I made a soup with similar ingredients to this many moons ago with a mile-long ingredients list, so this time around I decided to simplify it a bit more plus turn it into a casserole. As much as I love soup, sometimes I crave a bit more heft in the bite.
I ALMOST made this inedible, as I had the Hungarian sweet paprika and cayenne pepper sitting side by side in identical containers during prep. I actually poured ONE TABLESPOON of cayenne pepper on top of the tomatoes, but praise be I immediately noticed my mistake and was able to scoop most of it out before stirring it in. The end result was still a tad spicier than I intended, but overall a great comforting meal for a cold night. It sure warmed my husband up, lol! And even though this is over an hour in the oven, I guarantee this is way less time than the traditional stuffed method!
Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Casserole
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground beef, pork, or turkey (I used half beef/half pork)
1 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Ground black pepper and salt, to taste
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 8-ounce can no-salt tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons rice wine or white vinegar
1/2 cup white rice, uncooked
1 3/4 cups homemade or low sodium beef broth
1 small head cabbage (about 1 pound), quartered and sliced thin
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a skillet, brown the ground ground meat and chopped onions in the olive oil over medium heat until meat is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook a minute or two more. Drain the grease, if any. Grind a bunch of black pepper over it and add salt, to taste. Set aside.
In a bowl, mix in the next 7 ingredients (diced tomatoes through the rice).
Lightly spray an 8 x 8 casserole dish with oil, then layer half the cabbage on the bottom.
Top with half the ground meat mixture, then half the tomato sauce mixture. Repeat. Last, pour the beef broth over all.
Cover dish tightly with foil, and cook in oven for 1 hour 15 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle cheese over top and broil for just a few minutes to melt cheese. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes, then serve.
p.s. We had to say goodbye to our beloved Hannah Banana last week. Our rescue dog of 14 years is deeply missed.
This looks delicious!
I’m sorry about Hannah……..she was beautiful. Hang in there.
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Thank you so very much!
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I had some doubts about cabbage roll casserole, from the title title, but your pictures have more than convinced me. It looks delicious!
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Thank you it was quite good actually!
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It looks great – I may cook it myself.
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I love casseroles like this and often will freeze individual portions to have when I need them. What a mistake that would have been had you used all that cayenne! Sorry for the loss of a member of your family. Always hard to say goodbye…
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Thank you Judi, our furkids really are family. xo
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I’m sorry for the loss of your beloved Hannah.
I’ve made stuffed pepper soup but never any type of cabbage rolls, not even the soup version. It looks delicious.
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Thank you so very much, we do miss her so much. You should try this, especially since cabbages seem to be one of the more affordable veggies these days. 🙂
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I never buy whole cabbages as I’m not overly fond of them and shopping for one. I just buy the bagged coleslaw mix, alternating 2 purchases of the bagged trio of romaine hearts to one purchase of the coleslaw mix … to switch my salads up. 🙂
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Ahh yes, bagged coleslaw is genius!!
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So convenient. I was tempted to buy a bag today and a pkg of wonton wrappers and make pork and shrimp potstickers. But I’m trying to stick to my monthly consumables spending budget.
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Oh, so sorry to hear about Hannah. She has such a serene face in those pictures. It’s so sad to lose those companions who bring so much unconditional love to our lives.
The casserole looks good, Kathryn. I like cabbage… but not too spicy! That sounds like a cooking mistake I would make and never notice. 🙂 My best to you and your family. Lots of comfort food as you miss your four-legged friend. ❤
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Thank you so much Diana, we do miss her companionship so much. Now as for spicy, just a quarter teaspoon is all it really calls for, NOT a tablespoon, lol!
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I’m gonna try this for sure. Love cabbage! I’m so sorry to hear about Hannah Banana – she looks like a real love, and I know you have a hole in your heart. It’s so hard when our beloved companions pass.
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Thank you so much, it certainly is. And I do hope you get to make this! xo
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First – so sorry for the loss of your sweet Hannah Banana! 😦 14 years! Oh the heartache you must be feeling. My heart aches for you!
Unstuffed Cabbage Casserole – this might just be on a menu for this week as I just brought home a head of cabbage and wondered what I’d do with it. Haven’t had this in a while. And would love to try your version!
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Thank you so much Jodi, she was a special part of our lives. The head of cabbage I bought was just over a pound, since there is just two of us now with daughter off to college, and it still made a ton! I do hope you get to make it!
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So sorry to hear about your loss. Hannah looks so sweet and innocent in the pictures. That casserole appears very hearty and delicious. Thanks for this recipe. It’s such a great idea to use up the cabbage lying in my fridge. 🙂
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Thank you so much Neha, she was a very sweet dog. And yes, great use for that cabbage lying around!
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“Unstuffed cabbage” – such a funny title. Good save on the cayenne! 🙂
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Ha, thanks Ronit!
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Looks nice and tasty……..hope to taste it 🙂
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Thank you!!
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What a great idea 👍🏻👍🏻☺
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Yes, thank you!
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I’m so sorry about the loss of your sweet dog. 😔
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Awww, thank you so much Josette. xo
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Casserole version sounds yummy! But I’m sad to hear about Hannah.
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Thank you Mary, it’s hard to lose a furkid.
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So sorry for your loss. Our pets are part of our family and you provided such a loving home for Hannah for 14 years. Prayers with all of you.
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Thank you so much Michelle, she was a wonderful part of our lives and are glad we rescued her from her horrible situation. xo
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It is so hard to lose a family pet. I am so sorry.
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What an excellent alternative to rolling a cabbage leaf. This makes is so much easier to enjoy the dish. Thanks for the time-saving alternative!
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You are most welcome Karina, thank you!
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I am sorry to hear about your beloved dog. That is a quite a number of years to have Hannah Banana in your life (more than some marriages).
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Thank you, she was such a sweetie to have in our lives. xoxo
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I LOVE cabbage rolls but less so the work involved! Your unstuffed version looks yummy and definitely less time consuming! So sorry to hear about your dog Kathryn…😔 such a beautiful sweet dog!
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Thank you so much Marissa, it’s definitely a time-saver. Yes, Hannah was a sweet-heart. xo
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I love all of the ingredients so I’m sure this is delicious! I hate when that happens with spices!!
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Thank you Mimi, I do have to pay more attention to those matching (yet very nice) spice bottles!
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So sorry for your loss of Hanna Banana, Kathryn. Our fur babies are part of our families, so this must be hard for you all. Hang in there and thinking of you all. x
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Thank you so very much Lynne. xo
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Awww. So sorry to hear about Hannah Banana. They really so leave footprints on our hearts. 😦 We love unstuffed cabbage too. It happened by accident for me though because I had been making stuffed cabbage rolls and stuffed bell pepper and notices that nobody was eating the outer cabbage OR the bell pepper, they were just de-stuffing them and eating the filling (rrrrrrrr). Looks fabuloso!!!!
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Thank you so much Gina, Hannah was such a sweetheart. xoxo
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Hi Kathryn! You beat me to this recipe. I have been wanting to try a similar recipe for some time. I love that it takes a lot of the prep work out of stuffed cabbage rolls. It looks delicious! I’m sorry to hear about your dog. Losing a pet is like losing a family member. 😦
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Ahhh, thanks so much Debbie, she was a great part of our lives. As for the recipe, just go make it!! The leftovers taste even better!
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I was enjoying the read until I got to Hannah Banana. My heart goes out to you. The hounds have a way of working their way into your heart and becoming a real part of the family. So sad when they go.
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Thank you so much Conor, we miss her loving and goofy presence so much in our lives. xoxo
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It makes sense not to stuff the cabbage leaves: a lot less work and the taste will be the same. I think the tricky part in this recipe is to get the amount of liquid right. Good catch on the cayenne. It helps that I keep my spices in somewhat of an alphabetical order, as C and P are pretty far apart 😉 I think this would also be great with caraway seeds instead of the paprika and cayenne. Sorry about Hannah.
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Thank you so much Stefan about Hannah, we do miss her. I’m sure caraway for a more traditional taste, except that is one spice I can’t tolerate. Good idea to alphabetize the spices, I’m not that organized!
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I feel with you, it’s always hard to say goodbye! What an adorable dog!
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Thank you so much Cecilia, we do miss her lovely presence.
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Oh Kathryn, I’m so very sorry about your fur baby… Maybe it makes me a bad person, but it hurts me worse when an animal passes than a human. Sending you the biggest hug in the world.
The dish sounds great. I always enjoy your step by step photos. Well done. Hugs.
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Thank you so much Teagan, our furkids mean as much to us as any human. xoxoxo
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Oh, sweetie – I’m so sorry to hear about Hannah. What a shame. My heart goes out to you guys. I’m afraid I can identify with what Tiegan says…at least in the case of natural death and a full life. Animals are so innocent and we have to make all decisions for them…I think it can make it harder to have such responsibility, to never know what they’re going through. It’s a heavy burden. I wish I could give you a big hug.
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This morning I got up and made a pot of Sausage, Potato & Cabbage soup. I so wish I could undo it and make this instead!! It looks so good, and I’ve been wanting to make this for a long time, but it slipped my mind until I saw this!
About 14″ of snow the other day – roads are clear but I’m still not shoveled out, so no plans to go anywhere, let alone out for a cabbage, lol!
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Your soup sounds good too, though! Still waiting on winter here, not one snowfall yet. And to think we were under 3 feet of it this time last year…
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Awww thank you so very much Mollie! I would take that hug in a heartbeat! xoxo
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So sorry KR!
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Thanks dear. xoxo
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A very yummy casserole! So glad you noticed the pepper!
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Ha, me too!
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The casserole looks wonderful. I’d like to extend my condolences. It’s hard when a pet passes.
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Thank you so much Sheryl, that is so true. xo
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We must have had the same cravings…wait till you see what I’m posting next. 😀 So very sorry about the loss of your sweet Hannah.
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Oooh looking forward to it. Thanks Karen, on both counts. xo
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