Unstuffed cabbage rolls are one of my favorite comfort foods. I love stuffed cabbage, and so does my family. But making cabbage rolls is a lot of work! That’s where my savory unstuffed cabbage rolls come in. Traditional cabbage rolls requires several steps. This recipe is far easier! You simply make meatballs, then cook them with sauce on a bed of shredded cabbage. Presto! You’ve got a delicious and healthy low carb comfort food. All the flavor of stuffed cabbage, without all the work. Easy enough for a weeknight, delicious enough for a holiday… and if you use matzo meal (or omit the breadcrumbs), it’s kosher for Passover.
Making stuffed cabbage rolls is a process. The leaves need to be boiled or frozen, then trimmed. You must create and mix a meat filling. After that, the filling is rolled up into cabbage leaves one-by-one. A sauce must be made. Then it all needs to slowly cook. When you’re all done, you certainly feel like you’ve earned it… and of course, it’s delicious. But there is an easier way.
Many years ago, my dear friend Beth introduced me to concept of unstuffed cabbage rolls. The basic idea is to make a bed of cabbage, make the filling into meatballs, cover it all with sauce, and cook. It doesn’t get much easier than that.
Unlike my stuffed cabbage, my unstuffed cabbage rolls are a savory preparation (with no added sweetness). This is not a Polish-style sweet and sour sauce. I prefer this dish on the savory side. If you’re looking for a more sweet and sour flavor profile, try these (which can also be made kosher for Passover): Sweet and Sour Meatballs.
I typically use a combination of ground beef and ground chicken in these unstuffed cabbage rolls, but you can use either or. Dark meat ground chicken (versus white meat) will provide extra flavor. Note that if you use ground chicken only, the meatballs will be quite sticky when you’re trying to form them (especially if you leave out the breadcrumbs). They’ll firm up as they cook.
Normally stuffed cabbage has rice in the filling, but I typically leave it out here. These unstuffed cabbage rolls are very filling without the rice, and lower carb, too. It’s perfect for the colder months of the year, a warming and wonderful one pot meal. This recipe is also kosher for Passover, if you use matzo meal – and gluten free if you omit the breadcrumbs entirely. Enjoy!
Recommended Products:
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 head of green cabbage, cored and cut into strips
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- Pinch ground cloves
- 15 ounces tomato sauce (you may substitute 3/4 cup tomato paste mixed with 1 cup of warm water for the sauce)
- 1 pound lean ground beef (you may substitute ground beef for all the meat, if desired)
- 1 pound ground chicken (you may substitute ground chicken or turkey for all the meat, if desired)
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup unsalted bread crumbs or matzo meal (optional)
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
- 15 ounces diced tomatoes (1 can)
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon sugar (optional – omit for low carb)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or more to taste
- Crushed red pepper flakes (optional, to taste)
NOTES
Instructions
- Pour 1 cup of water into a large pot, bring to a boil. Place cabbage strips into the pot.
- Cover the pot. Steam cabbage over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn’t burn.
- Meanwhile, combine paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, ground cloves, 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of black pepper, and 1/4 the can of tomato sauce at the bottom of a large bowl. Stir until well blended.
- Add the ground beef and chicken, egg, bread crumbs or matzo meal, and fresh minced parsley. Adding the bread crumbs will help bind the meatballs and will allow you to make a few more meatballs (stretching the meat), but if you're on a low carb or gluten free diet you can omit them and still get very tasty results. They'll just be a little harder to form smoothly (the meat will be sticky) – but the meatballs will firm up as they cook.
- Mix with a fork or knead with clean hands until all ingredients are thoroughly blended and meat is evenly seasoned.
- Uncover the cabbage and reduce heat to low. Form the meat mixture into 2-inch meatballs and place them in a single layer on the surface of the cabbage. Take care when adding them to the hot pot—don’t burn your arm!
- Pour remaining tomato sauce into a mixing bowl with the diced tomatoes, lemon juice, and sugar (the sugar is optional – it cuts the acid in the tomato sauce). Stir until blended, then season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the sauce over the meatballs.Bring mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to medium low. Cover pot and cook for 75-90 minutes hours over medium low heat until the meatballs are cooked and cabbage is very tender. Stir every 20-30 minutes. If the cabbage seems dry towards the end of cooking, add a little hot water to the pan.
- Give the pot a gentle stir at the end of cooking to blend the sauce, cabbage, and meatballs.
- Serve meatballs on top of the soft cooked cabbage. Garnish with more minced fresh parsley, if desired. Crushed red pepper flakes may be added for spice, according to taste. Serve.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Its great adding brown sugar and lemon juice- gives it more of a sweet/sour flavor-delish! and I just crumble the meat and sprinkle the rice-no formed meatballs!
This is comfort food without the guilt! I used 2 lbs of ground turkey breast and no ground beef. The meatballs were moist, tender and flavorful. This recipe is healthy and delicious and fun to make!
Love this recipe, but used tomato soup instead of sauce, reminded me of my Hungarian Grandmother;s recipe.
I made this tonight and my husband couldn’t stop complimenting me 🙂
It is easy to make and the various seasonings mix together beautifully.
There are only two of us and there was a lot left over, so I am going to FoodSaver it in individual bags and freeze them.
Happy Chanukah and a Happy Healthy New Year to you all.
Great Nina! Thanks for reminding me about this one, I haven’t made it in a while. Will be doing it soon, I do love it so!
This; recipe is; closer to my dish. I don’t care for sweet sour nor sweet.
So I am going to try this unstuffed cabbage
have been making unstuffed cabbage for years. I quarter cabbage and then chunk it; alternate layers of cabbage, sliced onion and small meatballs, etc. Pour a bottle of ketcup over top and then a bottle of ginger ale. Tastes like grandma’s reciipe but much easier.
I made this recipe tonight for my boyfriend and my friend and they LOVED it! It was fairly easy and super delicious.
Fab Katherine, thanks for reporting back!
I made this on Sunday and have had it for dinner three nights in a row. We just love it!!
The house smells so good thanks to your fool proof comfort food! I Love dishes that satisfy the soul and the taste buds, are good on the waist, and soooo easy to prepare.
It’s my first time on your website. I had to check out this recipe. Up until now I only had stuffed cabbage on special occasions (rarely) because there are too many steps. Love that you simplified this nostalgic dish. Can’t wait to tell everyone I know!
I make this recipe sweet and sour by using cranberry and chili sauce. For Pesach I used KLP ketchup, lemon juice and cranberry sauce. I also use pre-shredded cabbage(cole slaw) from the plastic bag. Easy peasy, lemony squeezy! I also broil the meatballs first to drain off some of the fat.
You are killing me with this! what a perfectly simple idea. Unlike so many of your other readers, I have carried on my Grandmothers and then my Mothers traditional recipe for Stuffed Cabbage, and i must tell you, everyone, from my nephew who never liked stuffed cabbage, to even my mother says that mine is the best. but it takes me forever, and I’ve got huge pots boiling cabbage draining cabbage all over the kitchen because if I make it, I make a super large amount. Everybody wants the leftovers. However, one of the things I do, and I love is chop up all the leftover pieces of cabbage and onion , and it is probably my favorite part. who needs the rolls? they just get in the way anyway! I will Definitely do this next time
I am not even making it this year because I don’t have the time.. BIG BIG Thanks agin!
Tori,
I know this is heresy, but we don’t eat meat! I love the idea of unstuffed cabbage. Can you suggest a non-meat filling that I could swap in for the meat mixture?
Alice K., kasha makes an excellent substitute for ground meat in many recipes!
i had some cabbage rolls months ago at shul, and have litterally been obessing over them every shabbos for 5 months. you just made my day! delightful! thank you so much
Dear friends:
A very easy way to deal with cabbage for traditional stuffed cabbage is to microwave the cabbage, removing the cores first. It takes about 10 – 15 minutes and you don’t have to remember to put it in the freezer two days before!
My 90 year old mom suggested this to me a few years ago when I was complaining about boiling or freezing the cabbages and I haven’t looked back since.
Linda,
How do you microwave the cabbage? In a bowl of water?
what a great idea tori. I have to try this for passover.
alan
Very yummy! As one of the readers above mentioned, I also shred the cabbage and mix it with the ground meat. Kids can never guess that they are eating cabbage.
Troy
I have benne making a version of this for many years when I was working and still like it this way even. Though. I retired..I have. Better things to do ….like watching grand daughters then stuff as we call it stuffed garbage….some times I do the same thin with peppers instead of studying them , I cut up diifferent colored peppers and put them on the bottom of the pot …this way I get to enjoy the flavor without all the fuss
Natalie aka Safti from saftiscreations
Tori – this looks delicious! What a great idea….and a HUGE time saver! Bravo!
I love this — sort of like cabbage and meatballs! Such pretty images, too.