Stuffed cabbage rolls are a classic comfort food that is satisfyingly filling, delicious, and simple to prepare. Go get the ingredients for cabbage rolls if you haven’t made them in a while or if you’ve never tried them before, and make them for dinner today. You won’t come to regret it.
EASY STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS
If you enjoy making healthy dinners, then you must try this cabbage roll recipe. Perfect for fulfilling the hunger of a large group. The rolls need to be cooked for approximately 60 minutes, but the preparation is really straightforward, and the results are undeniably deserving of the effort spent.
It seems that every family has their own secret recipe for the classic dish of stuffed cabbage. This is how my mom used to make them, and I’d like to share the recipe with you. In the Dominican Republic, this dish is commonly referred to as Niño Envuelto, which translates to “swaddled baby” This recipe brings back a lot of good memories. I hope you can do the same with your family and friends.
The fresh cabbage leaves are stuffed with a delicious ground beef and rice mixture and braised in a savory, sweet tomato sauce.
This is an ultimate one-pot meal—and totally freezer friendly!
You will love that you can make these cabbage rolls in many different ways, such as on the stovetop like I did, in the oven, or even in a slow cooker or crockpot.
Stovetop Instructions:
Cabbage:
The first thing you need to do is get the cabbage ready. I cooked the entire head of cabbage for a few minutes so that the leaves of cabbage would become more flexible and would be simpler to roll. To do this, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the cabbage, and cook it until the leaves are tender enough to take off without tearing, about 3-5 minutes depending on the size of the cabbage. This will help the leaves to easily fall off the core of the cabbage.
Alternative: If you prefer, you can remove the leaves of the raw cabbage and cook them separately.
Next, reserve 4 cups of cooking water and remove the cabbage. Allow the cabbage to drain and reach room temperature before you attempt to separate the leaves.
After all your leaves are carefully peeled from the cabbage head, remove the ribs (the thick parts toward the core). Set aside.
In the meantime, precook some white rice.
In a small pot add rice(raw) and water cook for just a couple of minutes. drain any excess water and set aside.
Meat Mixture:
Season the ground beef with garlic, salt, and black pepper. Mix in the onion and parsley. In a skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil, then add the already seasoned ground beef and tomato sauce. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the meat starts to brown. Remove from the stove and combine with the white rice.
Homemade sauce:
In a Dutch oven or a big pot, heat a teaspoon of oil over medium-high heat. Sautee the garlic for a minute or two, and then add the marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, the cabbage water (which has been reserved), and fresh parsley/basil. Season with salt and pepper, according to your taste. Place two or three cabbage leaves (No filling) inside the sauce. These are going to prevent the rolls from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Reduce heat to low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 5- 10 minutes. In the meantime, let’s get the cabbage rolls ready!
Assemble Cabbage Rolls:
Now that the meat mixture is ready, let’s stuff and roll. On a level surface, place approximately 3-4 tablespoons of the meat mixture in the middle of each cabbage leaf. Then, fold in the cabbage’s sides and roll it up into a log. If any of the leaves break, you don’t need to worry about it because all you have to do is grab another one and cover the broken area. Continue until all the cabbage leaves are stuffed and rolled.
Gently, place the cabbage rolls seam-side down in the dutch oven close to each other and you can layer the cabbage rolls. Check that the sauce is evenly distributed throughout all of the rolls. Maintain a low simmer for the next twenty minutes.
We like to plate the rolls for each individual serving so that they are sitting in a tiny (or in my case, not too little) drop of the wonderful sauce.
Give this recipe a try, and then leave a comment below to let me know how it turned out. I hope that your family enjoys it as much as we do!
Below you will find a convenient printable recipe card. ↓
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Slow Cooker Instructions:
To make your stuffed cabbage rolls in a slow cooker, simply assemble the cabbage rolls as directed above. Then, set your slow cooker to high, add 1 teaspoon of oil, and saute the garlic for a minute or two. Next, add the marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, and fresh parsley. Season with salt and pepper, according to your taste. Place the rolls in and make sure all are covered with sauce. Cook for either 4 hours on high or 8 on low.
However, If you have no time to saute, just place all ingredients in the slow cooker. You can also, make the sauce ahead of time.
There is no need to add the cabbage water when making the rolls in the slow cooker, as there is when making them on the stovetop.
EASY STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS
Ingredients
- 1 whole head green cabbage
- ½ cup uncooked rice
Meat Mixture:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion
- 1 cup bell pepper I use green, yellow, and red
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Fresh parsley
- Salt & pepper
Homemade sauce:
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup marinara sauce any of your preference
- 1 (14 ounces) can diced tomatoes
- 4 cups the cabbage water which has been reserved,
- fresh parsley and basil.
- 1 cup yellow and red bell peppers
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
Cabbage:
- The first thing you need to do is get the cabbage ready. I cooked the entire head of cabbage for a few minutes so that the leaves would become more flexible and would be simpler to roll. To do this, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the cabbage, and cook it until the leaves are tender enough to pull off without tearing, about 3-5 minutes, depending on the size of the cabbage. This will help the leaves easily fall off the core of the cabbage.
- Alternative: If you prefer, you can remove the leaves of the raw cabbage and cook them separately.
- Next, reserve 4 cups of cooking water and remove the cabbage. Allow the cabbage to drain and reach room temperature before you attempt to separate the leaves.
- After all your leaves are carefully peeled from the cabbage head, remove the ribs (the thick parts toward the core). Set aside.
In the meantime, precook some white rice.
- In a small pot, add rice (raw) and water and cook for just a couple of minutes. drain any excess water and set aside.
Meat Mixture:
- Season the ground beef with garlic, salt, and black pepper. Mix in the onion and parsley.
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, add olive oil, then add the already-seasoned ground beef and tomato sauce. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until the meat starts to brown. Remove from the stove and combine with the white rice.
Homemade sauce:
- In a Dutch oven or a large pot, heat a teaspoon of oil over medium-high heat. Sautee the garlic for a minute or two, and then add the marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, the cabbage water (which has been reserved), fresh parsley and basil.
- Season with salt and pepper, according to your taste. Place two or three cabbage leaves (No filling) inside the sauce. These are going to prevent the rolls from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Reduce heat to low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 5- 10 minutes. In the meantime, let’s get the cabbage rolls ready!
Assemble Cabbage Rolls:
- Now that the meat mixture is ready, let’s stuff and roll. On a level surface, place approximately 3–4 tablespoons of the meat mixture in the middle of each cabbage leaf. Then, fold in the cabbage’s sides and roll it up into a log. If any of the leaves break, you don’t need to worry about it because all you have to do is grab another one and cover the broken area. Continue until all the cabbage leaves are stuffed and rolled.
- Gently place the cabbage rolls seam-side down in the Dutch oven close to each other, and you can layer the cabbage rolls. Check that the sauce is evenly distributed throughout all of the rolls. Maintain a low simmer for the next twenty minutes.
- We like to plate the rolls for each individual serving so that they are sitting in a tiny (or, in my case, not too little) drop of the wonderful sauce.
Notes
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Tips on How to Freeze:
- I suggest putting them in freezer bags
- freeze each roll first for 30 minutes, then, once frozen, transfer it into freezer bags where they can last for up to 3 months.
- Choose a freezer bag in proportion to the number of cabbage rolls that you intend to store in a single package.
- Make sure to seal the bag, then label and date it.
- In the freezer, stack the cabbage roll packages on top of each other, and avoid placing anything heavy on top of the packages.
- Reheat with a fresh batch of sauce.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
To make your stuffed cabbage rolls in a slow cooker, simply assemble the cabbage rolls as directed above. Then, set your slow cooker to high, add 1 teaspoon of oil, and saute the garlic for a minute or two. Next, add the marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, and fresh parsley. Season with salt and pepper, according to your taste. Place the rolls in and make sure all are covered with sauce. Cook for either 4 hours on high or 8 on low. However, If you have no time to saute, just place all ingredients in the slow cooker. You can also, make the sauce ahead of time. There is no need to add the cabbage water when making the rolls in the slow cooker, as there is when making them on the stovetop.Nutrition
Tell me what you think about this recipe, and don’t forget to contact me if you have any questions. It’s always a pleasure to hear from YOU!
Until the next one…
