Today I’m going to show you how to make stuffed cabbage rolls. Delicious and savory, these stuffed cabbage rolls are made with a simple blend of ground beef, onions, and rice topped with a rich tomato sauce. The “optional” sour cream and splash of red wine vinegar are the crowning jewels of this simple, yet delicious meal.
Whenever I make stuffed cabbage rolls I can’t help but think of my mother-in-law’s dear friend, Steve Sobeck. Gosh, I miss Steve. He was the sweetest man you ever met with a thick northern accent. I loved to listen to him talk and the way he said “be-u-ti-ful”.
I think about Steve when I make this dish because David says he could kick himself for never trying Steve’s polish stuffed cabbage, although Steve called “Halupki”. David used to watch Steve make them but it just wasn’t anything he thought he would like, so he never tried them. Now, we both wish we could try them.
I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure about this dish at first either. I knew we liked all the ingredients, but I just didn’t know if we’d like them combined together in the same dish. This dish seemed too simple to be good. I had to fight the urge to add in more spices and ingredients which I thought at the time would make it better.
Oh my goodness, these cabbage rolls are so good! This simple recipe is unbelievably good and I know you will think so too.
Let’s make some!
What are Stuffed Cabbage Rolls and Where do they come from?
Stuffed cabbage rolls are a traditional Polish dish made from lightly boiled cabbage leaves wrapped around ground beef (or pork), chopped onions, and rice baked in a casserole dish with a delicious tomato sauce.
Stuffed cabbage rolls have several names:
- Golabki – the most common
- Golumpki – more than one referred to as “golumpkies” or “golumpkis”
- Gwumpki
- Halupki
No matter what you call them, they are good!
I found it interesting that according to Polish myths, the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland Casimir IV Jagiellon fed the army with golabki before a key battle of the Thirteen Years’ War. Victory stemmed from the strength of the hearty meal.
We have all heard those Pollack jokes that begin, “How many Pollack….?” Well, I guess the real question should be: How many Golabki did the Pollack eat before kicking your ass for telling such awful jokes? 😉
Selecting Cabbage
When selecting a head of cabbage, make sure it is a fairly large head of cabbage. The larger the leaves, the easier they are to stuff and roll.
Use the smaller leaves to shred and fry like this!
How to Make Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
(Skip this step if you intend on cooking the cabbage rolls in a crock-pot.)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan with cooking spray or butter.
Cook the Onions
Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the onions and cook until softened; about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat a pour them into a sieve to drain and cool.
Prepare the Cabbage Leaves For Stuffing
While the onions are cooling, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Use caution: Make sure there is enough room for the cabbage to float inside the pot, but do not overfill the pot with water to avoid overflow.
Using a sharp knife, core the stem of the cabbage. To do this, cut a circle around the base of the stem on the bottom of the cabbage, as you would a pumpkin stem. Remove the core and discard it.
When the water comes to a boil, using tongs, carefully lower the cabbage down into the boiling water. Within a couple of minutes, the outside leaves will come loose. Use the tongs to peel off the outer leaves of the cabbage. Pull them out of the pot and lay them on a platter lined with paper towels or inside a colander to drain.
After another minute or so, the next set of leaves will come loose. Remove and repeat this process until you have at least 8 to 10 cabbage leaves.
Pat the leaves dry with paper towels.
Trim thick stems at the bottom of the leaf. This will not only make the cabbage rolls easier to roll, but the stems tend to be bitter. Just don’t cut any more than a third of the way into the leaf, to ensure it will roll well.
Stuff the Cabbage Leaves
Prep the cabbage rolls up to two days prior to cooking.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, cooled onion, rice, and season with salt, to taste.
Tip: Use clean wet hands to mix the stuffing mixture like you would a meatloaf, being sure not to overwork the meat.
Now, let’s stuff the leaves!
Grab one of the prepared cabbage leaves. Place onto a clean workspace with the stem side facing you. Scoop ¼ cup of the beef mixture onto the center of the leaf.
Next roll up the leaf. The technique is similar to rolling a Mexican burrito. First, fold the two sides of the cabbage leaf over the mixture. Then fold the stem over the bottom part of the leaf and roll it into packet tucking in the edges as you roll upward. Place the cabbage roll, seam side down, inside the prepared baking dish (Or crock-pot. See Crock-pot Instructions).
Repeat the same process for the remaining stuffing mixture or you run out of cabbage leaves. When you are done, you should have 8 to 10 stuffed cabbage rolls ready to cook (Or freeze – Freezer instructions to follow).
Prepare the Tomato Sauce
In a small bowl, whisk together the tomato sauce, broth, and paprika. Pour the sauce evenly over the cabbage rolls.
How To Bake the Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Cover the dish with a lid or wrap with foil. Place the casserole dish in the preheated oven. Bake until the leaves are tender and the meat is cooked through; about 60 to 90 minutes.
How To Serve Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Serve the delicately warm and cooked through stuffed cabbage rolls with a ladle of tomato sauce poured over the top, big dollop of sour cream and a splash of red wine vinegar. The contrast of the tangy vinegar and the savoriness of the rolls is amazing!
How To Cook Stuffed Cabbage Rolls In A Crock-Pot
The stuffed cabbage rolls do amazingly well in a slow cooker. Here’s how:
Up to two days prior, prepare the cabbage rolls and place them seam side down inside the bowl of a crock-pot and pour over the tomato sauce mixture. Then place the bowl in the refrigerator, until ready to cook.
When you are ready to slow cook the rolls, place the bowl inside the slow cooker, set it to cook on low for 6 ½ to 7 hours or on high for 4 ½ to 5 hours.
How To Freeze Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Make a batch of cabbage rolls for freezing to keep on hand for an easy weeknight meal. Here’s how:
Place the cabbage rolls, seam side down, onto a plate. Place the plate inside the freezer for approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour, for the rolls to set. Basically, they should be frozen enough to keep them from unwrapping when placed inside a freezer bag.
When the rolls are set take them out of the freezer and place inside a freezer bag. Squeeze as much air out as possible.
Place them inside the freezer and freeze for up to 4 to 6 months.
Freezer-To-Oven Cooking
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan with cooking spray or butter.
Mix up the sauce ingredients first. Pour about half of the sauce mixture into the bottom of a greased casserole dish. Then lay the frozen cabbage rolls, seam side down, directly on top of the sauce. Now pour the remaining sauce over the rolls. Use a spoon, to scoop and spread sauce to ensure each cabbage roll is covered in sauce.
Cover the dish with a lid or wrap with foil. Place the casserole dish in the preheated oven. Bake until the leaves are tender and the meat is cooked through; about 90 minutes to 2 hours.
Freezer-To-Crock-Pot Cooking
The night before you cook the cabbage rolls pour all of the ingredients of the sauce mixture together inside a quart-size mason jar. Place it in the refrigerator overnight. (This takes out the mixing and prep in the morning before leaving the house.)
The next morning, take the pre-mixed sauce jar out of the refrigerator and grab a bag of the cabbage rolls out of the freezer.
Give the jar of sauce a good shake to mix it up. Pour just enough sauce to cover the bottom of the crock-pot.
Next, lay the frozen cabbage rolls directly on top of the sauce. Then pour the remaining sauce over the rolls. Use a spoon, to scoop and spread sauce to ensure each cabbage roll is covered in sauce.
Set the crock-pot on low for 6 ½ to 7 hours or on high for 4 ½ to 5 hours.
How do I make this recipe vegetarian?
To make this recipe vegetarian, swap the beef broth for vegetable broth and replace the meat with one or more of the following:
- Sauteed mushrooms (saute with onions)
- Red Beans
- Chickpeas
- Lentils
They first appeared here on the blog in June of 2013. I have been making stuffed cabbage rolls for years now and have combined three blog posts into one so that you can have all the information you could possibly need about cabbage rolls in one place.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you do, please leave a star-rating and comment.
Love cabbage? Try these other delicious recipes:
- Dijon Pork Chops With Cabbage and Beets
- 3-Ingredient Bacon-Fried Cabbage
- Apple-Cabbage Slaw
- Grilled Cabbage
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1 green cabbage Large head (about 2 pounds)
- 1 pound beef ground chuck
- ½ cup white rice cooked
- Kosher salt to taste
- 16 ounce canned tomato sauce
- ¾ cup beef broth
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- sour cream to taste, for serving (optional, but HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)
- red wine vinegar to taste, for serving (optional, but HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)
Instructions
- (Skip this step if you intend on cooking the cabbage rolls in a crock-pot.)Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan with cooking spray or butter.
Cook The Onions
- Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the onions and cook until softened; about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat a pour them into a sieve to drain and cool.
Prepare the Cabbage Leaves For Stuffing:
- While the onions are cooling, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Use caution: Make sure there is enough room for the cabbage to float inside the pot, but do not overfill the pot with water to avoid overflow.
- Using a sharp knife, core the stem of the cabbage. To do this, cut a circle around the base of the stem on the bottom of the cabbage, as you would a pumpkin stem. Remove the core and discard it.
- When the water comes to a boil, using tongs, carefully lower the cabbage down into the boiling water. Within a couple of minutes, the outside leaves will come loose. Use the tongs to peel off the outer leaves of the cabbage. Pull them out of the pot and lay them on a platter lined with paper towels or inside a colander to drain.After another minute or so, the next set of leaves will come loose. Remove and repeat this process until you have at least 8 to 10 cabbage leaves.
- Pat the leaves dry with paper towels. Trim thick stems at the bottom of the leaf. This will not only make the cabbage rolls easier to roll, but the stems tend to be bitter. Just don’t cut any more than a third of the way into the leaf, to ensure it will roll well.
Stuff The Cabbage Rolls
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, cooled onion, rice, and season with salt, to taste. Tip: Use clean wet hands to mix the stuffing mixture like you would a meatloaf, being sure not to overwork the meat.
- Now, let’s stuff the leaves!Grab one of the prepared cabbage leaves. Place onto a clean workspace with the stem side facing you. Scoop ¼ cup of the beef mixture onto the center of the leaf. Next roll up the leaf. The technique is similar to rolling a Mexican burrito. First, fold the two sides of the cabbage leaf over the mixture. Then fold the stem over the bottom part of the leaf and roll it into packet tucking in the edges as you roll upward. Place the cabbage roll, seam side down, inside the prepared baking dish (or crock-pot). Repeat the same process for the remaining stuffing mixture or you run out of cabbage leaves. When you are done, you should have 8 to 10 stuffed cabbage rolls ready to cook (Or freeze – Freezer instructions to follow).
Prepare The Tomato Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk together the tomato sauce, broth, and paprika. Pour the sauce evenly over the cabbage rolls.
Bake The Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Cover the dish with a lid or wrap with foil. Place the casserole dish in the preheated oven. Bake until the leaves are tender and the meat is cooked through; about 60 to 90 minutes.
Serving The Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Serve the delicately warm and cooked through stuffed cabbage rolls with a ladle of tomato sauce poured over the top, big dollop of sour cream and a splash of red wine vinegar. The contrast of the tangy vinegar and the savoriness of the rolls is amazing!
Notes
- Sauteed mushrooms (saute with onions)
- Red Beans
- Chickpeas
- Lentils
Betsy Maness says
This looks amazing! I’m going to try it tomorrow for dinner. I have a question though..
Do you think it would be okay to use 1/2 italian sausage and 1/2 ground beef?
Marilyn pratt says
Hi….your receipt for the rolls .is pretty good, I have seen, ppl fry the meat, cook the rice,add carrots…yoi!!! Those recipes would have my Hungarian mother-in-law and my Croatian mother turn in their Graves. NO kiddin. I like yours the best. I have made these rolls for over 40years. My new southern, from Virginia husband is a picky eater, so I don’t make them often, but his son, fron North Carolina loves them…go figure. I use soukraute,and smoked sausage in mine. I just cook that in the pot, not in the mix.but I do add bacon in mine. I fry it with the onions, wat a smell and wat a taste, bacon is mixed in with the meat. Also, I use half pork, half ground chuck. That’s my secret mix. Shhhhhh. I then roll them as directed, I throw in the kraute,don’t rinse..the flavor is better, lay down the rolls and throw in the sausage. I bake them at about 350 for several hours. I like mine done and tender. Yummy. Im making them on Sunday and I’m gonna eat my self sick. No joke!!!
The Mountain Kitchen says
Thanks for sharing. We hope you enjoy the cabbage rolls!
Sandra Meyer says
What are the serving size for these? 2-3 per person, I’m serving mashed garlic baby reds and Roasted carrots for 6 adults. I’m thinking 8 servings?
The Mountain Kitchen says
Hi Sandra, yes, 2-3 per person. What time is dinner? 😉