Stuffed Cabbage
Ingredients
1lb ground beef
1lb ground pork
1 head green cabbage, frozen
4 large carrots, shredded
1 spanish onion, diced
1 cup dry jasmine rice, about 2 cups cooked
1 24oz jar marinara sauce (my favorite is the CARBONE marinara)
2 eggs
2 tbsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp fennel pollen, ground fennel seed will also work
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp celery seed
1 tsp dried parsley
2 tbsp avocado or olive oil
Method
Get the rice started by cooking it according to its packaging. Shred the carrot and dice the onion. Place a medium-sized sauté pan on medium-low heat with the oil. Add the carrots and onion to the hot pan and sauté on medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft and fragrant. After 15 minutes, add in 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce. Stir to combine.
To a large bowl, add about half of the onion and carrot mix, cooked rice, ground beef, ground pork, eggs, salt, garlic powder, celery seed, and dried parsley. Use your hands or a spatula to mix until everything is very well combined and evenly distributed. To the leftover carrot and onion mix, add the rest of the marinara sauce along with 1 cup of water. Stir to combine.
Pull the cabbage out of the freezer and fill a large bowl with warm water. Unwrap the cabbage and place it in the bowl of warm water. Start to slowly peel away the layers of the cabbage one by one, being careful not to rip them. When the water gets too cold to quickly thaw the cabbage, dump and refill with more warm water. Keep peeling until there are no more layers left to the cabbage. Pat the layers dry with a tea towel or paper towels. Place one layer on a board and add a generous amount of the meat mixture to the end of the layer by the core. Roll once to cover the meat before folding in the sides and continue to roll until you are left with your first cabbage roll. Repeat this process until you're all out of meat mix and cabbage. Stuff each layer depending on how big the piece of cabbage is; the bigger the piece, the more meat it can hold.
Place all the finished rolls in a large oven-safe baking dish, making sure not to stack. Pour the sauce with the carrot and onions over top of the completed stuffed cabbage. If baking right away, follow the next steps. If making ahead of time, simply place the dish in the fridge, making sure it’s covered until 30 minutes before you are ready to bake them.
Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place the lid on the baking dish or cover with foil. Once preheated, place the dish in the oven and bake at 375°F for 1 hour before uncovering and baking for an additional 10-15 minutes. The sauce should be bubbly, and the internal temp of the meat should reach about 150°F-165°F. Remove the cabbage from the oven and allow it to sit and cool for 10-15 minutes before serving, as it will be super hot. Enjoy!
Notes
