Cabbage Stir Fry

4.47 from 388 votes

This Cabbage Stir Fry recipe tastes as good or better than your favorite takeout! One of the best recipes to dress up ramen noodles.

ramen noodles, cabbage, and carrots in a dish
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Homemade cabbage stir fry

It’s no secret that I have a love for homemade stir fry recipes and this cabbage stir fry is one that I find myself making again and again. I have been making this recipe for years now and to this day I would say it’s in my top 10 of my favorite recipes to make from my blog!

Stir fry is one of our favorite types of dinners to make. This recipe that I am sharing today is just 10 ingredients and so easy to make. Everyone who tries it raves about how good it is!

⭐️Review⭐️

“I made this three times in the last 10 days. My wife and I both love it. You are so right with the sweet chili sauce, absolutely delicious. This will be our favorite go to meal anytime.”

stir fry in a bowl with a bite twirled around a fork

Ingredients and Notes

You can find the full recipe and ingredients in the recipe card at the bottom of this post, but here is what you’ll need to make this recipe.

  • Ramen noodles: toss the flavor packets that come with them, you only need the noodles themselves.
  • Green cabbage: or substitute purple cabbage. Or use coleslaw mix for a faster alternative.
  • Ginger and garlic: fresh is a must for the flavor here!
  • Carrots: grate them yourself or save time and buy pre shredded carrots in the produce section.
  • Yellow onion: diced.
  • Sesame oil
  • Stir fry sauce: this homemade 3 ingredient recipe is the best!
  • Sweet chili sauce, for topping. Don’t skip this!
cabbage and carrot with ramen noodles

How to make cabbage stir fry

Step 1: Remove the core from a green cabbage and thinly slice the cabbage until you measure 5 cups worth. 

Recipe Tip

The core is tough, so we don’t want to use that part of the cabbage in this recipe. Try to slice it as thinly as possible for best texture. 

Step 2: Grate the carrots and finely mince the ginger and garlic. These are what give stir fry that next level flavor!

ramen noodle cabbage stir fry in a red pan

If you have never bought fresh ginger in the store, just look for it in your produce section. It comes in long knobs which look like roots.

To prepare your ginger, just cut off the peeling with a knife, then slice and dice until the ginger is in very small minced pieces.

a serving of noodles

Step 3: Peel and dice up a yellow onion. Once all of your vegetables are prepped, it is time to start cooking the stir fry. 

Step 4: In a large skillet or jumbo cooker combine the cabbage, ginger, garlic, carrots, onion, and 2 tablespoons of sesame oil. 

raw ginger, onion, cabbage, and carrots in a large skillet

You do not need a wok to make this recipe, any large skillet type pan will work!

Step 5: Turn the heat to medium high and stir often, until the cabbage is wilted and the onion is soft as pictured below. This will take around 15-20 minutes. 

Stir every few minutes to make sure the vegetables cook evenly. This will cook the cabbage down until it is nice and soft. 

cooked cabbage, carrots, ginger, and onion

Step 6: When the veggies are close to being done cooking, prepare the ramen noodles. These only take a few minutes to make. Discard the ramen noodle packets, you don’t need those. Cook the ramen noodles according to the package instructions, then drain. 

stir fry sauce in a mason jar with a lid

Step 7: Make the 3 ingredient stir fry sauce and shake all the ingredients together. This is the sauce that I use in every stir fry recipe that I make, it is so easy and always tastes amazing! A good sauce is important to any homemade stir fry recipe. 

cabbage stir fry in a skillet with tongs

Step 8: Once the ramen noodles are cooked, add them to the cabbage stir fry.

Pour the homemade stir fry sauce over the top. It won’t look like much sauce at first, but the flavor is very strong and will work just right for the amount of ingredients in this recipe. It is a highly concentrated sauce, so the little bit goes a long way!

cooked cabbage, carrots, onion, and ginger

Cook the cabbage stir fry for an additional 3-5 minutes, stirring well, until the sauce coats the entire stir fry. The cornstarch part of the sauce is what will cause it to thicken and start to coat the ingredients of the stir fry. 

Just keep mixing until all of the veggies and noodles are coated. 

cabbage recipe with ramen noodles

I find tongs to work best for mixing the noodles evenly into the vegetables. Everything is going to stick together in clumps at first.

Grab a bowl and serve up this cabbage stir fry! This makes a very large amount and the leftovers are just as good heated up the next day. 

Can I make this gluten free?

If you are gluten free, you can make this recipe gluten free by using brown rice ramen noodles! The texture is slightly different, but I have used them before they taste great.

overhead view of a skillet full of cooked cabbage stir fry noodles

Serving & Storing

Serving: This cabbage stir fry is best served with sweet chili sauce on top. You can also add protein of choice, such as tofu, chicken, beef, or plant-based meat.

Storing: Leftover cabbage stir fry can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

stir fried cabbage and noodles in the skillet
cabbage stir fry

⭐️Review⭐️

“Omg!!! This is really awesome! It tasted like you got it from an Asian restaurant! First time I made stir fry that tasted like that! From the stir fry sauce to the sesame oil and sweet chili sauce. I will be making this a few times a month. Absolutely delicious!!!”

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cabbage stir fry
4.47 from 388 votes

Cabbage Stir Fry

This cabbage stir fry recipe tastes as good as your favorite takeout!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 35 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients 

  • 9 oz ramen noodles, flavor packets discarded
  • 5 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup grated carrots
  • 1 large yellow onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil

For the stir fry sauce

  • 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce or tamari
  • 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

For topping

  • sweet chili sauce to taste, for serving

Instructions 

  • Remove the core from a green cabbage and thinly slice 5 cups worth of cabbage.
  • Dice the yellow onion and mince the fresh garlic and ginger. Grate the carrots.
  • Add the sliced cabbage, ginger, garlic, carrots, onion, and sesame oil to a large skillet or jumbo cooker.
  • Cook the veggies over medium high heat, stirring often, for 15-20 minutes, or until the cabbage is wilted and the onion is softened.
  • In the last 5 minutes of cook time, prepare the ramen noodles according to package instructions, discarding the flavor packets.
  • Add the ingredients for the stir fry sauce to a mason jar and screw the lid on. Shake it all up to combine.
  • Once the cabbage stir fry is done, add in the cooked ramen noodles and homemade stir fry sauce.
  • Continue to cook the stir fry for 3-5 minutes, stirring well to combine the sauce evenly.
  • Add soy sauce to taste, if desired (I did not add any more).
  • Serve stir fry topped with sweet chili sauce.

Video

Notes

1. I used organic ramen noodles, so it was a total of 8.4 oz. If using regular ramen most are 3 oz each so you would need 3 blocks.
This stir fry is intended to be topped with sweet chili sauce. It's the perfect slightly sweet and spicy contrast to the mild bitterness of the cabbage. Don't skip this!

Nutrition

Calories: 269kcal, Carbohydrates: 28g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Sodium: 1052mg, Potassium: 262mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 2720IU, Vitamin C: 19mg, Calcium: 43mg, Iron: 2mg
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4.47 from 388 votes (380 ratings without comment)

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144 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Thank you for sharing this my family absolutely loved it
    I did everything as written and wouldn’t change a thing

  2. 5 stars
    This was very delicious. For a quick protein, I added 3 scrambled eggs to this dish & it tasted great. The stir fry sauce was quick to make & was awesome – I love the idea that it can be used on any stir fry dish. Thank you.

  3. 5 stars
    I made my first batch and it was so delicious. Since my stomach is sensitive to hot spices I omit the sweet chili sauce but it still was yummy. I added sliced mushrooms this time and it tasted really good. I ate the whole thing over a weeks time.♥️

  4. 5 stars
    I made this today & we really liked it. I used already sliced cabbage with carrots & some purple cabbage in it I also used 3oz ramen noodles because it’s what we had on hand. I would make it again. It was delicious