Vegetarian Cabbage Rolls Recipe
With savory seasonings and slow-baked in tomato sauce, these vegetarian cabbage rolls are better than the classic recipe!
Servings 8
Calories 287kcal
Ingredients
- 1 head green cabbage
- 2 tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup long-grain white rice
- 3 cups tofu ground beef crumbles or other plant-based crumbles
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt divided, plus more to taste
- 1 ¼ teaspoon black pepper divided, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes not drained
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 10.5 ounce can tomato soup
Instructions
- Prepare the cabbage. Remove the outer leaves, trim off the stem, and remove the core.
- Bring a large soup pot of water to a boil over high heat. Very carefully add the cabbage, and cook for and boil the full head for 2 minutes. Using tongs, carefully remove the outer leaves from the cabbage, placing the leaves on a cutting board or paper towel-lined plate. Cook for another 2 minutes, or until the next layer of leaves softens. Repeat the process, removing leaves and boiling, until all the full-sized leaves are removed.
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté for 15-20 minutes or until golden and starting to caramelize. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute. Carefully transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl.
- While the onions cook, bring 3 cups of water to a boil over high heat in a medium saucepan. Add the long-grain rice and simmer over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Drain, rinse, and add the rice to the mixing bowl with the onion mixture.
- Add the ground plant-based beef crumbles, parsley, dill, paprika, onion powder, soy sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, sugar, lemon juice, diced tomatoes, and ½ cup of the tomato sauce to the rice and onion mixture. Stir until well combined.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Lay a cabbage leaf flat on your work surface. Depending on its size, place ⅓ to ⅔ cup of the rice filling near the rib end of the leaf. Fold up the bottom, then the sides in and roll the base up over the filling to form a rectangular package. Continue filling until all is used.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining tomato sauce, tomato soup, ½ teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of black pepper until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then spoon ½ cup of it into an 8x13-inch baking dish, spreading it out to coat the bottom.
- Gently place the cabbage rolls seam-side down in the prepared baking dish. Pour the remaining tomato sauce over the cabbage and cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 60-75 minutes or until tender.
- Let the rolls rest at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before serving. Enjoy hot!
Notes
- Boiling the cabbage: When boiling the cabbage, test the leaves. If they seem stiff, don’t try to peel them, but place them back into the water for a minute. Peel the leaves only when they’ve softened slightly. This makes them easy to work with but not mushy.
- Filling the cabbage: The amount of stuffing mixture you use will depend on how big the cabbage leaf is. Take care not to overstuff, or they fall apart.
- Coating the pan: Coat the bottom of your baking pan so that the cabbage rolls don’t stick. Since they’re cooked seam side down, if they stick to the bottom, they’re torn as you remove them.
Nutrition
Calories: 287kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 974mg | Potassium: 739mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 681IU | Vitamin C: 58mg | Calcium: 209mg | Iron: 3mg
