A variation of the cabbage rolls mom made when I was growing up.
- pepper
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon basil
- sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 medium egg
- meat filling
- 1/2 can tomato soup undiluted
- 1 pound ground beef a mixture of ground pork and poultry be used also)
- 1 dash dillweed
- no salt it's in the soup
- 1 cup cooked basmati rice
- 2 28-oz cans crushed tomatoes
- dash parsley
- 1 dash dillweed
- 1 medium cabbage whole
- Carbohydrate 32.0779859774937 g
- Cholesterol 111.638569375 mg
- Fat 29.9817201817186 g
- Fiber 7.21094671600689 g
- Protein 24.2720260708787 g
- Saturated Fat 11.1522044218906 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (483g)
- Sodium 371.529318823664 mg
- Sugar 24.8670392614868 g
- Trans Fat 7.55519508913648 g
- Calories 483 calories
Step-by-step
- Put all sauce ingrediants in non-stick pot, simmer.
- Put rice on to cook (i use 1/2 cup to 1 1/2 cups water and dash salt).
- Put large pot filled with water on to boil, core cabbage and add whole cabbage to water..
- When rice is cooked sauce should be ready but you can keep simmering till your ready to use. (stir to keep from burning).
- With tongs peel each cabbage leaf off carefully while it is still in pot (be careful of the steam) when they are limp enough to remove.
- Be sure not to tear the leaf.
- You'll need at least 12 leaves.
- Mix all filling ingrediants well, making sure all beef chunks are broken up.
- Fill leaves with about a 1/4 cup of fillings.
- Roll sides in then back, then front, turn over in (9x13 glass) pan so that seams are on underside.
- Pour half sauce over rolls and bake at 350 for 2 hours, covered with foil (shiny side in).
- Halfway through cooking you may find a lot of water in pan..
- drain this off carefully (sometimes it's fat.. and who needs that..) and return to oven.
- Serve with extra sauce poured over rolls.
How many cabbage leaves can a single medium head actually yield? That is the immediate logistical question when setting up a production station for stuffed rolls. Yields vary wildly based on head size and density, so having extra heads on hand prevents stalling out mid-roll. Working with whole heads requires boiling them gently until the outer layers soften enough to peel away with tongs without tearing.
Scaling Batch Sizes Up or Down
Adjusting ground meat and rice ratios demands attention to moisture levels. When doubling the batch, increase the cooked basmati rice and ground beef proportionally while maintaining the egg and milk binder to hold the structure together. Conversely, halving the recipe means scaling down the liquid in the sauce so the casserole does not become watery during the two-hour bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Covering the 9x13 glass pan tightly with foil keeps the steam trapped, ensuring the rice inside cooks through completely without drying out the meat.
- Drain excess moisture carefully at the one-hour mark to prevent the sauce from diluting into a watery broth.
- Keep the foil shiny side inward to reflect heat efficiently back into the baking dish.
- Select firm, tightly packed green cabbage heads with unblemished leaves for maximum structural integrity during rolling.
Pairing these rich, tomato-forward rolls with plain boiled potatoes or buttered egg noodles balances the acidity of the canned tomatoes.
