Healthy Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

This recipe for cabbage rolls uses cabbage leaves and a delicious stuffing made with ground beef, a mix of wild rice and long grain rice and vegetables, all cooked in a tomato sauce with aromatic spices and herbs. Same stuffing can be used for an assortment of colored bell peppers, a recipe perfect for clean eating diet.

Whether you call these cabbage wraps – sarmale (Romanian cabbage rolls) or galushki / golubtsi (Russian cabbage rolls) the dish uses basically the same simple ingredients. German, Greek, Turkish, Polish, Hungarian or Ukrainian stuffed cabbage rolls, they all consist of cooked cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of fillings. 

And you prefer a quicker version then try this lazy cabbage roll casserole, it will take about half the time to make.

A Healthier Recipe For Cabbage Rolls

You can tweak the cabbage roll recipe to your liking and substitute the ingredients as you please. Here I’m using healthier ingredients (without sugar or egg and more fiber), but feel free to adjust to your taste.

The best part, is that these cabbage rolls keep well in the fridge for days and can be reheated the next day. They can be served with any type of side dish you prefer, ranging from a cabbage coleslaw if you prefer something creamy and crunchy, or add some sourness with a probiotic rich red cabbage sauerkraut with beets, a fragrant lacto-fermented carrot salad, fermented fish, cucumbers or watermelon.

Essential Ingredients For Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

• Cabbage leaves – you can use steamed or frozen cabbage leaves. This will make them more flexible for rolling.
• Ground beef – ground pork, ground chicken or turkey will also work. Or you could combine two varieties.
• Rice – I used basmati rice and wild rice (for more fiber), but any cooked white rice will work. For low carb stuffed cabbage rolls you could use cauliflower rice, but it will come out a little soggy.
• Onion, garlic, carrot– for flavoring the meat.
• Seasoning – coriander, paprika, thyme, black pepper – the use of herbs and spices will build flavor without using any sugar or dairy.
• Crushed tomatoes – is used as tomato sauce substitution, it doesn’t have sugar. But you can also mix it with some broth if you need more liquid.

RICE PREP TIP: Soak the rice overnight, besides removing the impurities and contaminants it will also help the rice “puff up” so it could cook faster.

Related: Simple Easy Cabbage and Carrot Salad

Related: Best Cabbage Juice Recipe For Ulcers (Blender / Juicer)

This recipe for stuffed cabbage makes a hearty and comforting meal for the whole family. The dish is absolutely delicious and inexpensive to make.

My mother used to make the sarmale recipe (Romanian cabbage rolls) and sarma (stuffed rolls made with grape leaves) in very large batches especially when we had large crowds visiting. This used to be a traditional dish served for Easter and Christmas meals in my childhood.

CABBAGE TIP: For the best tasting and healthier cabbage rolls, use the leaves of a pickled cabbage head (like sauerkraut), if you don’t have any, fresh cabbage is the best next alternative.

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TOMATO SAUCE TIP: The key to brightening the taste of these stuffed cabbage rolls is to add acid, hence the tomatoes do a really great job. Alternatively you can use tomato juice or fresh chopped tomatoes (but you need a lot). Or you can make a flavored tomato sauce by using spices.

Related: Shrimp Cabbage Salad

How To Make Healthy Cabbage Rolls

While this seems to be an easy recipe for rolled cabbage, it does take a bit of time. So make sure you have about 2 hour to prep and bake your dish.

Step 1. Prepare The Rice

• Place the rice in a bowl and add water to soak overnight.
• If you don’t have time, just rinse it several times until the water is clear and let it soak for at least an hour until you gather and prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Step 2. Prepare The Cabbage

• Boil the cabbage. Submerge the entire cabbage head into a large pot with boiling water (for about 3-4 minutes). See video below for visual help. Since I don’t have pickled cabbage (that’s what is preferred) I’m adding some vinegar to the boiling water to give it a little kick.
• Then, peel the leaves off, one at a time.

TIP: Freezing a head of cabbage overnight then thawing it makes for a more pliable cabbage leaf.

Step 3. Prepare The Stuffing

• In a skillet over medium heat, sauté onions, garlic, carrots until lightly soft, add the spices and herbs, the beef. Add the soaked rice at the end and cook for 1-2 minutes.
• Now you can add half of the crushed tomatoes to the mixture at this moment or add it later on top, after rolling the cabbage. Set aside to cool.

Step 4. Assemble The Cabbage Rolls

• To stuff the cabbage leaves, lay down a single large leaf and place about a 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the filling in the lower third of the leave, fold the sides and roll (this way you’ll get huge rolls). 
• If you prefer smaller rolls then cut the leaf in smaller parts, and use less filing (see video).
• In a large deep dish (I’m using a 3-quart round glass dish) place the stuffed cabbage rolls on the bottom, and continue by adding layers.
• Pour the remaining half of the jar of crushed tomatoes (or diced tomatoes) on top. Alternatively use water and lemon juice or vegetable broth. Some try to add a lot of liquid so they are covered, but I found that this is not necessary as the steam fill circulate inside. Just add enough liquid to help the rice puff.
• Cover with the remaining cabbage leaves to seal moisture and cover with a lid.

Step 5. Bake The Cabbage Rolls

• Bake for 2 hours at 370F or 190C. Or until the wild rice has puffed and is cracked open. (It has a longer cooking time than the regular rice).
• Remove from the oven and allow to sit covered for 30 minutes before serving. It will continue to cook and build some flavor for the next day.

VIDEO: How To Make Cabbage Rolls & Stuffed Peppers

Storing Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight sealed container.

To re-heat, thaw completely in the refrigerator the night before. When ready to eat throw them in a skillet, add 2 tablespoons of water, cover and cook over low heat, until heated through (about 15 minutes). Or place in a an oven at 350F for 15-20 minutes.

More Healthy Dinner Recipes With Meat

If you tried this healthy recipe for cabbage rolls, please leave a star rating or a comment below the recipe card. It’s really helpful for me and readers. Thanks!