Stuffed cabbage rolls are a forever crowd-pleaser; if you make them once, you’ll be asked to prepare them over and over and again and again. Their delicious flavor makes them an attractive special occasion entree, perfect for Sunday dinners, holidays, and important family gatherings. This recipe can easily be made vegan or vegetarian by supplanting the substitution suggestions.
Cabbage is an outstanding source of vitamin K; one cup of cabbage contains over 80% of the vitamin’s prescribed daily allowance, which plays an essential role in protein synthesis and metabolism. The same cup of cabbage also contains 40% of the daily vitamin C allowance. It is also an excellent source of manganese, fiber, folate and vitamin B6, riboflavin, potassium, calcium, tryptophan, vitamin A, magnesium, and protein.
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 large head of cabbage, red or green
- 3 quarts water
- 2 Tbsp. butter (substitute Butter-Flavor Crisco for a milk-free vegan version)
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 pound ground turkey (substitute one package Morningstar Farms Cooking Crumbles for a vegan/vegetarian version)
- 2 cups cooked white rice
- 1 Tbsp. dried parsley
- 2 celery stalks, finely chopped
- 1 green pepper, finely chopped
- 4 cups of fresh tomato sauce
- Salt and pepper to taste
Procedure:
- Boil three quarts of the water in a clean pot. Core the cabbage and properly peel off the fresh individual leaves, running under lukewarm water if needed to loosen them.
- Boil the leaves a pair at a time for four minutes. Remove the cooked leaves to a colander.
- Reserve two cups of the cooking water. Cut out the bottom of the middle vein on each leaf.
- Melt the Crisco or butter in a fresh pan and add the garlic and onion, sauteing until golden (golden-brownish color). Remove from heat and mix the garlic and garlic onion in a bowl with ground meat, rice, pepper, salt, green pepper, parsley, and celery.
- Place 1/3 cup of the rice mix on each cabbage leaf.
- Roll the leaves up by properly folding in the sides, then rolling from the bottom of the leaf. Correctly place the finished rolls back in the pot used to heat the water.
- The prepared rolls do not need to be over-perfect, by any means, as long as they are kept close together in the pot.
- Mix the tomato sauce and the reserved cabbage water in a clean bowl. Pour enough into the pot to cover the cabbage. Bring to a boil over medium-high, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for a couple of hours, gently pressing the rolls down into the sauce regularly.
- Add more of the tomato sauce and water mix to the pot as required.
- Let the rolls stand for seven minutes before finally dishing them up.
Serve on beds of mashed potatoes and white rice.
