Cabbage Rolls, variations

Where I grew up, Cabbage Rolls were a typical meal and I'm pretty sure every woman in my family makes them still. I've commented previously that there has to be 20 different ways to make Cabbage Rolls.



I've spoken with friends who make their's from scratch too, some of their preparation methods and ingredients differ greatly from the ones I'm used to, though many recipes are very similar.



Your ingredients can change depending on personal preferences, as well as, availability of ingredients at hand. I usually use Ground Pork or Beef when I make them and keep the spices simple. My family uses a good helping of Tomato Sauce when baking their cabbage rolls, so I find the flavours of the vegetables carry the dish quite well without adding too many extra flavours.



The quantity of Cabbage Rolls you get will depend on the size of the Cabbage Leaves and what they can hold. I had a small Cabbage but still yielded a total of 7 Cabbage Rolls "Large" using pre-cooked rice and 14 mid sized Rolls using Instant Rice.





Batch 1 - Instant (Minute) Rice
1/2 lb (250 grams) Ground Beef or Pork
1 Cup Instant (Minute) Rice

Mix with Instant (Minute)
Rice and Vegetable Stock

1 Cup Vegetable Stock
1/2 Cup Diced Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Cup Diced Yellow Bell Pepper
1/2 TSP Ground Garlic
1/2 TSP Marjoram
1/4 TSP Ground Mustard
1/4 TSP Paprika
1/4 TSP Salt
1/4 TSP Pepper
1 1/2 Cups Tomato Sauce, Basic Sauce.


Batch 2 - Whole Rice - Pre-Cooked
1/2 lb (250 grams) Ground Beef or Pork
1 Cup Whole Rice - Pre-Cooked

Mix with Whole Rice - Pre-Cooked

1/2 Cup Diced Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Cup Diced Yellow Bell Pepper
1/2 TSP Ground Garlic
1/2 TSP Marjoram
1/4 TSP Ground Mustard
1/4 TSP Paprika
1/4 TSP Salt
1/4 TSP Pepper
1 1/2 Cups Tomato Sauce, Basic Sauce.

On either method, you incorporate all of your ingredients in a bowl, for the instant rice, give the ingredients 1/2 an hour to absorb the vegetable stock. It's quicker than cooking and cooling the rice down, which is why I'm explaining both recipes. I'll explain tips for prepping your Cabbage leaves a little further below. There are several methods and there is no right or wrong way.






My family bakes their Cabbage Rolls instead of Boiling or Steaming them. Once the Cabbage Rolls are prepped and covered with a basic Tomato Sauce, they bake in a preheated oven.

Cover the Baking Dish with either a tight fitting lid or foil and cook at 350 F for 45 minutes.

Prepping Cabbage Leaves.

Cabbage leaves can be very tough and fiberous. Working with a raw Cabbage can be almost impossible so there are different ways you can soften the leaves prior to rolling the ingredients in them.

Cabbage leaves on either end - Boiled

My Grandmother freezes her Cabbage whole, overnight and takes it out the next day when she makes her rolls. My Mother boils hers and I steam mine. No matter which method you choose they are all effective to soften the leaves up and make the rolling easier. My only comment on boiling the leaves, is although they are easier to work with, they are too soft after baking for my liking. I've shown you an example of boiled leaves versus steamed so you can see the difference.




I'll take a full cabbage and steam it over boiling water (with vegetables) to soften the leaves. I remove one leaf at a time and let the steam work on the next leaf. As I remove each leaf, I place them upside down on a dish to drain any additional moisture off.

The biggest tip to making Cabbage Rolls and making the rolling process easier...remove the centre hard part of the leaf.


Cabbage Rolls are simple to make, and easy to store in the freezer. I made a large batch when I made these and have 12 additional meals I can use at a later time.

Serving...we use sour cream and as we did the night we made these, served up Perogies..I think It's a Canadian thing, we serve our Perogies fried in a pan with a helping of onions. It's decadent, but we like it.

I've fallen behind on posting new things as my garden has been taking up much of my time. I'm almost done planting and with luck can get back to cooking.

Have a great day!

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