Main dish
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls with Ground Meat and Rice
Beginner-friendlyshared by Кухня Nibblore
These juicy unstuffed cabbage rolls combine ground pork and beef, rice, and tender cabbage in a rich tomato and sour cream sauce. Softening and thoroughly draining the cabbage helps the patties hold their shape and cook evenly. They are ideal for a hearty family dinner without the work of wrapping individual cabbage leaves. • Squeeze the cabbage especially well; a wet mixture will be loose and may lose its shape. • If the mixture is difficult to shape, chill it for 15 minutes rather than adding egg or flour, which keeps the cabbage rolls tender. • For evenly sized rolls, portion the mixture with kitchen scales; each one should weigh about 120–125 g. • If the tops brown too quickly after you remove the foil, loosely cover the dish and continue baking. • Replace the mixed ground meat with ground turkey, adding 1 tablespoon oil to keep it juicy. • Instead of passata, use 70 g tomato paste mixed with 330 ml water. • Green cabbage can be replaced with Savoy cabbage; soak it in boiling water for just 5 minutes. • Replace the sour cream with 15–20% fat cream for a milder, less tangy sauce. Refrigerate the cabbage rolls with their sauce in a covered container for up to 3 days. Reheat covered at 180°C for about 15 minutes, or microwave until hot in the center. To freeze, cool the cooked dish completely and store for up to 2 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Ingredients
- 120 gshort-grain rice
- 350 mlwater, for cooking the rice
- 600 ggreen cabbage
- 1medium yellow onion
- 1medium carrot
- 700 gmixed ground pork and beef
- 1 1/2 tspsalt
- 1/2 tspground black pepper
- 3 tbspvegetable oil
- 400 gplain tomato passata
- 200 g15–20% fat sour cream
- 200 mlhot water
- 1 tspsugar
- 1/2 tspsweet paprika
- 2bay leaves
- 10 gfresh dill
Instructions
- 1Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, then place it in a small saucepan with 350 ml water. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered over medium heat for 7 minutes. Drain in a sieve and cool for 10 minutes; the rice should still be noticeably firm in the center.
- 2Finely shred the cabbage into strips no longer than 3 cm. Place it in a large bowl, cover with boiling water, and leave for 10 minutes. Drain in a colander, let cool, then squeeze it thoroughly by hand; excess moisture will prevent the cabbage rolls from holding their shape.
- 3Finely chop the onion and coarsely grate the carrot. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a deep 28 cm frying pan over medium heat. Cook the onion and carrot for 6–7 minutes, until soft and lightly golden, then transfer to a plate and cool for 5 minutes.
- 4Combine the ground meat, rice, cabbage, half the sautéed vegetables, 1 teaspoon salt, and the black pepper in a large bowl. Mix by hand for 2 minutes, until the mixture becomes slightly sticky. With damp hands, shape it into 12 oval cabbage rolls, each about 9 cm long.
- 5Preheat the oven to 190°C using conventional top and bottom heat. Grease an approximately 23 × 33 cm baking dish with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Arrange the cabbage rolls in a single layer, leaving a little space between them.
- 6For the sauce, whisk together the passata, sour cream, hot water, remaining sautéed vegetables, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, sugar, and paprika until smooth. Pour the sauce over the cabbage rolls and tuck the bay leaves between them.
- 7Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, spoon sauce from the bottom of the dish over the cabbage rolls, and bake for another 15–20 minutes, until the sauce thickens, the cabbage is tender, and the center of each roll reaches 74°C.
- 8Remove the bay leaves and let the cabbage rolls rest for 10 minutes so the juices can settle and the sauce can thicken slightly. Sprinkle with finely chopped dill and serve hot with sauce spooned over the top.