Name: Ground Beef and Cabbage Skillet
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 pound ground beef; 1 1/2 cups potatoes (1/2" or smaller cubes); 2 small onions (chopped); 6 - 7 cups cabbage (shredded, about 1/2 head); 15 ounce can tomato sauce; 1 teaspoon sea salt; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 1/2 cup beef broth

This skillet recipe with ground beef, cabbage and potatoes is an easy way to make a simple and satisfying meal quickly.

Skillet full of cooked cabbage with hamburger and potatoes with a wooden spoon in the center resting on a blue and white napkin.

If you like this recipe you may also like our Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet, this flavorful Spam Fried Rice, or our Hamburger Noodle Skillet Meal.

Ground Beef with Cabbage and Potatoes

With a beefy flavor in every bite, sliced cabbage and tender potatoes coated with a slightly sweet tomato sauce this skillet meal is enjoyable. This is a great meal with or without the potatoes.

Similar to our Hamburger and Cabbage Casserole, fresh ingredients make these old-fashioned meals just as delicious to today as they’ve ever been.

Begin by browning the ground beef and par cooking the potatoes. Then mix all of the ingredients together in a skillet to create a casserole like meal that cooks in 20 minutes.

Also known as a Hamburger Hash, which is a skillet meal using beef, cabbage and potatoes this dish is a great way to transform leftover ingredients into a new meal.

Large wooden spoon lifting a serving of a delicious hamburger hash with lots of shredded cabbage over top of a skillet full.

Through testing this recipe we learned that the potatoes take longer than any other ingredient to cook, so begin with partially cooked potatoes. Starting with fully cooked potatoes can save time if they are available.

Why This Recipe Works:

A healthy skillet meal using fresh, unprocessed ingredients is a great way to feed the family.
This recipe is a great way to use up leftover ingredients or help clean out the refrigerator and pantry.
There’s lots of fiber and nutrients from using cabbage, potatoes and onions.
Comes together quickly on a weeknight when the schedule is busy.

Wooden spoon serving cabbage and ground beef in a black non-stick skillet on a blue and white napkin.

Another easy skillet recipe with fresh veggies is our Sautéed Zucchini and Squash.

Ingredients Needed

Ground Beef – One pound creates the right blend in this skillet meal. We like to use lean ground beef and drain well.
Potatoes – Peeled and cubed into 1/2″ pieces or smaller. Using 1 to 2 cups of frozen diced hash brown potatoes can save time after defrosting.
Onion – A white or yellow onion is what we typically use.
Tomato Sauce – One can adds a light and natural sweetness to all of the ingredients.
Beef Broth – Provides a depth of flavor and moisture that will steam out as the skillet cooks.

Ingredients to make a ground beef and cabbage meal are a can of tomato sauce, onion, ground beef, half a head of cabbage, black pepper, sea salt and two potatoes on a white counter top.

How To Make Ground Beef and Cabbage Skillet

Brown ground beef with chopped onion, drain and set aside.

If including potatoes in this ground beef and cabbage skillet the potatoes need to be par cooked first.

We like to begin softening potatoes over medium heat in hamburger grease or a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Cook for about ten minutes.

Small hash brown potato cubes softening in a skillet.

Then add shredded cabbage and season with salt and pepper.

Thinly sliced cabbage seasoned with salt and pepper in a skillet.

This is a good time to add garlic powder or other seasonings that you may like. We prefer to stick with basic flavors.

Return cooked and crumbled hamburger to the skillet.

A pound of cooked ground beef spread over top of shredded cabbage in a skillet.

Pour tomato sauce on top.

Tomato sauce poured over top of ground beef and fresh cabbage in a skillet.

Stir all of the ingredients together.

Thinly shredded cabbage stirred into crumbled ground beef, potatoes and tomato sauce.

Then add beef broth. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Remove the lid and stir once or twice.

Steaming tender and flavorful hamburger hash in a black skillet cooking.

The total cooking time is about 20 minutes. Most of the broth will be evaporated and the cabbage will be tender.

Taste to determine if additional seasoning is necessary.

Serve immediately while warm.

Recipe Tips & Tricks for making Beef, Cabbage and Potatoes

More than 20 minutes in the skillet over medium heat and the moisture seems to evaporate while the potatoes and meat burn.
Our original old-fashioned recipe from a neighbor said to layer the ingredients in the skillet, but after multiple tests we found that stirring everything together works best to evenly cook the ingredients.
To substitute 1 cup of rice for the potatoes be sure there is a total of 30 ounces of liquid between tomato sauce and beef broth.
Use a large, deep skillet to have enough room to stir all of the ingredients. We enjoy serving with a beautiful olive wood spoon.
Potatoes can be par cooked in the microwave, skillet, by boiling or use leftover cooked potatoes.
A couple tablespoons of red wine vinegar can also add a nice flavor to this meal.

Overhead view of a hamburger hash recipe in a skillet on a white napkin with blue stripes on a wooden counter top.

More Easy Family Meals:

Smoked Sausage and Cheesy Potato Casserole adds cheddar cheese to these favorite ingredients.

Chicken, Bacon & Ranch Sliders combine classic flavors to make a delicious combination that is always popular.

Hamburger Pot Pie is a simple no stir recipe that is super easy to make.

Sloppy Joes for a Crowd also adds so much flavor to ground beef to make an easy meal.

Kielbasa Mac & Cheese is made quickly on the stove top and makes a kid-friendly meal or side dish.

A simple meal of cabbage and ground beef in a skillet with potato cubes and tomato sauce with a wooden spoon on a blue and white napkin.

5 from 1 vote

Ground Beef and Cabbage Skillet

Created by Jennifer Osterholt

Servings: servings

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 35

Total Time: 45

This skillet recipe with ground beef, cabbage and potatoes is an easy way to make a simple and satisfying meal quickly.

Ingredients

▢ 1 pound ground beef
▢ 1 1/2 cups potatoes 1/2" or smaller cubes
▢ 2 small onions chopped
▢ 6 – 7 cups cabbage shredded, about 1/2 head
▢ 15 ounce can tomato sauce
▢ 1 teaspoon sea salt
▢ 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
▢ 1/2 cup beef broth

Instructions

Brown hamburger and onion, drain and set aside.
Begin to cook potatoes in a teaspoon or two of hamburger grease for 10 – 15 minutes over medium heat. Stir often. The potatoes should be nearly softened, but not all the way.
Add thinly sliced cabbage and season with salt and pepper.
Add cooked beef, onions, and tomato sauce to the skillet and stir well.
Continue to cook over medium heat, add beef broth and cover.
Stir once or twice while cooking to flip the ingredients on the bottom. Keep covered and cook for 20 minutes until all ingredients are tender. Serve warm and enjoy.

Notes

Potatoes are an optional ingredient that can be par cooked in the microwave, skillet, by boiling or use leftover cooked potatoes.

Nutrition

Calories: 334kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 20gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 64mgSodium: 1038mgPotassium: 962mgFiber: 5gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 453IUVitamin C: 51mgCalcium: 78mgIron: 4mg

“Plowing Through Life” is not a dietitian or nutrition professional. Any nutritional information shared is an estimate and can vary greatly depending on specific products are used. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator of your choice.