No summer cookout is complete without a tray of stuffed cabbages! Tender cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, seasoned ground meats, and a rich tomato sauce make this the perfect summer comfort food. Plus this freezes beautifully!
Childhood Memories
This dish, God this dish brings back so many childhood memories that I sat here for 30 minutes in a daze just remembering some of them. There was the time we were harvesting cabbages from our garden and we each got to pick a single plant that we were in charge of to take care of.
Whoever grew the biggest cabbage won. The prize was Mom would cook our favorite dessert to go with her famous stuffed cabbages. That summer I ended up winning.
This cabbage was so huge that I couldn’t lift it. I know I have a picture of me trying to hold it on my lap. I’ll dig it out to share the pic once my arm is better.
I have so many countless memories where our kitchen was soooooooooooooo hot (we didn’t have AC growing up and we only had window fans) and Mom had 3 large canning pots on the stove with boiling water.
She’d make hundreds of stuffed cabbages. I can still remember that hot cabbage smell and hot/wet air in the kitchen. Dad would use the tongs to pull out the leaves and put them in the colander and my Mom, sister, and I would each trim the stems.
How do you refer to these? Some know them as cabbage rolls. Others know them as halupki and others a golumpki. What do you call them?
Ingredients needed to make Mom’s Stuffed Cabbage rolls
Growing up as poor as we were, Mom went with what we had on hand.
- Meat – ground beef and ground pork
- cabbages from our gardens
- Tomato Soup – yes like the canned condensed stuff – soup, not sauce. Using tomato sauce made the dish a bit too “tangy” whereas tomato soup is more mellow on the palate. You want the cabbage to be the star, not the “sauce”.
- Tomato paste – as that will help thicken the juices and keep it more gravy-like
- onions/garlic/seasonings
- cooked rice
How to soften cabbage leaves
To make these, well they aren’t hard but they do take a little bit of time to make. Cabbage leaves, unlike lettuce leaves, you just can’t peel off of the head.
They are hard and if you try to peel them off they’ll crack and or tear. You don’t want that. For these, you want luxurious full leaves. Now everyone has their favorite method to remove the leaves.
Freezer method
Some folks use the freezer method where you put the cabbage head in a brown paper bag and put it in the freezer.
Then once it’s partially frozen you remove it and as it softens the leaves pull off. I don’t like that as I find freezing the leaves messes with the composition of the cabbage leaf. It makes it almost mushy and its integrity is compromised.
Boiling the head of cabbage
For mine, I go with the way Mama taught me.
- Fill a large stockpot with water and bring it to a boil.
- Then take a paring knife and remove the core.
- Carefully add the cabbage into the pot (USE TONGS and go slow!) and boil it for a few minutes checking the leaves.
- In stages, I will slowly pull off the leaves and place them in a colander to drain. Be gentle as you do not want to rip the leaves. This can take 3-10 minutes to do a whole head depending on the size of your cabbage.
How to Shape Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Growing up in Pittsburgh most of the weddings I went to as a kid were ones where the families made the food. We were poor people and hiring a caterer was unheard of plus honestly, no one could match my Mama’s cooking.
At these receptions, you had your mandatory staples – fried chicken, rigatoni, ham, potato or macaroni salad, and stuffed cabbages. Mom always was asked to make her cabbages (along with cookies for the cookie tables).
Pittsburgh weddings “require” a cookie table at receptions. Oh sure there’s a cake, but there must also be 1-2 cookie tables with copious amounts of cookies.
Anyway, let’s talk about making/shaping these cabbage rolls.
- Make sure the leaves are cool enough to touch but not cold. Cold leaves are hard to roll and they will/may tear.
- Use a paring knife to shave away the thick center stem from each leaf. Essentially you’re flattening out the leaf so that the big rind is gone BUT do not cut all the way through.
- Lay a single large leaf down with the cut side facing you.
- Add some of the meat and rice mixture to the lower third part of the leaf – think like when you make a burrito
- Fold the sides in, grab the bottom of the leaf, and roll up snugly like a burrito.
- Repeat until they are all rolled.
Chef’s Tip about using the smaller cabbage leaves
Obviously, as you pluck more leaves off of the cabbage head they will get smaller and smaller. You have 2 choices here:
- When the leaves are small, place 2 leaves side by side but overlapping to create one larger leaf. Stuff and roll up like a larger stuffed cabbage. Or,
- Place them in the pans with the stuffed cabbage rolls as extra cabbage.
Tomato Soup?
This is how the Slovak side of my family has been making it for generations. If you want something else, go for it. That’s not this recipe and I have yet to find another recipe as amazing as this one.
But with the tomato soup, it’s the traditional can of condensed tomato soup. No, you do NOT dilute it or mix it with water when you add it.
Cabbage has a high water content so as it cooks down, that water will combine with the thick condensed and help thin it out. Using the tomato paste will keep from making the ‘sauce’ from getting too thin. You should have a gravy that coats the stuffed cabbages rather than well, spoons of watery soup.
Cooking Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbages
One thing to keep in mind when making these is that they will need to cook for a few hours for the cabbage to get super tender. You don’t want the cabbage to have firmness or bite. You want to be able to pretty much cut it with a fork.
But back to these cabbages…
These to me mean summer. Gardens are growing, families are having cookouts and kitchens are full of people making these.
As I was saying earlier, there were at least 4 of us making these as it was a job. Often my Mom’s best friend (and neighbor) would come over and help us. Often they’d split the bounty and ingredients.
Mom would make the rice, cabbage, and other stuff while Mrs. H. would bring the ground meat(s).
Making Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbages Keto-Friendly or Gluten-Free
Oh, rice – I love you but I hate you at times. This is where you do have some liberties.
Some easy substitutes could be:
- Cooked Quinoa
- Cauliflower Rice (raw)
What other meats can you use in these stuffed cabbage rolls?
Mom used a meat mixture that was all ground beef or a mixture of ground beef and pork. I tend to personally like the addition of the ground pork as it gives the dish a bit more richness to it however you can totally go with all ground beef if you wish.
If you want a lighter variation of this you can substitute ground turkey or ground chicken.
One thing to keep in mind about meat substitutions
Ground turkey or chicken is very lean thus little fat. You will need to add in some fat in it (add some ground dark meat) to the mix to avoid it from drying out.
How to Freeze Mom’s Classic Stuffed Shells
I make mine the way Mom did – a big batch at once so I have enough for a meal and plenty for the freezer. When cabbage is in season, it’s the perfect time to fill up that freezer for winter meals.
Roll, Bake, and Freeze
- This is the method all of the prior generations on my Mom’s side did and how I do it. Once the stuffed cabbages are done baking, allow them to cool completely.
- In a freezer-safe container, add a layer of tomato soup on the bottom. Place a layer of cabbage rolls, and another layer of tomato soup and then place the lid on.
- Double-wrap the container in plastic wrap then foil. Again, this is what Mom did.
- Place in the freezer for up to 6 months.
When it comes to the containers I use I use one of two items:
- Stackable, BPA-free freezer containers like these
- Freezer-to-Oven glass containers like these
How to reheat Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
As I mentioned, when fresh cabbage is in season, I make a big tray like this just for the two of us but half of them I freeze.
To reheat, I’ll take one of the containers out of the freezer and allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight.
When I’m ready to reheat I’ll do the following:
Stored in a Freezer-to-Oven container
- Remove the foil and the plastic wrap.
- Bring the container to room temperature (typically while the oven is heating up). Just make sure the dish is not cold when you put it in the oven else it could crack.
- Preheat the oven to 350F, and rack in the middle.
- Cover the dish tightly with foil.
- Place the room-temp container on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any overflow.
- Bake for 350F or until the centers are hot.
Stored in a non-ovenproof container
- Remove the foil and the plastic wrap.
- Transfer the stuffed cabbages to a lightly sprayed baking dish.
- Add in some tomato soup on the bottom, place in the cabbage rolls, and top with a little more tomato soup.
- Preheat the oven to 350F, and rack in the middle.
- Cover the dish tightly with foil.
- Place the room-temp container on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any overflow.
- Bake for 350F or until the centers are hot.
What to serve with Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
In my world only 2 things go absolutely PERFECT with these:
- The BEST Mashed Potatoes (creamy or chunky)
- Homemade bread
What else goes well with this?
What do you serve with it?
Slow Cooker Instructions
You can absolutely make these in the slow cooker if you do not want to heat up your house by turning on the oven.
- Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray. Follow the instructions below how explain to you how to add them to the pan in layers.
- Add in soup, a row of stuffed cabbage rolls, some of the smaller leaves, and repeat – soup, cabbage, leaves ending with the last of the tomato soup.
- Cover with the lid and cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours.
Mom’s Classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 4 hours
- Total Time: 4 1/2 hours
- Category: Stuffed
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Comfort food
No summer cookout is complete without a tray of stuffed cabbages! Tender cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, seasoned ground meats and a rich tomato sauce make this the perfect summer comfort food. Plus these freeze beautifully!
Ingredients
- 1 large size head cabbage (about 3–5 pounds)
- 1 lb ground beef (or 1 1/2 lbs if not using pork)
- 1/2 pound ground pork (omit if using all beef)
- 1 medium onion, chopped small
- 3 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon parsley flakes
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 1/2 cups cooked, cooled white rice
- 3 10.75 ounce cans tomato soup (if using a deep dish pan with a 3” side use 4 cans)
Instructions
Prepare the cabbage
- Remove core from cabbage. Place whole head in a large pot filled with boiling, salted water. Cover and cook 3 minutes, or until softened enough to pull off individual leaves. If the leaves do not pull off easily, return the cabbage to the pot to boil a minute or two more. When the leaves are cool enough, use a paring knife to shave away the thick center stem from each leaf, without cutting all the way through.
Make the meat mixture
- In a large bowl, add the ground beef, pork, rice, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, eggs, ketchup, tomato paste, and parsley. Mix gently to combine. Add in 2/3rd of a can of tomato soup (almost 3/4 of a cup) and mix.
Assemble the cabbage rolls
- To stuff the leaves lay down a single large leaf with the cut edge facing you (where the stem was) and place about a 1/2 cup of the meat mixture in the lower third of the leave. If the leaf is huge add more, if smaller add less meat. Fold the sides of the leaf over the meat and roll the cabbage up (like rolling a burrito). Repeat until all of the leaves are stuffed. If you have extra meat just roll it up as meatballs and place it in the baking pan with the stuffed cabbage.
Prepare to bake
- Preheat oven to 350F, rack in the center.
- In a large deep dish (4” at least) baking pan (or two 9×13” glass pans), spread out the remaining soup from the open can on the bottom of the pan. Open up a 2nd can pour out 1/2 of it and spread it out until the bottom of the pan is covered in a light coating.
- Place a single layer of stuffed cabbages on the bottom of your pan. Add the remaining half of the 2nd can of tomato soup. If you have leaves that are too small to stuff or are badly torn, add them on top of the soup.
- Add the 2nd layer of stuffed cabbage (you must make sure you have a 1/2” gap at the top of your pan and stuffed cabbage. It cannot go over the top of the pan. Top with the remaining can of tomato soup and spread out evenly.
- Spray the underneath of a large piece of foil. Place foil side down on the pan and close tightly around the dish. Place the pan on a larger cookie sheet to catch any spillovers.
- Bake for 3 – 4 hours or until the cabbage is tender when pierced with a knife. (I start to check mine after 2 hours 45 minutes).
- Remove from the oven, uncover, and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Trudi says
Excellent recipe! Wouldn’t change a thing!
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so much Trudi!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Karen B says
I made these for dinner tonight. Baked for 3 hours. Wonderful!! Fork tender!! So happy I found your website.
PS I made these after I made a double batch of Chunky Portabella Mushroom Veggie Burgers! YUM!!
Linda Bernth says
Lori – I am from Pittsburgh also and Polish so we made stuffed cabbages all the time and I laughed when you said “a cookie table is required” – yes absolutely!! Even though I make stuffed cabbages I decided to make yours following the recipe exactly and they turned out better than mine!!! Polish weddings in Pittsburgh are the best!! More food than any other wedding I’ve been to!! Your stuffed cabbage roles got an A++++ rating!!
Linda
TKWAdmin says
Hi Linda!
OMG I agree! NOTHING beats a Pittsburgh wedding! And thank you so much for the kind words on my recipe! I really appreciate it!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Gustav says
By far the best stuffed cabbages I’ve ever had! I made sure to read the post and recipe first. Yes you have to make sure that you seal the pan tightly with foil. I hate tough cabbage and that’s what you get when you only bake it for 1-2 hours. This cabbage was so tender and soft! And the flavors were incredible! Just like my Hungarian grandmas!
10 stars!
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so much Gustav! And just like your grandma! WoW that’s a huge compliment! Agreed you have to bake it longer otherwise you have to gnaw on your cabbage. You shouldn’t need a sharp knife to cut into them.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Mike says
Made this exactly as written and mine came out burnt (the cabbage leaves). Looking back on it now, after boiling the leaves to get them off the cabbage head, why would you bake this for 3-4 hours? A meatloaf takes half the time, or less. Next time, an hour and a half tops.
TKWAdmin says
Hi Mike,
That’s odd as this recipe has been in my family for generations and the time to cook it hasn’t changed. As I wrote in the recipe I stated I started checking it at 2 hours 45 minutes. You’re not boiling the leaves to cook them but rather you’re only cooking them for a few minutes at most just so you can pull them off the head. So the leaves are not cooked. Second you’re cooking it that long to ensure the cabbage is soft and pierces easily. You should not need a sharp knife to cut the cabbage.
If your leaves burned then the foil wasn’t wrapped tightly enough around and air hot in thus drying it out.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Shannon Bragg says
These are what my Godfather’s polish mother made for us, but they were called galumpkis… maybe a misspelling I saw you wrote halumpkis. Been looking for a recipe for these so I could make them for my godfather and father. Thank you so much!
TKWAdmin says
You will love these! Oh, thanks for the note about the spelling!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
John says
So I baked them and the middle turned out perfect. However, the cabbage was dry…maybe because they baked too long and/or there was not enough soup (used 4 cans).
Anyway, has anyone tried these in a crock pot?
I like the sound of Annette’s sauce and it may be better suited for my idea.
BL…any recommendations on how long to cook in a crock pot?
Dawn says
Of course this reply comes months and months after you asked your original question, but I make them in a crockpot all the time.. i cook them on high for 4 hours, and they come out perfect. You can also cook them on low for 8 hours, but that would require me putting this together in the morning and ain’t nobody got time for that!
TKWAdmin says
Great tip Dawn! Agreed, time is not something we all see to have a lot of lately! Thanks for sharing!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Elke says
Do you cook the rolls in the crock pot or chop it up into more of a casserole? If it’s a casserole, does it change the recipe ingredients or quantities? Thanks for any info…very excited to try this recipe in my crock pot!
Jill says
Condensed tomato soup?? Or a premixed version?
TKWAdmin says
Hi Jill!
Mom used regular canned condensed tomato soup. Now you can use that or if you want to elevate it you can most certainly use a more grown up version. I, often, will make a thick roasted tomato soup and use that in this recipe.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Jill says
Great! That’s what I used, it’s in the oven now, can’t wait to try it. Thanks so much! 🤗
Tammy says
My grandmother made these often but she had sourkrout in her tomato sauce. She too had mashed potatoes with them . We called them ” pigs in the blanket”. And she didn’t bake them but cooked them in a pot they had lots of juice. I haven’t made them myself but a few times but after seeing this I think I will be making them very soon. Curious to try the way others make them.
Rena says
What kind of cabbage?
TKWAdmin says
Hi Rena,
Just a standard leafy green cabbage. You can you plain green or savoy.
Best Kitchen Wishes!