A family-style unraveled cabbage roll featuring all the same comforting ingredients such as beef, rice, tomato sauce, and tender cabbage layered in a casserole dish.
1largehead of green cabbagecore removed and leaves chopped (about 8 cups)
15ouncecan of tomato saucedivided
14.5ouncecan of diced tomatoes
2cupscooked long grain white rice
2cupgrated mozzarella cheese
chopped parsley or herbsfor garnish
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef and onion. (Use 1 tablespoon of oil in the pan if the ground beef is lean.) Drain any excess grease.
Add 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, minced garlic, and Italian seasoning to the meat mixture and saute 1-2 minutes longer.
Add in the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Bring to a low boil. Reduce heat and simmer several minutes to reduce the liquid and thicken the sauce. Remove from heat and stir in the cooked rice.
Meanwhile, in a separate skillet or Dutch oven (some depth to the pan is best to accommodate the volume of the fresh cabbage), drizzle another tablespoon of olive oil. Heat over medium heat, adding the chopped cabbage, and sauteeing for several minutes until the cabbage has just wilted. Season with remaining salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
In a 9x13 casserole dish, layer ½ of the cabbage, then ½ of the meat mixture. Repeat the layers and top with grated cheese.
Bake cabbage roll casserole for 20-30 minutes, until casserole is hot and the cheese has melted.
Garnish with chopped parsley.
Notes
We used ground beef in our cabbage roll casserole but it’s really up to you what you use. You can use a combination of meat or just stick to one. Ground turkey, hot Italian sausage, venison, chicken, lamb, and pork all work great so long as it is ground/minced.
Long grain white rice or brown rice can be used. The rice should be precooked before adding to the casserole to ensure doneness.
We opted for mozzarella, but other cheeses that would pair well with this casserole include Gruyere and white cheddar.
For a thicker casserole, simmer down the meat sauce for longer. You can also add another can of diced tomatoes, but this should be cooked down so that the casserole is not too runny.
Taste both the meat mixture and the cabbage before layering into the casserole dish. The cabbage, in particular, may need more seasoning.