I omitted the mushrooms and did not add any liquid (other than what was clinging to the vegetables). I only add about one tablespoon of butter. I Used about 1/2 cup of celery and one yellow, not green bell pepper. This should be glistening - if that seems greasy to you, then don't book with bacon grease! This is down-home cooking for sure. The best thing to do is fryt he bacon up whole, then save it to crumble over the cabbage at the end of cooking. This recipe needs a lot of salt, crushed red pepper, and maybe a dash of vinegar to make it sing.