Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls should be placed into the comfort food category in my opinion. Wonderfully healthy cabbage that has been stuffed with ingredients we all love, then slowly braised in the oven until tender. In this recipe, there is an option for adding quinoa to the cabbage filling for a nice pop of new texture and added protein.

WATCH Our How-TO Video Below

 

Begin with the cabbage. Cut off the root base, but do not cut too low as you want the stem for presentation and additional fiber.

You'll need 12 cabbage leaves to full a 9 by 13 casserole dish. I suggest cooking 1 or 2 more in case one break or rips.

Fill a large pot with water, about ⅔ of the way, and season with enough salt that the water would taste salty. Bring to a soft boil and add in the cabbage leaves.

Have a bowl ready with ice and water to shock the cabbage once they have cooked. You will want the cabbage soft enough to roll.

Preparing the stuffed cabbage rolls filling

Using a food processor, add in all listed ingredient below and combine

• ½ pound ground beef, add more if your food processor is big enough
• 1 cup ground sausage
• 1 green onion
• 6 mushrooms with stems
• 2 teaspoon garlic salt

Once combine, chop up one medium tomato, half of one large onion, one green onion, ½ cup of white rice (optional: instead add ¼ white rice + ¼ cup of quinoa)

We are reinforcing the ingredient flavors by adding in freshness like the green onion and tomatoes. This overall helps balance the recipe and it creates a more tasty bite.

 

Stuffed Cabbage Roll Tomato Sauce Recipe

You can use either straight tomato juice or V8. I do enjoy the extra flavor V8 offers. But using only tomato juice allows you to better control your flavor profile. Combine all ingredients listed below.

• 24oz can of tomato juice or V8
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flake
• 2 teaspoon fennel seed (crushed) helps release the natural oils and flavors
• 1  ½ tablespoon of good quality chili powder ( I like using San Antiono chili powder)
• ¼ teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

Finishing, pour the tomato sauce over the stuffed cabbage rolls making sure to cover each cabbage roll to help flavor them and protect them while cooking. 

Cover the casserole dish with aluminum foil. Bake @ 325 for around one hour or until the tenderness you enjoy. 

• Peak Of The Season? Tomato Sauce Techniques