Juicy Stuffed Cabbage Rolls are made with simple and inexpensive ingredients, but they have so much flavor! Tender cabbage leaves stuffed with meat, veggies, and rice and simmered in a marinara sauce, make the perfect dinner.
You’ll love that you can cook Cabbage Rolls on the stovetop or bake them in the oven. Watch the video tutorial and see how easy it is to make this satisfying, freezer-friendly meal.
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We grew up eating traditional family recipes, from Pierogi to Beef Stroganoff, and these are foods we will never get tired of. They are so warm and comforting, especially in the colder months. If you are a fan of wholesome dinner ideas, this cabbage roll recipe is a must-try!
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Video
If you’ve never given cabbage rolls a go, I hope you feel empowered to try them after watching our video. And be sure to watch until the end to hear the important “disclaimer.” 😉
Easy Cabbage Rolls Recipe
This simple cabbage rolls recipe uses budget-friendly ingredients to turn out a delicious, feel-good meal. It’s precisely what I love about Ukrainian food!
Ukrainian golubtsi, or stuffed cabbage rolls, are juicy and filling, with a light sauce that even kids love. My son will happily wolf down four whole rolls topped with sour cream as an afternoon snack. And you won’t find me complaining – stuffed cabbage is a nourishing meal for feeding a hungry crew.
Ingredients
What’s in this homemade cabbage rolls recipe? Below is what you’ll need, and don’t forget to scroll to the recipe card for the full ingredient amounts.
- Rice – The best rice for cabbage rolls is regular white rice.
- Cabbages – You’ll need two medium-sized heads of green cabbage.
- Ground meat – We love the combination of ground pork and ground turkey to keep it juicy and flavorful.
- Eggs – To bind the ingredients in the cabbage roll stuffing.
- Carrots – You’ll need four medium-sized carrots for the stuffing and two for the sauce.
- Marinara – I use my easy Homemade Marinara Sauce, or storebought sauce.
- White Vinegar – to add to the water when boiling the cabbage. Vinegar helps alleviate some of that “boiled cabbage” smell.
- Olive Oil and Butter – for cooking.
- Sour Cream – Sour cream adds creaminess to the sauce. It’s also my favorite for topping and serving cabbage rolls.
Pro Tip: Aim for medium to large-sized heads of cabbage so that the leaves are big enough. You can always cut the leaves in half, and it’s always good to have extra leaves just in case.
How to Make Cabbage Rolls
Cabbage rolls aren’t difficult to make. They take some time, but it’s a simple process that I’ve outlined below with step-by-step photos. Also, make sure to watch the video above and you’ll be a pro in no time. Here’s how to do it:
Prepare the Rice and Cabbage
- Cook the rice – Cook the rice on the stovetop or in a rice maker if you have one.
- Boil the cabbage – Remove the outer leaves, then cut out the cores (see photo). Boil the cabbages one at a time in a large pot of water with salt and vinegar. Pull off the leaves as they begin to soften, and lay them on a platter to cool. Reserve 4 cups of the cooking water.
Prepare the Stuffing
- Combine the rice and meat – In a large bowl, combine the meats with the cooked rice.
- Saute the carrots – In a pan, saute grated carrots with oil and butter, then stir in your marinara sauce.
- Mix everything together – Pour the carrot mixture into the bowl with the rice mixture and, finally, mix in the eggs and salt.
Pro Tip: The easiest way to mix the filling is in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
Filling the Cabbage Rolls
- Prepare the leaves – Depending on the size of your cabbage leaves, cut larger leaves in half or flatten smaller leaves by shaving off the thick stems with a pairing knife for easier rolling (see photo).
- Fill and roll – Fill each leaf with a couple of spoonfuls of stuffing mixture, then tightly roll up the cabbage and tuck in the ends. Larger half-leaves are easier to shape into a cone while smaller leaves are rolled into a little log.
- Arrange inside the pot – Place the stuffed cabbage into a large pot or Dutch oven, then prepare the sauce.
Making the Sauce
- Saute the carrots (again) – To make the Podliva sauce, begin by sautéing the remaining grated carrots in a skillet with olive oil and a dash of seasoning.
- Add sour cream and marinara – Once softened, stir in a bit of sour cream and additional marinara sauce.
- Pour over the cabbage rolls – Pour the Podliva over the cabbage rolls, then top with the cabbage water that was reserved earlier on. Your cabbage rolls are now ready for cooking!
How to Cook Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
There are two ways to cook cabbage rolls:
- Oven Method – My preferred way of cooking stuffed cabbage is in a Dutch oven with the lid on. Bake at 450ºF for the first 20 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350ºF and bake 1 hour.
- Stovetop Method – Bring the stuffed cabbage and sauce to a boil in a large pot with a lid. Reduce heat, cover and leave the rolls to simmer for about 40 minutes.
Pro Tip: There’s no need to cook the ground turkey and pork ahead of time, as it will cook inside the rolls. Cooking ahead will dry out the meat.
Common Questions
Cabbage rolls consist of cooked, softened cabbage leaves filled with ground meat, rice, and other fillings.
These rolls turn out great with inexpensive, regular green cabbage. Another good option would be savoy cabbage.
Boiling the cabbage makes the leaves soft and pliable. Cutting out the cores beforehand also makes it easier to remove the leaves as the cabbage softens.
Yes! This recipe can easily be cut in half. The pot will come to a boil faster, but the final cook time in the oven or on the stovetop will be the same.
To Serve
Serve your cabbage rolls with a dollop of sour cream and a thick slice of soft French bread. We love ours as a meal with the following easy sides:
Make-Ahead
This recipe makes a lot of cabbage rolls. Luckily, stuffed cabbage is easy to store and freeze:
- To Refrigerate – Cabbage rolls can be stored airtight in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
- Freezing – Transfer cooled cabbage rolls in a single layer into freezer-safe Ziploc bags. Add some of the sauce to each bag, remove excess air then seal and freeze for up to 3 months or longer in a deep freezer.
- To Reheat – Thaw frozen cabbage rolls in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat on an oiled skillet over medium heat until fully heated through, turning a few times while cooking.
Enjoy these homemade cabbage rolls! I’d love to know how you serve your stuffed cabbage in the comments below.
More Cabbage Recipes
If you love these cabbage rolls and are a fan of cabbage, then you won’t want to miss these cabbage recipes:
- Cabbage Soup
- Lazy Cabbage Rolls
- Homemade Sauerkraut
- Cabbage Casserole Recipe
- Red Cabbage Salad with Apple
- Coleslaw Recipe
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (VIDEO)
Ingredients
- 2 cups white rice (uncooked), to make 6 cups cooked rice
- 2 cabbages (medium)
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 2 eggs
- 6 carrots (medium), divided
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 6 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp sour cream
- 1 tsp salt-free seasoning such as Mrs. Dash
- 1 1/2 Tbsp sea salt, divided
Instructions
Preparing Rice and Cabbage:
- Rinse 2 cups of rice and transfer to a large saucepan. Add 3 1/2 cups of water with 1 Tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 min, or until all water is absorbed.
- Fill 2/3 of a large soup pot with water and bring to boil. Add 1/2 Tbsp salt and 4 Tbsp vinegar.
- Peel and discard the two outer leaves from each cabbage. Use a knife to cut out the cabbage cores. Place first cabbage in water, cork side down, for 5 minutes, flip cabbage over and continue cooking for 5-6 min. Pull off leaves as they begin to soften. Leaves cook faster if pulled apart. Remove the leaves to a platter to cool when they are done. Leaves are done when soft and yellowish and larger leaves will turn a dull green. Repeat with the second cabbage, adding more water if needed. Reserve 4 cups of water from the pot.
Prepare the Stuffing:
- In a large bowl, or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine meats and rice.
- Grate 4 carrots and saute in a large pan in 3 Tbsp oil and 1 Tbsp butter over med/high heat until softened then add 1 cup marinara sauce and saute another minute. Add mixture to rice and meats then add 2 eggs and 1 Tbsp salt and mix well.
Cutting Leaves and Making Stuffed Cabbage:
- Large leaves: cut the leaves in half down the center along the stem and remove the tough stem portion. Place 2 Tbsp meat mixture at top of each leaf (or what you can fit since leaf sizes vary). Roll the leaf into a cone shape with the thicker part of the leaf at the base and stuff the wide, thinner leaves into the top. Arrange stuffed cabbage in layers in a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot.
- Small Leaves: slice off the raised surface of the tough center stem to flatten leaves for easier rolling. Fill each cabbage leaf with about 2 Tbsp meat mixture. Place the filling over the stem/ bottom portion. Roll like a burrito and stuff both ends in at the end.
Make the Sauce:
- Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in a skillet. Saute the remaining 2 grated carrots with 1 tsp of Mrs. Dash, cooking until soft. Add 1 Tbsp sour cream and 1 cup marinara sauce. Saute another minute and remove from heat.
- Pour Podliva sauce over stuffed cabbage and add enough reserved water to almost cover rolls (2 1/2 to 3 cups).
2 Ways to Cook Stuffed Cabbage:
- Oven Method: If using a dutch oven (recommended method), cover and bake at 450° F for 20-25 min in the bottom third of the oven then reduce heat to 350°F and bake for 1 hour.
- Stovetop Method: If using a heavy-bottomed pot, bring to a light boil over medium heat, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 40 min.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Natasha!
We all grew up eating tons of these. But now we are all grown up and grandma isn’t around to make them (by the truckload) anymore. So I had to hunt down recipes….
Gotta be careful, though. If you serve these to the people in my family, they will be come your loyal subjects and nag you for them all the time! LOL
Thanks for this recipe. I am very intrigued by the addition of the carrots!
LOL! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do!
Hi Natasha, you are awesome cook, I love all of your recipes, they are looking fantastic and easy to make.
Love your website 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing your great recipes
Zahra, thank you for such a sweet comment 😊. I’m so happy to hear that you are enjoying the site.
Hi
I am persian and we have a little bit different stuffed cabbage which we add greens such as parsley mint and coriander
I will try yours soon
Thank you for wonderful recipes
I hope you love it! 🙂
Is this how your mum made them? We use sour cabbages to make stuffed cabbage rolls. Just wondering if this is the norm.
Hi Lola, yes, this is the method my Mom and Mother-in-law both use. 🙂
Found you site recently – thank you!!! Easy recipes that are delicious!!!! My husband and his family are Ukrainian and learning to cook the food was trying. I made these tonight and WOW!!!! SO DELICIOUS!!!!
Welcome to the site Leah and thank you for such a nice review on the cabbage rolls. I hope you’ll find many new favorites here 😀.
Hi,Natasha, these golubsi look,good. For a pound of meat,and pound of ground meat,how much salt do we need to put?
Hi Olga, I add 1 Tbsp of salt to the meat mix (see step 3 under the meat mixture section here).
Thank you,Natasha. Just wanted to know,cause sometimes I add to much salt or not enough,for the most part,when I cook do it by eye,or in Russian на глас.
I loved these growing up but had no idea to make them. I wanted to reach through the screen and steal one out of your pot! I’ve never tried them with sour cream, yum! As soon as I invest in a grater, these are next!
I’m glad these reminded you of your childhood. I love how food holds memories 🙂 Thanks for sharing that with me!
Wow love the video tutorial on how to make stuffed cabbage gotta try totally thumbs up Natasha my mom made a similar version for the last days of suckot (feast of the tabernacle) and it brought back such nostalgia on her side of the family I’m Russian Lithuanian and polish miss em soook much also can I substitute mayo for sour cream and another tsp of oil instead of butter since I can’t mix milk and meat together keep u the great cooking and baking luv cheers
I think those substitutions would work just fine. I hope you enjoy the recipe! I love that you are able to weave the recipes into your special traditions and holidays. Thank you for sharing that with us! 🙂
Cool really brilliant that I can use another tsp of oil and mayo yup food definitely plays a role in keeping our heritage alive np my pleasure for sharing all the juicy stuff btw would they freeze well
Yes these do freeze well. We put portions into ziploc bags with some juice, squeeze out excess air and put them in the freezer.
Do you freeze these before you cook or after?
Hi Olga, if I’m freezing these, I fully cook them then put them into freezer safe ziplocs with as much liquid as possible then freeze. Thaw in the fridge and reheat on a skillet 🙂
Thank you for this recipe as well! I made this twice… I don’t make it often because it is cumbersome and takes a while but like you recommend, I do freeze these. My mom doesn’t generally like to cook but loves Russian food, so she loves to eat these when I make them. 🙂
I also love that it has a make-ahead option. We make the full pot and freeze some for later 😉
Hi Natasha, I enjoy your receipe blogs. I’ve made many of these Ukrainian recipes since my mom taught me. I’m 1st generation American Ukrainian. We call them “holubtsi”. My variation is more fattening LOL. I do up the cabbage in boiling water but I don’t discard the outer leaves unless they are super green or in bad shape. I take off the rib off each leaf and save them as a filler for my “kapystnyak” or ” sour” soup. I saute lots of onion using chopped fat back (I usually make over 140 at one time) and I add barley and wild rice and a mixture of pork, beef & veal (I’ve been skipping the veal lately)with some white rice and spices. I layer my cabbage with either stewed tomatoes or sometimes saurkraut instead. I also like to eat them with “smetana”. I cook mine in a pressure cooker and it cuts the time in half.
I really enjoy your recipes.
Your version sounds wonderful and I love the idea of putting them in a pressure cooker to save time! One day I’ll invest in one of those 😉
Natashi,
This was a weekly staple in our home. I am first generation Ukrainian and had these all the time. However, my mom and grandmother didn’t put in carrots. Do you happen to have a recipe for Borscht or perogie’s? What about kapusta soup? Borsht? Just love it all!
Donna, I have four recipes for borscht, click here for perogies and here for kapusta soup. Give them a try, you won’t be disappointed ?.
What is the name for these in Ukranian? My great grandmother used to make these… and she emigrated to the US from the Ukraine in 1911… and this recipe reminds me so much of her! Thank you for the good memory!
Karin, these are called “golubtsi”. I’m very happy to hear that this recipe brought some good memories for you :).
Hi Natasha, thank you for the awesome recipe and rolling technique. I am a 67 year old cook not Ukranian but love great food so thanks and my family thanks you as well. I will share your Mom’s recipe and give you all the credit.
Pat
Do you have recommendation for reheating cooked meat on a stick and keep it moist.
Hi Pat! Welcome to my blog :). Thank you so much for sharing! Is your meat on wooden skewers? You might brush with butter or oil, wrap in foil and put them on the grill or in the oven. Don’t microwave as that dries out meat. You can also sautee over low heat just until warmed through.
LOVE LOVE LOVE Cabbage rolls…..I grew up on them and when I do make them I use 4 or 5 cabbages….and bake in a huge pan and then hand them out to my brother’s families…..and the rest for me. They are my all time favorite food.
That’s so generous of you! Keep in mind you can also freeze some after they are cooked and cooled by placing them in ziploc bags in single layers. Then thaw and sautee to reheat. They are just as good as fresh.
Hi.Really enjoyed the video!Grew up on this kind of cooking.My Dad always made them on weekends.For the liquid ingredients: a large tin of tomato juice and the rice stuffing had salt ,pepper, paprika,butter,ground pork and beef mixture.After slow baking when done they would be topped with melted butter(sometimes with chopped fried bacon or sauted garlic)Being vegetarian I make a meatless version that is still quite yummy.
Ow wow the way you just described your Dad’s made me so hungry!
Can you use ground turkey instead of pork, my husband can’t have pork or beef?
I think that would work fine. Pork is a juicier meat but it will still taste great with turkey.
how is this ukrainian/russian? it’s an armenian dolma.
It is how our Ukrainian family makes them and every family makes them slightly differently. What you are referring to is different. Dolmas are usually made with grape leaves.
Natasha,
This is my first time reading your blog and it is so exciting that someone from Ukraine (like myself) have a good blog and they share Ukrainian and Russian recepies. I’ve always wanted to start cooking Ukrainian food but I never had luck finding good recepies. Now these look almost identical to what my mom and my grandma makes. Keep on doing a great job!
Anna, welcome to the site 😀. I hope you’ll find lots of new favorites.
I also grew up eating them…. yummm… but my mom always served them with boiled potatoes and also cut up the very small leaves to serve on the side.
Also, you can avoid the ‘bubbly gut’ by adding caraway seeds to anything with cabbage.
Now, when I make them, I use Savoy cabbage. I don’t really know why, just like it better.
Lol the bubbly gut. I had no idea caraway seeds help with that! Thank you for sharing! Do you use ground caraway seed or do you add them whole to the liquid? Someone else mentioned savoy cabbage as well. Do you pre-cook the leaves with savoy or skip that step? Thanks Heike!
Hi Natasha,
Just another comment on prepping the cabbage. In fall when the cabbage is in season I purchase around 10-12 heads of cabbage. I then core them as you did and put each one in a plastic bag and then freeze them. Defrost the cabbage when ready to use. Once defrosted the cabbage is so soft rolling is a breeze.
Gloria, what a great idea, thank you for sharing your tip 😀.
Hello darling,
I am planning to make these tonight! Just a few questions.. I see that you do not add onion anywhere in the meat or zazharka. I know usually adding onions make the mean taste better, does it taste very different not adding the onion? And also about the vinegar, what is the purpose of adding it to the water when cooking the cabbage? Does it make the cabbage more sour?
Thank you
Hi Karina, Sorry I couldn’t get to your comment sooner. We don’t usually add onion but you could if you wanted to. I don’t think it would hurt. The vinegar keeps the cabbage from becoming mushy after baking/cooking.