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Bonjour my friends, I’m Frankie and welcome to Club Foody!
Most of us grew up eating certain foods like Meatloaf, Roast Beef, Shepherd’s Pie, Spaghetti
and so on. There was one dish that both David and I weren’t too crazy about and when we started
living together, we decided to try making a better version than our parents. I’m glad we did…
In today’s episode, I’ll show you how to make our Stuffed Cabbage Rolls! Most recipes out there
lack flavor and the results are bland. Ours, on the other hand, is the opposite;
the rolls are flavorful and so delicious along with a well-seasoned tomato sauce.
This recipe will certainly become a family favorite! So my friends, let’s get cooking!
Here’s a nice green cabbage and it’s about 3 lbs. – it’s a nice decent size. So the first thing we
have to do is to remove the core by using a paring knife – it’s not obvious but certainly feasible –
and of course, we’ll discard it. We’ll now add the head of cabbage to a pot of boiling water,
cover, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, we’ll start making the sauce.
In a large bowl, we’ll add a can of whole tomatoes and the kind I use is San Marzano, mmm… I love
them. Now with our clean hand, we’ll gently crush them. As you see, the bowl is sitting in the sink
because although I’m careful, it can still make a mess and besides the dishes, I don’t want to start
cleaning the walls. When we’re done, we’ll set them aside. In a large pot over medium heat, we’ll
add oil and when it gets hot, we’ll add onions and season with some ground sea salt. We’ll sauté them
for about 3 minutes before adding pressed garlic and like always, we’ll sauté it for only 1 minute.
To this, we’ll add tomato paste and if you want to salvage the rest of the can, click on
the top right corner of your screen to get this great tip. I know it’s cheap but why waste it?
So we’ll stir to coat and then we’ll add our crushed tomatoes, some balsamic vinegar,
oh my I almost forgot… tomato sauce followed by my homemade Italian seasoning
which you can click on the link in the top right corner and a generous tablespoon of brown sugar.
We’ll stir until the ingredients are well combined and then taste and adjust if necessary just to
check on the acidity – perhaps you want to add more sugar like I did with mine. We’ll also add
some freshly ground black pepper and parsley… it’s good for us! Of course, we’ll stir. It’s
not a complicated sauce in terms of flavor but it’s certainly tastier than a plain tomato one.
We’ll cover so it doesn’t splash everywhere and turn the heat to medium-high. As soon as it starts
bubbling, we’ll reduce to medium-low and let it simmer gently for 20 minutes. When
the sauce stops erupting like a volcano, we’ll uncover and let it cook for the remaining time.
Now back to our cabbage… After 10 minutes, we’ll carefully remove it from the water
and transfer to a baking sheet – yes, I’m using turkey lifters… it works like a charm!
We’ll peel off the leaves using tongs and transfer them to another baking sheet
lined with paper towels to absorb any excess water. Now let’s make the filling… Here
we have 1 ½ lbs. of lean ground beef and to this, we’ll add hot Italian sausage without their
casings – I have an amazing homemade recipe so click on the link to get it – then yellow onions,
a large pressed garlic, some seasoned Panko breadcrumbs followed by uncooked rice, about
1 ½ tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley, then some ground sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
With our clean hands because it works better that way but hey, use gloves if you want,
we’ll mix until evenly distributed. Next, in a large 5-quart baking dish lightly greased,
we’ll spoon about 1 ½ cups of our tomato sauce just enough to cover the bottom and
set aside. Now let’s make the rolls… Using a paring knife, we’ll remove this part from each
leaf which is the thick center stem and discard it – this will make it easier to roll, okay.
From here, depending on the size of the leaf, we’ll take a good amount of
the meat mixture and place it at the base roughly forming it into an oblong shape.
Then we’ll take one side and fold it over before doing the same with the other side.
Then we’ll tuck in the sides and roll it up to the end. Voilà, here’s how to roll the
stuffed cabbage – easy, right! When they’re all rolled, we’ll place them in the prepared baking
dish seam side down so the filling doesn’t escape during cooking. Next, we’ll spoon the rest of the
tomato sauce over the stuffed cabbage covering them as much as we can so they don’t dry out.
We’ll sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese before covering the baking dish with foil.
We’ll transfer them to a 350ºF preheated oven and bake for 1 hour or until the meat and rice are
cooked. We’ll remove from the heat and look at them… do they look delicious or what?
We’ll now sprinkle on the remaining ½ tablespoon of chopped parsley and serve immediately.
And my friends, these are our Stuffed Cabbage Rolls! This isn’t your Grandma’s recipe. Tender,
moist and flavorful, these are a tasty Eastern European comfort food to enjoy this season.
They’re delicious, easy to make and freeze well too.
I hope you give it a try soon and be sure to visit clubfoody.com for ingredient amounts, directions
and more info… Until next time my friends, bon appétit!
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