Pennsylvania Dutch Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 319kcal
These Pennsylvania Dutch Stuffed Cabbage Rolls have become a staple in our home, especially when the weather turns chilly. These are not hard to make, and just so hearty and bursting with flavor. You'll feel like you're eating grandma's special dinner. So good! Straight out of Amish country!
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Ingredients
- Kosher salt to taste
- 1 large green cabbage cored
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 medium onions 1 thinly sliced, 1 finely chopped
- 2 ribs celery chopped
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 28 oz can whole tomatoes San Marzano are good, in juice
- 1 lb ground beef chuck 85% lean
- ½ cup white rice cooked
- 3 tbsp beef stock
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
- Add cabbage and cook, pulling off each outer leaf with tongs as it becomes tender, about 1 to 2 minutes per leaf.
- Transfer leaves to a baking sheet and continue until you have 15 to 20 leaves.
- Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Add sliced onions and celery, season with a healthy pinch of salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until lightly caramelized, about 15 minutes.
- Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until lightly caramelized further, about 2 minutes.
- Add honey, lemon juice, and tomatoes and bring to a boil (crush the tomatoes with your hands over the sauce, and then drop them in. Also add the juice from the can).
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, partially covered, until reduced, about 15 minutes.
- Heat oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, combine the remaining chopped onion, beef, rice, stock, paprika, cayenne, egg, pinch of salt and pepper.
- Place 2 tablespoons beef mixture in center of each cabbage leaf, fold sides inward, and then roll up.
- Transfer rolls, seam side down, to a 9" x 13" baking dish.
- Pour tomato sauce over rolls and bake until filling is cooked through, 50 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Serve, passing extra sauce at the table.
Video
Notes
Don't worry about removing the entire core of the cabbage. You want the cabbage to still be intact once added to the boiling water.
Be very careful lowering the cabbage into the boiling water. Preferably use heat-resistant gloves. Or, find an extra pair of hands and a couple of large tongs to gently lower the cabbage head into the boiling water. As an alternative, you can place the cabbage in the pot of water, and then bring to a boil. Either way is perfectly acceptable.
As you removed the cabbage leaves from the cooking cabbage, place them on a couple large baking sheets until ready to use.
Be sure to leave some of the sauce for serving the final dish. We like to ladle about a 1/2 cup of sauce on each plate, and then topping it with a couple cabbage rolls.
After baking, there will quite a bit of liquid in the dish. Let the dish rest for about 8 minutes, and the liquid will re-distribute.
The dish can be assembled up to several hours before baking.
The cooked rolls will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week. Although the dish is best served fresh, you can freeze up to 2 months before baking. Reheat in the oven for 30 minutes, or until heated through and bubbly.
Nutrition
Calories: 319kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 162mg | Potassium: 612mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 510IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 2mg