Fried Cabbage and Noodles (Haluski)

Let's make an easy yet delightful recipe for fried cabbage with noodles and crisp bacon, a delicious dish called Haluski! Here is the Czech version, which is wonderfully fragrant with caraway seeds and boasts a perfect sweet and sour taste.

I came across this food when I was doing some research on Slovak halusky (halušky). Authentic Slovak halusky are small dumplings made of grated raw potatoes and flour, dropped into the water, and then cooked.

But then there are the Polish and Hungarian versions of the recipe. These are characterized by the use of classic pasta, most often noodles or bow tie pasta. The Poles and Hungarians name their meal haluski. Here you will find more Hungarian recipes.

Haluski is one of the excellent cabbage recipes, originating from Eastern Europe. It represents delicious comfort food, and the best part is that the dish uses only simple ingredients easily available in any grocery store!

MY TIP: Try Czech braised red cabbage (it goes brilliantly with roast duck!)

➜ Ingredients

➜ Instructions with photos

STEP 1: Remove the outer wilted leaves from the cabbage, halve it and cut out the tough stem. Cut the cabbage into small pieces.

STEP 2: Put the cabbage in a large colander and scald it with about two quarts of boiling water. 

STEP 3: Heat the lard or butter in a large frying pan over medium-high and throw in the finely chopped onions. Let it turn lightly golden, don't forget to stir! Add the caraway seeds to the caramelized onion and leave them to infuse for half a minute. Then add the pieces of bacon and fry briefly until crispy.

STEP 4: Add the scalded cabbage, season with two teaspoons of salt, and stir. Fry for about five minutes; keep stirring. Pour half a ladle of water over the cabbage, and turn the heat down to a minimum. Cover the pot and let it sauté slowly for 30 minutes. Stir from time to time.

STEP 5: Meanwhile, cook the noodles in a large pot of water according to the package directions. Drain and rinse the pasta to stop the cooking process.

STEP 6: Season the sautéed cabbage with sugar and vinegar, and add salt to taste. Finally, stir in the cooked noodles, increase the heat and fry everything while stirring for about five minutes.

STEP 7: Serve the fried cabbage with noodles warm as a main course. Sprinkle the dish on the plate with chopped green parsley and grated Parmesan or other cheese of your choice.

➜ Storage

Wait for the haluski to cool completely and store it in an airtight container in the fridge, where the cabbage will keep for up to five days.

➜ Useful tips

• Scalding the cabbage removes pungent substances from it, which are not pleasant for everyone. The cabbage also becomes tender and will be softer sooner when cooked.
• I like this food best on the second day. I melt some butter in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the food in it. This step gives the dish another dimension of flavor, and I guarantee that even die-hard vegetable haters will love it!
• Equipment: A wide 11-inch (28 cm) diameter pan, a large skillet, or a Dutch oven with a lowered rim and a well-fitting lid are suitable for this recipe.

More tasty cabbage recipes:

• Czech sauerkraut soup
• Sweet and sour cabbage
• Szegediner Goulash
• Creamed green beans
• Sweet and sour red cabbage

People often wonder how to spell haluski correctly. The Slovak and Czech versions are halušky. The Poles and Hungarians have haluski. But there are also other names that are created by minor swapping of syllables and simple misspellings, such as huluski, halushki, halishki or heluski.