Bacon and Cabbage with Parsley Sauce
Ireland's classic family dinner: a boiled bacon joint, cabbage cooked in the same pot and a creamy parsley sauce.
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- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 35 min
- Total
- 1 hr 55 min
- Makes
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Course
- Main
- Cuisine
- Irish
Ask many Irish people for the dinner of their childhood and they will say bacon and cabbage: a joint of bacon simmered until tender, cabbage cooked in the flavoursome cooking water, floury potatoes and a white parsley sauce.
It is cheap, simple and one of the best things you can do with a bacon joint.
Ingredients
Bacon and cabbage
- 1½ kg bacon joint, collar or loin, smoked or unsmoked
- 1 onion, halved
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 black peppercorns
- 1 Savoy cabbage, core removed, leaves shredded
- boiled floury potatoes, to serve
Parsley sauce
- 25 g butter
- 25 g plain flour
- 300 ml milk
- 150 ml cooking water from the bacon
- 3 tbsp chopped parsley
- ground white pepper
Equipment
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Method
Bacon and cabbage
- 1
If your bacon is very salty (check the label or ask the butcher), soak it in cold water for a few hours, then drain.
- 2
Put the bacon in a large pan with the onion, bay leaves and peppercorns, cover with cold water and bring slowly to the boil. Skim, then simmer gently for about 20 minutes per 450 g plus 20 minutes (about 1 hour 25 minutes for 1.5 kg), until tender and cooked through.
- 3
Lift the bacon out and keep warm, covered. Bring the cooking water back to the boil, add the cabbage and cook for 5–8 minutes until just tender. Drain, keeping some of the water for the sauce.
Parsley sauce
- 1
Melt the butter in a small pan, stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk and cooking water and simmer for 3–4 minutes, stirring, until thickened. Stir in the parsley and season with pepper (it rarely needs salt).
- 2
Slice the bacon thickly and serve with the cabbage, potatoes and plenty of parsley sauce.
Tips
A colcannon instead of plain potatoes makes it even more Irish. Leftover bacon is excellent in sandwiches with mustard.
If it goes wrong
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Bacon too salty | Joint not soaked | Soak salty joints first, and taste the sauce before adding any salt |
| Cabbage soggy and grey | Overcooked | Cook for only 5–8 minutes until just tender |
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to soak a bacon joint?
Many modern joints are mildly cured and do not need it. If the label says so, or the bacon is very salty, soak it in cold water for a few hours first.
How do I know the bacon is cooked?
It should be tender when pierced and cooked through. The Food Standards Agency advises the middle reaching 70°C for 2 minutes.
What is the best cabbage for bacon and cabbage?
Savoy or York cabbage, cooked briefly in the bacon water for flavour.
Sources
- Cooking your food, Food Standards Agency (GOV.UK), 18 December 2017. Checked 5 October 2026.
Guides for this recipe
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Card photos: A chef's knife with a wooden handle, Frank Schulenburg via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; Kitchen knives held on a wall-mounted magnetic strip, Phil! Gold from Pikesville, MD, USA via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0, cropped; Copper pans and a kettle on an old kitchen range, Silar via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; A small stainless steel saucepan with a lid, Cooks & Kitchens from Darlington, UK via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0, cropped; A barmbrack cut open to show the dried fruit inside, Solo Beckett via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; A bowl of Irish beef stew with potatoes, beside a pint of Guinness, User:Jpatokal via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; A triangle of griddled boxty potato pancake, さえぼー via Wikimedia Commons, CC0. All credits: image credits.