Tender Stuffed Cabbage Leaves (Print)

Cabbage leaves filled with ground meat and rice, baked in rich tomato sauce for a comforting Eastern European dish.

# Ingredients:

→ Cabbage Rolls

01 - 1 large head green cabbage
02 - 1.1 lbs ground beef or pork
03 - 2/3 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
04 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
05 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
06 - 1 large egg
07 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
08 - 1 teaspoon salt
09 - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

→ Tomato Sauce

10 - 3 cups tomato passata or crushed tomatoes
11 - 2 tablespoons tomato paste
12 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
13 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
14 - 1 tablespoon sugar
15 - 1 teaspoon dried thyme
16 - 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
17 - Salt and pepper to taste

# Directions:

01 - Set oven to 350°F.
02 - Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Remove cabbage core and lower head into water. Simmer 8-10 minutes, gently loosening and removing leaves as they soften. Reserve 12-14 large leaves.
03 - Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic until soft, about 3 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Stir in tomato passata, sugar, thyme, salt, and pepper. Simmer 10 minutes. Set aside.
04 - Cook rice in boiling water for 5 minutes until half-cooked. Drain and cool slightly.
05 - In a large bowl, combine ground meat, par-cooked rice, chopped onion, minced garlic, egg, parsley, salt, and black pepper until well combined.
06 - Place cabbage leaf on flat surface. Add 2-3 tablespoons filling near stem end. Fold sides over filling and roll tightly. Repeat with remaining leaves and filling.
07 - Spread thin layer of tomato sauce on bottom of large ovenproof dish. Arrange cabbage rolls seam side down in single layer.
08 - Pour remaining tomato sauce evenly over rolls. Cover tightly with foil or lid.
09 - Bake for 1 hour. Remove foil in last 15 minutes if thicker sauce is desired.
10 - Cool slightly before serving. Garnish with extra parsley if desired.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • They look restaurant-fancy but honestly require just patience, not culinary school—your friends won't believe you made them from scratch.
  • The aroma that fills your kitchen while they bake is the kind of thing that makes people ask what you're cooking before they even walk through the door.
  • Leftovers taste even better the next day, which means you're basically giving yourself a free meal tomorrow.
02 -
  • Don't skip the par-cooking of rice—if you add raw rice, it won't have enough time to soften properly, leaving you with crunchy rolls, which sounds like it could work but absolutely doesn't.
  • The cabbage leaves are delicate when hot; if you try to roll them right out of the pot, they'll tear, so give them a few minutes to cool on the towel and they'll become flexible magic in your hands.
03 -
  • If a cabbage leaf tears while you're working with it, don't toss it—use two smaller pieces overlapped to wrap your filling instead; nobody will ever know the difference once everything's sauced and baked.
  • Make extra sauce—you can always reduce it if there's too much, but you'll regret not having enough to cover the rolls generously so nothing dries out in the oven.
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