Unstuffed Cabbage Casserole doesn't take even the half time of cabbage rolls but it is as scrumptious. It is easily made with rice and ground beef, so makes a wonderful main dish. Who bothers stuffing cabbage leaves when you can make equally delicious unstuffed cabbage rolls with the same ingredients in a much shorter time?
This is a lazy mom’s recipe, I know. But isn't it great that it tastes pretty much like your favorite Turkish cabbage rolls? And if you are in the mood for a soup, check out our unstuffed cabbage soup too!
Can you imagine that you will have the same taste as regular cabbage rolls by spending just half of the time? This cabbage casserole recipe is definitely for those who are looking for the easiest and quickest way of making delicate dishes.
Cabbage rolls require a lot of effort and time and it is better when we find a shortcut. Hey, I have a shortcut for that laborious dish. Use the same ingredients but change the form! Deconstruct the rolls and serve in the form of unstuffed cabbage rolls.
How To Make
This cabbage roll casserole recipe is one of the best shortcuts in my culinary experience. It has three parts.
First, blanch the cabbage leaves. Bring a deep pot full of water to boil and leave the roughly chopped cabbage leaves in it carefully. It takes about ten minutes for the chopped cabbage to soften. Transfer them in a bowl using a slotted spoon.
Second, cook the ingredients in a pan starting with ground beef. Cook it with a little water. Water helps the ground beef to release juice, which makes it easier to get rid of any blocks. Stir and gently press over the ground beef until there aren't any blocks left. Watch the video below to see how.
Cook it covered over medium low heat for about 10 minutes. When there is little water left, add in olive oil, chopped onion and garlic. Give it a good stir. Then add in tomato paste, tomatoes, rice and the spices except cayenne pepper, stirring each time you add one. Add in the blanched cabbage, lemon juice, parsley and water. Cook covered over the lowest heat until water is absorbed and rice is tender.
Third, bake it in a casserole pan. But before doing it, add some cayenne pepper and extra tomato paste to the pan, stir well and then transfer everything into a casserole pan.
Tips
- Optionally, you can just skip the baking step if you don't have enough time for it. Serve it after everything in the pan is cooked over the stove.
- As seen in the video below, I add extra tomato paste after everything in the pan is cooked, just before transferring it into the casserole pan. It bakes better when there is some wetness in the mixture as some of you suggested in the comments below.
- No need for any toppings on this cabbage casserole with ground beef and rice as I want exactly the same taste of my favorite cabbage rolls, but you can top your casserole with some cheese if you like.
- When updating the recipe, I made some changes with the help of your suggestions in the comments and emails. The former recipe before the update calls for cooked rice, which requires cooking rice in a separate pan before combining it with other ingredients. Some readers suggested cooking it in the same pan with other ingredients so that everything cooks together and it requires less effort. Such a wonderful and helpful suggestion! Thank YOU! That's why, I cooked everything together in this updated version. There is one thing you need to be careful though: Add enough water to cook the rice. ¾ cup water for 1 cup rice was enough for me. Other ingredients like tomatoes, lemon juice and cabbage helped it cook as well.
With Instant Rice
You can definitely use instant rice to make this recipe even easier and quicker. You don't need to worry about how much water you will need. Also, you can easily decide how much rice you'd like in your meal. Add some, give it a stir and add more if you think it's not enough. Unlike uncooked rice, the amount of rice will not double as it's pre-cooked.
Without Rice
It is possible to make this recipe either with or without rice. If you are on a diet or want to reduce the carb in your meal, make it without rice. I've tried it and it's as tasty and filling as beef and cabbage stew, so I'm sure you will be satisfied with it as well. There is no need to add water in the pan if you decide to leave the rice out.
With Quinoa
Yes, you can. If you are a fan of quinoa, feel free to substitute quinoa for rice. Make sure you add enough water when cooking it though. ¾ cup water for ½ cup quinoa should be fine. Also, simmer it over the lowest heat to give it enough time to cook.
Vegetarian Version
If you want a lighter version, leave the ground beef out and make it vegetarian. I love both versions. Making it meatless is better when serving it as a side dish. To make it even tastier, drizzle extra olive oil and lemon juice on it when serving. One of our readers suggested some cheese topping when baking, so I think it's a great idea when you turn it into a vegetarian dinner.
What To Serve With
The best thing to serve with this casserole recipe is a bowl of plain yogurt or Turkish ezme. I love it really tangy, so I squeeze extra lemon on my part when eating as you can see in the video.
We love to pair it with our homemade dinner rolls too.
As this casserole recipe is a perfect main course you can make for your family, serve their favorite sides or salads with it.
How To Freeze
This is a freezer-friendly recipe. You can freeze it either after it is cooked over the stove or after it is baked. Just make sure it cools completely before freezing. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven when you need a quick meal.
THANK YOU all for helping me develop the recipes on the blog. This is what I love most about blogging! I'm still open to new ideas on this recipe. Please share them in the comments section if you have any!
If you like this cabbage recipe, you should check Cabbage and Noodles from Spicy Southern Kitchen and Asian Beef and Cabbage Salad from Taste and Tell Blog too.
FAQs
You don’t need to wash the inside of a cabbage head, especially when it is tight. Just remove the outer leaves and wash the head under water. On the other hand, some types of cabbage consist of really loose leaves, so there might be dirt between the leaves. It is better to remove the leaves from the stem and wash them.
Remove the leaves that cover the outer part of the cabbage head. Wash it under water, not removing the other leaves. First, cut it into two and then depending on the size of the cabbage head, cut each half into two or four quarters. Next, chop them roughly for this recipe. You need to chop them thinly when making salads like coleslaw.
It is a very easy step that helps the cabbage leaves cook faster. Bring a pot of water to boil and throw the leaves into it. Cook them for 5-10 minutes in the simmering water. The duration might differ depending on the thickness of the leaves. If they are too thick, cook them for 10 minutes and if they are thin, cook them less. Then transfer the leaves into a bowl using a slotted spoon.
Yes, you can. When you end up with a large amount of shredded cabbage, freezing it for a later use is a great solution. Put it in freezer bags in portions, seal them and keep in the freezer.
Yes, you can.You can cook chopped or shredded cabbage and keep it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 1-2 days.
Well, cabbage is such a versatile vegetable that can go well with any meat. Our choice is almost always ground beef, but it is great with lamb, chicken or pork as well. You can use whichever is your favorite.
If you want to enrich your casserole with other vegetables, go ahead and add them into your pan when combining cooked cabbage with ground beef. Root vegetables like potatoes and celery would make a great addition. Also, celery, leek or spinach would work fine as well.
Other Cabbage Recipes
- Cheesy Cabbage Casserole
- Low Calorie Cabbage Soup
- Cabbage Stew
- Quick Pickled Cabbage
- Greek Yogurt Coleslaw
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📖 Recipe
Unstuffed Cabbage Casserole
Video
INGREDIENTS
- 2 pounds cabbage roughly chopped
- 1 pound ground beef
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2½ tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup tomatoes diced
- 1 cup rice washed and rinsed well
- 1½ salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried mint
- 1 lemon squeezed
- ¼ cup parsley chopped
- ¾ cup water
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Chop the cabbage roughly and blanch in boiling water, for about 5-10 minutes.
- Heat a pan on medium heat and add ground beef with ¼ cup water. Cook until it releases water, reduce the heat. Cook it stirring and pressing on the ground beef until there aren't any blocks left. (See the video above.)
- Cover the pan and cook until there is little water left.
- Add olive oil, onion, garlic and cook stirring for 5-10 minutes.
- Add in 2 tablespoons tomato paste and ½ cup chopped tomatoes. Stir well.
- Add in rice and stir.
- Season with salt, black pepper and dried mint.
- Add in the chopped and blanched cabbage in the pan. Pour lemon juice over it. Stir well.
- Add chopped parsley on it, pour ¾ cup water and cover the pan. Cook it over the lowest heat until water is absorbed and rice is cooked, for 15-20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Add cayenne pepper and add the remaining ½ tablespoon tomato paste into the pan, stir and transfer it to a casserole pan that is lightly brushed with oil.
- Bake for 40 minutes.
NOTES
NUTRITION
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Lynn says
This sounds like a good idea - the casserole-style approach will also make freezing leftovers easier. My only complaints are that you listed the prep time as 10 minutes and total time as 50; and that you reference "1 dish". Yet reading through your recipe, it's clearly well more than 10 minutes of active time, and over an hour total. If I had just read the top, I would not have left anywhere near enough time to make this. And it's not one dish (even just for cooking) - there's the pot, the pan, and the casserole dish.
Genna says
I made this recipe exactly as indicated. Well, almost--I had to add some water and cook a little longer to get the rice fully cooked (I used white rice). Next time I will use only 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne--I thought a whole teaspoon added too much spice. I tasted it before adding the cayenne and the flavors were WONDERFUl, but adding so much cayenne seemed to take away from that, and is just too spicy for my palate in general. Overall I think this is a great healthy recipe, just like what I was looking for. I will definitely be adding it to my regular rotation!
Zerrin says
Thanks Genna for your feedback! I don't need that water but it might depend on the heat, rice or even the tomatoes. I mean how juicy they are matters. The spices in this recipe is totally up to you. I love it spicy, but you can easily adjust it to your taste.
Danielle says
Great taste, added some sour cream or Greek yogurt to the bowl to eat. Perfect!
Zerrin says
So happy to hear that you loved it Danielle! I love it with homemade yogurt 🙂
Alexandra says
Really wish that the type of rice was specified. There is no way that regular uncooked brown rice will be fully cooked in a 15-20min simmer. It takes 40-45min to cook it normally, let alone with all the other ingredients mixed in. After waiting 40min I really wish I used instant rice instead. What a waste 🙁
Gene Olvera says
Why are people complaining about the brown rice timing?. Brown rice always takes longer. White rice takes 20 minutes. A quick look on the package will tell you that. 🤣
Bstuck says
This is just off. Not enough water. Why cook everything twice?
Cinnamon says
I tried this dish tonight and really enjoyed it! I actually added more diced tomatoes than called for and it turned out great. I also had a huge bag of carrots in the fridge, so I added a little shredded carrot too. I like the little twang of flavor the lemon added, but i think the recipe could use more of a bite. Maybe more cayenne? It was still great all the same, just mild in flavor.
Zerrin says
Glad to hear that you love the recipe. Thanks for sharing what changes you made. Adding shredded carrot is a great idea. What I love about this casserole is that you are free to make additions or to leave something out depending on your taste.
Dilmeran Akgoze Dunham says
It seems too much cayenne,did you mean Paprika?/ I still prefer traditional Turkish rolled cabbage leaves. to me it would not be much faster to go through all those steps.. In Istanbul Ottoman Palace style cooking the meat or onions are not supposed to be sauteed, instead they are all mixed all together. I am sure your recipe will be tasty,especially to americans who does not know the real ,much more neatly presented rolled cabbage leves.
Zerrin says
Hi Dilmeran! Cabbage rolls would always be my first choice, but this unstuffed version is a nice choice when I don't have enough time or energy.
Aysegul Sanford says
What an amazing and through recipe. Such a great dish for a weeknight. Well done friends.
PS: Love the video as well.
Zerrin says
Thank you our lovely friend! Isn't it great when everything is cooked in one pot?
Kate says
I added a little more tomato sauce and it turned out delicious! My family loved it too!
Karen Bona says
Overall good, but lacks flavor. Seems bland. I did not use a full teaspoon of cayenne, as I don't like overly hot spicy dishes. But I did add salt where directed and it used Italian seasoning instead of mint (I don't use it). It just needs more flavor and the ingredients are tasty but bland to me. perhaps Salsa would improve the flavor.
Zerrin says
This is how my family and I love it. Thanks Karen for sharing your idea to improve the recipe!
Mike says
Made this tonight and we loved it - thanks for sharing the recipe. I'm definitely going to make it again. I added cheese on top just before it goes in the oven.
Zerrin says
Hi Jill, I'm sorry the recipe didn't work for you. Different types of rice might cause this. Mine cooks fine. I'll edit the post soon accordingly.
Sophie says
Hello from North Greece! Indeed our cuisine is so similar to yours I'm astonished with all your wonderful recipes and the presentation as well. Now I make this dish in winter mostly but I also add leeks, carrots and celery root.....you should give it a try. Keep creating....
Zerrin says
Hi Sophie, you're so kind! I love how similar our cuisines are. Heard a lot about awesome dishes, especially mezzes in your country. Hope to try them in their original place one day.
Adding those wonderful winter veggies in this recipe is such a genius idea! Will try it your way next time. Cheers...
Sophie says
As soon as I find time I'll send you some traditional local dishes from our region ...bye for now
Zerrin says
Awww you're so kind Sophie! Wish you a wonderful weekend!
Katie says
Great recipe! I was Google-ing cabbage recipes and found yours. The only part that took a lot longer than expected was the rice cooking. I used brown rice and it took about 40 minutes to cook and I had to turn the heat up to medium to get it moving. My 10-month old loved it, even with the cayenne pepper, ha. Great flavors. I will definitely try more of your stuff. Glad I found your blog!
Zerrin says
Hi Katie, glad to hear that you and your 10-month old loved the recipe.
Maybe it is because we're using different types of rice. I guess I need to edit the recipe and the post as several people have a similar problem.
Susan says
My husband and I really enjoyed this. Like others, I added extra diced (canned) tomatoes because I thought it needed more liquid. I also added kielbasa, which added some extra spice. Delicious!!
Zerrin says
Hi Susan! I'm so happy to hear that you both loved it! Adding extra tomatoes might be a good idea if you feel that it needs more liquid. I'm sure yours become even tastier. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us here. Best!