I have to admit, I spent a lot of time searching to find the perfect cabbage roll recipe. I couldn’t find one that seemed just right. They all included several out-of-season ingredients.
Finally, I decided to take my own advice and trust that if I started with quality ingredients that the final product would be delicious…and it was:).
For this recipe, I used only things that we have in abundance this time of year. I am confident that this could be adjusted throughout the year by substituting whatever veg and herbs are in season for endless versions of cabbage roll deliciousness.
For me, cabbage rolls are best topped with sour cream. But I don’t love all of the ultra-processed ingredients in the grocery store sour cream. If you feel the same way, you can follow my instructions on how to make home-made creme fraiche that you can substitute for sour cream and will take this dish to the next level (bonus: it is fermented a.k.a. good for your belly bugs!)
Ingredients
- For the cabbage rolls:
- One cabbage*
- 1 lb ground pork*
- 3/4 cup uncooked rice/or ~2 cups leftover cooked rice
- 1 pkg chopped and frozen sweet peppers*
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 onion
- Butter
- Salt and pepper
- One egg
- 2 packages frozen marinara sauce*
- For the creme fraiche:
- Full fat cream
- UCC yogurt*
- *Harmony Farm products
Equipment
- For the cabbage rolls:
- Stockpot
- Rice cooker/instapot or pot for cooking rice
- Paring knife
- Chef knife and cutting board
- Clean kitchen towels
- Tongs
- Dutch oven or casserole dish with lid or tin foil to cover
- For the creme fraiche:
- Mason jar with elasticized cloth cover or clean dish cloth and elastic band
Method
For the creme fraiche:
This is a fermented product that takes 24-48 hours to complete fermentation. The timing will depend on the temperature in your kitchen as well as the proportion of yogurt:cream. For the proportions below and at 21 degrees, my creme fraiche is usually ready in about 36 hours. Once fermented, it will keep for several weeks in the fridge.
The prep is easy: add one tablespoon of yogurt to a cup of full fat cream. Mix and and cover with a cloth cover, secured with an elastic, to keep out any debris. Leave on the counter at room temperature for 24-48 hours until it has thickened and has a delicious sour-cream aroma and flavour. Then replace the cover with a solid lid and refrigerate.
Leftovers? You can make more creme fraiche by adding fresh cream to the remains of the initial batch and fermenting as above. Or freeze leftovers in portion sized airtight containers. The texture will change (become a bit more grainy) but the flavour will still be awesome. This is a great addition to soups (or frozen cabbage rolls!)
For the cabbage rolls
Start by prepping your cooked ingredients and defrosting the meat and sauce.
Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.
Place flat-packed marinara sauce and sweet peppers in a sink of cold water to thaw.
Fill a stockpot with water and a few tablespoons of vinegar (keeps the cabbage-y smell to a minimum). Cover and place on the stove to boil. This is where the cabbage will be blanched.
Measure and wash the rice then add water and start your instapot or rice cooker. When it is finished, turn the cooker off and remove the lid so that it can cool.
Frozen peppers can be briefly defrosted in the microwave if they have not thawed enough in the sink. Then toss with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 450 degrees in a single layer in a small pan until they start to caramelize and smell delicious (~20 minutes). Remove and allow to cool.
Turn the oven temp down to 350 degrees.
Defrost meat in the microwave if you have not had a chance to de-frost in the fridge overnight.
While the peppers are roasting, chop and saute the onion. Once chopped, add them to a pan with your choice of fat (you can use extra virgin olive oil or butter but I prefer the flavour of butter with cabbage rolls so that is what I use) and saute over medium heat until they start to turn golden at the edges. Then add pinches of salt and pepper for seasoning (adding it early will pull water out of the onions causing them to steam and soften rather than brown while maintaining texture). Set aside and allow to cool.
Once the veggies and meat are prepped and cooling, remove the core and any unsightly outer leaves from the head of cabbage. Place a few clean kitchen cloths on the counter beside the pot. Turn the heat down to maintain a simmer then place the whole cabbage head in the pot. With tongs, remove outer leaves as they soften and place on kitchen cloths to cool.
Next, mix the filling together including meat, peppers, paprika, onion, egg, 1/2 cup of marinara sauce, salt and pepper. Don’t be afraid to remove your jewellery and really knead this together until the mixture becomes a bit tacky. This signals that the proteins have unraveled and cross-linked together so that they will maintain moisture resulting in a moist and delicious cooked filling. After kneading, remove a small piece, put on a plate and microwave for 10-20 seconds to cook, then taste. Adjust seasoning as needed.
Place a few shredded small cabbage leaves at the bottom of the casserole dish as a base.
Cut tough bottom rib from cabbage leaves, place 1tbsp-1/4 cup of filling per leave (depending on the size of the leaf) then roll the leaves around the filling as though you are rolling up a burrito. Place the rolls on top of the shredded cabbage base. Cover with remaining marinara sauce, topping up with broth as needed so that rolls are mostly covered.
Cover pot with a tightly fitted lid and cook for 1 1/2-2 hours until the cabbage is tender, sauce bubbling and the filling cooked through. The lid can be removed for the last 30 minutes it the sauce is very thin.
Top with creme fraiche and enjoy!
Time Savers, Storage Tips and Spin off Recipes
- This is a great recipe to big-batch; you can cook multiple batches in one large casserole dish or cook a number of small casserole dishes at the same time. Cooked cabbage rolls freeze well in individual portions which can be re-heated in the microwave. Creme fraiche can be frozen with individual portions or on its own.
- Do you have extra cabbage leftover? It makes a great start to a weeknight stir fry. Slice it finely then add onions and other veg and meat from your fridge or freezer. Serve over rice with your favourite stir fry sauce (fun fact: I saved my leftovers for next-day stir fry but this partly blanched cabbage heart is so delicious that my son ate it all before I could get to it!).
- You can double or triple the rice for this recipe then cool extra and save it in the fridge for next-day stir fry or fried rice or freeze for a later date.
Did you Know?
Like bread, refrigerated and frozen rice becomes what is known as “resistant starch”, a much healthier version of its freshly prepared self, that provides food to gut microbes to help them improve the gut barrier and train the immune system.
| This Recipe’s Plant Count: 13 |
| Time required: up to 48 hours for creme fraiche (5 minutes active) ~2.5 hours for cabbage rolls (30-45 minutes active) |
| # Servings: This recipe makes ~24 medium sized rolls. |
Harmony Kitchen 