route. Meanwhile, vegetable broth is a simple swap for chicken broth. Finally, note that most Worcestershire sauces aren't vegetarian by default, as they often contain anchovies. You can buy vegetarian versions of the sauce, but if you don't happen to have any on hand, sub in a splash of soy sauce instead. Soy sauce won't provide quite as much savory complexity as Worcestershire, but it will still hit on that deep umami note.

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