The dish outshone the cabbage rolls. Stuffed cabbage rolls with minced meat and rice

Historical reference. The culinary dish cabbage rolls has long and firmly occupied a leading position among homemade dishes in absolutely all countries of the globe. In Russia, Belarus and Ukraine they are perceived as an ordinary daily food, but the people of Europe and residents of the USA consider cabbage rolls a “holiday” dish.
Most gastronomy researchers claim that cabbage rolls have Middle Eastern roots. And US chefs consider cabbage rolls to be a truly Jewish dish.

The existence of two basic recipes is recognized. In the first case, cabbage leaves are stuffed with minced rice and meat; in the second case, they are stuffed with a mixture that includes: rice, raisins and lemon zest.

Bulgarian cabbage rolls are called “zelevi sarmi”; their distinctive feature is the addition of a lot of paprika seasoning to the minced pork and veal.

Romanian cabbage rolls are “sarmale”, they are certainly prepared at Christmas, thereby wanting to emphasize that there is prosperity and well-being in the house.

Ukrainian cabbage rolls can enchant with the inevitable thick sauce with the aroma of garlic. In Ukrainian minced meat you can see: millet and rice, parsley and bell pepper.

The name cabbage rolls in the Czech Republic and Slovakia is unusual; they are very romantically called “doves” .

Polish cabbage rolls - "golabki" - are wrapped in sauerkraut leaves. In addition to the traditional rice and minced meat, they have another interesting option, and this is a mixture of potatoes and buckwheat.

This is, of course, not a complete list of variations of cabbage rolls; in fact, they are countless.

Stuffed cabbage rolls are prepared in different ways: they are baked and stewed, steamed or quickly fried, almost deep-fried.
It is not known for certain who and when invented “lazy cabbage rolls,” but this option is also very popular. What is the trick of the “lazy cabbage rolls”? Everything is very simple - the same ingredients are crushed and mixed, and then molded, fried or stewed like regular cutlets. A recipe truly for the lazy.

Carrot puree. Another step-by-step recipe for people with gastrointestinal problems and gastritis!

Recipe No. 1 Dietary cabbage rolls without meat

For the recipe you need:

1. potatoes 400 grams;
2. head of cabbage 500 grams;
3. ground red and black pepper to taste;
4. dill and parsley - to taste.

• Stuffed cabbage rolls are filled with grated raw potatoes instead of meat. Salt the potatoes, let the juice stand out and squeeze out after a while and pepper.
• If cabbage leaves are soft and pliable, you can do without scalding with boiling water.
• Wrap the filling in cabbage leaves and simmer in a frying pan on both sides in water with spices (or vegetable broth).
• Stewing the dish lasts 20-25 minutes.
• If there are non-fasting days, cabbage rolls are served with sour cream - surprisingly tasty!
• The potato filling is so similar to the meat filling.
• If desired, sprinkle the finished cabbage rolls with chopped herbs.

Recipe No. 2 Lazy cabbage rolls without meat

For the recipe you need:

• carrots 350 grams;
• rice 400 grams;
• vegetable oil 80 grams;
• head of cabbage 500 grams;
• onion: large onion;
• 0.5 teaspoons each of ground red and ground black pepper;
• dill and parsley - to taste.

• Pour vegetable oil into a saucepan (not shallow in height) so that a not very high layer is formed. Place the chopped onion in half rings and fry.
• The cabbage is chopped finely and added to the onion to fry. Frying two vegetables lasts about 10 minutes.
• The next vegetable is grated carrots. This is also added to the pan and sautéed.
• Now it's time for seasonings - use all the ones that are popular in your family.
• Add water or vegetable broth to the container so that the vegetables are only halfway in height and approximately 8-10 minutes everything is stewing.
• The main component is rice, washed with water until the water becomes completely clear.
• It is placed on top of all the vegetables, poured with broth (or just water) so that the entire contents of the pan are under water for 2-3cm.
• Turn on high heat, and after boiling, reduce it and cook (simmer) until the water disappears completely.
• Turn off the heat, stir and let it brew 15-20 minutes.
• Lazy cabbage rolls without meat are ready.

Potatoes with eggplants 🍆 our way! Vegetable vitamin dish 🥔. The recipe is amazing in its composition! ✍

Recipe No. 3 Vegetable cabbage rolls without meat

For the recipe you need:

• cabbage 1 medium head;
• 3 carrots;
• onions 3 pieces;
• 1 cup standard rice;
• tomato paste 3 tablespoons;
• vegetable oil about 5 tablespoons.

• If it is possible to separate a head of cabbage into leaves, do this and scald them by dipping them into boiling water so that they become soft and pliable. If you cannot separate the leaves, immerse the entire head of cabbage in boiling water and after a few minutes the softened leaves will separate under the influence of temperature.
• The rice is washed and boiled until completely cooked.
• Carrots and onions are chopped finely, preferably with a knife into small cubes.
• Mix rice and chopped vegetables, add salt and pepper to taste, and add spices at your discretion.
• The resulting minced rice and vegetables are placed in cabbage leaves in the form of an envelope and lightly fried in oil.
• The next step is to place the cabbage rolls in a saucepan on top of the cabbage leaves, and add half a glass of water (or broth).
• For future cabbage rolls, tomato paste and a small amount of salted butter are also added on top.
• The cabbage rolls are stewed over low heat for about half an hour.
• The dish – vegetable cabbage rolls without meat – is ready. There is hardly a person who claims that food without meat is not food. Treat him to vegetable cabbage roll - and it’s unlikely he won’t want more.

Recipe No. 4 Lazy cabbage rolls without meat in the oven

For the recipe you need:

• cabbage 40 grams,
• 2 carrots,
• onions 2 pieces,
• 1 cup standard rice,
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste (or tomato ketchup),
• vegetable oil about 5 tablespoons.

• First of all, the rice is washed and boiled.
• Cabbage is chopped finely and salted. You need to mash the cabbage and let it stand until the juice comes out. After some time, squeeze out the cabbage.
• The next step is to fry all the diced onions and coarsely grated carrots in a frying pan.
• Tomato paste (or ketchup) is added to the vegetables being cooked. When everything has darkened a little and is ready, mix overcooking + rice + cabbage, salt and pepper.
• Place the entire prepared mass in a baking dish and place in a preheated oven for 30-40 minutes. If you like the cabbage in your cabbage rolls to be a little crunchy, it will take less time.
• Lazy cabbage rolls without meat are ready. The finished dish is served with sour cream.

Nowadays, many people have an acute lack of free time, and if previously there was a tradition of sculpting with the whole family or rolling cabbage rolls, now, unfortunately, this does not happen so often. After all, today semi-finished products can be bought freely in any supermarket, but they can never compare with cabbage rolls prepared at home, from good minced meat. It’s still good that for some this good tradition is still alive, and there are people who value the warmth of the hearth and family values, as well as tasty, well-cooked home-cooked food.

And this recipe is for you, my dears! According to my recipe, the cabbage rolls turn out very tasty and as a result you will get not only a delicious dish for a family dinner, but also time spent with pleasure with your loved ones. All that remains is to convince the family to help the hostess prepare a delicious dinner and distribute the roles: who handles the cabbage, who grinds the minced meat, and who rolls the cabbage rolls :)

Of course, you can prepare cabbage rolls without involving your family, freeze them and then cook them slowly as needed. But if there is an opportunity and your loved ones can help you with this, be sure to take advantage of this opportunity and turn your routine into a holiday! Also, take note - this recipe can become a lifesaver for you when time is short, but you still want some darlings.

Cook with pleasure!

Ingredients

Classic cabbage rolls with meat and rice are a favorite dish for many. The combination of juicy minced meat, soft cabbage leaves and rich tomato and sour cream sauce is incredibly tasty and satisfying! However, when preparing this popular dish, there are some points that should be taken into account to achieve the perfect result. This includes boiling cabbage, properly prepared filling, and forming cabbage rolls. In our step-by-step instructions we will consider all the stages in detail.

The most time-consuming process in the cabbage rolls recipe is preparing the cabbage. It is necessary to carefully separate the leaves from the head of cabbage so as not to tear them or damage them. This can be done in different ways (using freezing, microwave, under running water, etc.). But today we will use the traditional method.

Ingredients:

• minced meat (pork + beef) - 0.5 kg;
• cabbage - 1 large;
• rice - ½ cup;
• carrots - 1 small;
• onion - 1 large or 2 small;
• garlic - 1-2 cloves;
• tomatoes - 2-3 pcs.;
• fresh herbs (dill or parsley) - 3-4 sprigs;
• vegetable oil - 40-50 ml;
• salt, pepper - to taste.

For the sauce:

• tomato paste - 2 tbsp. spoons;
• sour cream - 4 tbsp. spoons;
• water - about 400 ml;
• salt - to taste.

Stuffed cabbage rolls recipe step by step with photos at home

1. Remove the top damaged leaves from the cabbage. Next, we make deep cuts around the stalk with a knife to separate the base of the leaves from the head of cabbage. Choose a large saucepan (ideally the cabbage should fit completely there) and fill it with water. Place the head of cabbage on a knife or fork and immerse it in boiling salted liquid.
   
2. Gradually, the cabbage leaves will begin to separate from the head of cabbage (we carefully help them with a fork).
   
3. When there are 3-5 leaves in the pan, remove the head of cabbage from the pan. Cook the separated leaves for 1-2 minutes (until soft and elastic), then remove with a slotted spoon. Next, place the head of cabbage in the pan again, wait for the leaves to separate, etc. We repeat the procedure until all suitable leaves are gone.
   

   Stuffing for cabbage rolls recipe with photo

4. While the cabbage leaves are cooling, prepare the meat filling for the cabbage rolls. Heat a frying pan with vegetable oil, fry finely chopped onion until soft.
   
5. Next we add carrots to the onions. Stirring, sauté everything together for about 3 minutes.
   
6. Add the carrot and onion mixture to the minced meat and squeeze the garlic cloves through a press. Add chopped herbs to the mixture.
   
7. Boil the rice until half cooked and also add it to the meat mixture. For juiciness, be sure to add tomato pulp to the filling ingredients. To do this, soak the tomatoes in boiling water for a couple of minutes, then rinse them with cold water and remove the steamed skin. Grind the pulp with a knife or turn it into a “puree” using a blender.
   
8. Salt and pepper the filling ingredients, mix thoroughly.
   

   How to cook cabbage rolls with meat and rice

9. Forming cabbage rolls. Take a cabbage leaf and remove the hard part (the stem) with a knife. Lay out a portion of the meat mass (about 2-3 tablespoons). Cover the filling with the bottom edge of the cabbage leaf.
   
10. Then we bend the sides to the minced meat and fold the top edge. We get a completely closed “envelope”. From the amount of products indicated in the recipe you will get approximately 9-10 cabbage rolls.
    
11. Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan or deep frying pan. We fry our semi-finished products on both sides.
    
12. Mix sour cream and tomato paste, dilute with water, lightly salt. Pour the prepared sauce over the cabbage rolls. The liquid should cover the products almost completely (add water if necessary). Cover the pan with a lid.
    
13. Stew cabbage rolls with meat and rice for 30-40 minutes over low heat. Serve the finished products with the sauce and add herbs.
    

Stuffed cabbage rolls with meat and rice are ready! Bon appetit!

It is prepared in different countries, and it is still unknown who invented this tasty and original dish. The tradition of wrapping meat in cabbage leaves is said to have originated in Ancient Greece. In Asian and Oriental cuisine, dolma is prepared - meat wrapped in grape leaves; in Ukraine, corn grits, buckwheat and pork cracklings are added to cabbage rolls, and beet leaves are used instead of cabbage. In Transcarpathia, cabbage rolls made from sauerkraut with rice and mushroom filling are popular, and in Belarus they are prepared with barley and mashed potatoes. Even now there are many recipes - they are filled not only with meat and cereals, but also with fish, vegetables, dried fruits with aromatic herbs and spices, and served with various sauces. Both adults and children love this dish. Let's talk about how to properly cook cabbage rolls so that they turn out tasty, beautiful and appetizing.

Good cabbage - proper cabbage rolls

For this purpose, they usually choose strong cabbage, without spots or cracks. Try to buy slightly flattened heads of cabbage, as they have more thin leaves than thick and rough ones located closer to the stalk. You should also give preference to more tender green cabbage, the leaves of which bend easily and do not break, since white varieties are tougher, coarser and fibrous. Of course, white cabbage also makes delicious cabbage rolls, but you will spend a lot more time and effort on preparing them.

So, let's prepare cabbage rolls step by step. We cut out part of the base with the stalk, capturing the coarsest leaves. Next, lower the head of cabbage into boiling water and leave for a few minutes until the leaves begin to separate easily. Some housewives add a little vinegar to the water, which makes the cabbage softer and protects it from cracks and breaks. We take the cabbage out of the pan, carefully separate the leaves and return the cabbage back. We do this until one stalk remains. Young cabbage just needs to be dipped in boiling water to separate the leaves from the head. You can also heat the cabbage in the microwave or in the oven in foil, although the top leaves will brown a little and the cabbage will acquire a characteristic aroma.

You can do the opposite - first separate the cabbage leaves, then boil them. After the cabbage has cooled, lightly beat the leaves in the most compacted protruding places with a hammer so that they become softer and more elastic, or level them with a special roller with spikes for meat. Busy housewives who don’t have time to boil and beat cabbage leaves do things easier. After the stalk is cut, they put the stalk in the freezer for a couple of days, and then defrost it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. The effect is exactly the same as after boiling - the cabbage leaves become soft and do not tear.

The secret of delicious cabbage rolls is the filling

The classic filling consists of ground beef, pork or lamb and rice. The ideal combination is beef with pork, pork with chicken or turkey. Boil a glass of cereal in salted water in a ratio of 1:2, but the rice should be slightly undercooked. Mix it with raw minced meat, two finely chopped onions and simple seasonings - salt and pepper. The minced meat can be anything, but with turkey the dish turns out to be dietary, and with chicken it is more tender and tastier, especially if the minced meat is first fried with vegetables in oil. Instead of rice, you can take buckwheat or any other cereal, complementing the filling with fried mushrooms - boletus, honey mushrooms or champignons. For the lean version, meat is completely replaced with mushrooms. You can add aromatic spices that you like to the filling - black pepper, nutmeg, curry, ginger - whatever you like. Calculations for cabbage rolls are simple - for 1 kg of cabbage we take 500 g of meat, 100 g of rice and 100 g of onion, although the proportions depend on the recipe.

Stuffed cabbage rolls: boil, stew, bake

Place 2-3 tbsp on cabbage leaves. l. filling, cover it with a thick part of the sheet, wrap the side parts and roll it into a neat roll. Maybe you prefer to wrap the cabbage rolls in a tube, envelope or small bag, but it’s best if the filling is completely covered. Place the cabbage rolls in a deep, thick-walled bowl, pour in a little water, broth, white wine or tomato juice, and then simmer. 15-20 minutes before the cabbage rolls are ready, pour the sauce over them and continue to simmer.

Some housewives pre-line the bottom of the dish with cabbage or grape leaves, and also make a vegetable bed from fried carrots, onions, sweet peppers and other vegetables. After this, place a layer of cabbage rolls, pour the gravy over them and simmer for about an hour over low heat. There is another way to prepare cabbage rolls - first they are fried, and then stewed with water and sour cream for 1-2 hours. Stuffed cabbage rolls can also be cooked in a slow cooker, convection oven or steamed, but it’s best to bake them in the oven in a creamy sauce with a knob of butter - this way they turn out especially aromatic and tender.

Secrets of making cabbage roll sauce

The simplest sauce is fried carrots with onions, tomato paste or sour cream. Very satisfying options - sour cream with garlic, cream with thick yogurt, mayonnaise with chopped pickles, onions and lemon juice. Low-calorie sauce - kefir with herbs - good for those who are on a diet. The oriental style sauce is a mixture of sesame oil, soy sauce, fresh ginger, garlic, red pepper and cilantro. The sweet chili sauce is very tasty, which lovers of sweet-spicy seasonings will appreciate. In general, you can add any ingredients to the sauce depending on the tastes and preferences of the guests - these can be tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, pumpkin and any vegetables.

Step-by-step preparation of cabbage rolls in Tatar style

1. Prepare cabbage leaves.

2. Mix 500 g of minced lamb with ½ cup of boiled rice, 2 chopped onions, salt and a mixture of peppers.

3. For the sauce, coarsely grate 1 carrot, cut 1 onion into cubes and fry the vegetables in 2 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.

4. When the vegetables acquire a golden color, add to them 3 finely chopped tomatoes with previously removed skin, 100 ml of water and sour cream, 1 tbsp. l. tomato paste, dried herbs, sugar, salt, pepper to taste.

5. Wrap the filling in cabbage leaves and dip them in the beaten egg.

6. Fry the cabbage rolls on both sides in butter.

7. Place the cabbage rolls in a bowl, add 2 bay leaves, pour in the prepared sauce and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes.

Many people like them - they are prepared from minced meat, rice and shredded raw cabbage. They are stewed and baked using the same technology, but much faster. Stuffed cabbage rolls are served with herbs and sour cream. Usually this dish is eaten very quickly, there is not enough additive for everyone, so cook a little more - it won’t go to waste. We wish you bon appetit and culinary inspiration!

Recipe homemade cabbage rolls:

Pour the rice into a cup, sort it (if necessary) and pour boiling water over it. Stir so that the grains of rice do not stick together, and forget about it for a while.

The head of cabbage for making homemade cabbage rolls should be tight, with thin leaves and without damage. If it is slightly elongated, then cut off the lower part with a knife, and then cut out the stalk itself. There is no need to delve too deeply into the head of cabbage. If the selected cabbage has a flattened shape, then the stalk can be cut out immediately.

Take a pan, pour water into it and place the head of cabbage with the stalk down. The size of the pan should be such that the head of cabbage in it can be turned over. Place on the fire and cook the cabbage after the water boils for about 5-6 minutes. If the head of cabbage is too tight, then the cooking time needs to be increased slightly. Then turn over and cook for a few more minutes. The leaves should become soft and begin to separate from the head.

While the cabbage is softening, prepare the filling for homemade cabbage rolls. Peel the onion and pass through a meat grinder. Add half of the resulting mass to the minced meat, add rice steamed in boiling water, salt, spices, ground black pepper and a teaspoon of tomato paste. Mix the meat well. If desired, the amount of rice can be increased.

Fry the coarsely grated carrots and the second half of the chopped onion mass in refined oil with the addition of tomato paste and a small amount of water.

Remove the cabbage from the water onto a large plate, stem side up. Let the head of cabbage cool a little and begin to separate the sheets.

Place the removed sheets in a stack on top of each other. If the bottom sheets are difficult to remove, then the head of cabbage can be additionally placed in boiling water again. Therefore, when you take the cabbage out of the pan, do not immediately pour out the boiling water, it may still be useful.

We form homemade cabbage rolls: take a soft leaf and cut off part of its lower thickened edge. If the middle vein of the leaf has a convex thickening, then cut it off too. Just do it carefully so as not to damage the integrity.

Place a spoonful of filling along the cut edge of the sheet.

Make one turn and bend the sides of the sheet towards the center.

And then tightly twist the cabbage roll until the end.

Place the formed cabbage rolls in a cauldron or stewpan with high sides. The cabbage rolls should lie tightly, pressed against each other.

Spread the tomato sauce evenly on top. Pour in salted water so that it completely covers the cabbage rolls and send them to stew.

Simmer the cabbage rolls covered for about 1 hour after boiling. If suddenly there is not enough water, then add a little bit. 10-15 minutes before turning off, throw in a couple of bay leaves, chopped garlic (adjust the quantity to your taste) and a little allspice. Be sure to check the gravy for salt and add if required.

Homemade cabbage rolls according to this recipe are soft, juicy and incredibly tasty. In addition to cabbage rolls, any fresh vegetables or a salad made from them are perfect.