Deconstructed Cabbage Rolls
on Nov 01, 2021, Updated Sep 16, 2022
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You have just come across the tastiest Bulgarian deconstructed cabbage rolls. If you love cabbage rolls, which we call “Sarmi” in Bulgaria 🇧🇬, but don’t want the headache of rolling and stuffing for hours, you are not alone. This is my Mom’s secret recipe that tastes just like the delicious traditional cabbage rolls we all love. This dish is comfort food at its finest, so I hope you enjoy!
Why You’ll Love Deconstructed Cabbage Rolls
In today’s day and age, when everyone is busy and on the go, unstuffed cabbage rolls, also known as deconstructed cabbage rolls, are a delicious and easy-to-make alternative to the traditional dish. This recipe combines all the flavors of a classic roll without the fuss of stuffing individual leaves 🥬.
Variations and Substitutions for Deconstructed Cabbage Rolls
There are so many ways to mix up the flavors and ingredients in deconstructed cabbage rolls:
- Instead of pork, try making this with ground beef, lamb or a combination of 1 or 2 ground meats.
- For a plant-based version, experiment with vegan “ground meat”.
- If you want extra flavor, you can also sauté the onions 🧅 with diced bacon, as bacon and cabbage are a match made in heaven.
Best Served With
Similar Recipes
If you’re in the mood to make soups, don’t forget to check out my soup recipes:
- Pastina Soup
- Greek Lemon Soup
- The Best Lentil Soup
- Hidden Veggie Orzo Soup
- Healthy Cream of Broccoli Soup
- Healthiest Cream of Hidden Veggie Soup
- Hidden Veggie Meatball Soup
- Chicken Noodle Soup
You can use any ground meat of choice such as pork, veal, beef, turkey, or a combination of meats.
I cook with Redmond Real Salt , but you can use any you like. However, be mindful that the saltiness of a dish will depend on the type of salt you use. Some are more coarse and some more fine, so you will always have to taste and adjust.
You can certainly try experimenting with a plant-based “ground meat” alternative.
Deconstructed Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 500 grams ground meat , we like pork
- ⅓ cup avocado oil, or any
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 5 garlic cloves, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon salt , or to taste
- 2 tablespoons paprika , to taste
- 1 tablespoon dry oregano
- ¾ cup jasmine rice , or long grain
- 1 medium cabbage chopped
- ½ cup hot water , for the cabbage
- 1 cup hot water , for the baking dish
- fresh chopped dill
Instructions
- In a large pan on medium-high heat add the oil. Add the ground meat, break it up and fry until it’s caramelized and there’s no moisture. The water has to evaporate for the meat to begin to brown.
- Add the onions, garlic, tomato paste, seasonings, and rice as you stir in between. Take it off the heat and set aside.
- Cut the cabbage (like you would cut an onion). Cut it in half, each halve into lengthwise strips and then cut across. Add a little bit of salt on top and massage it with clean hands for about a minute to draw out the moisture and to soften it.
- Add the cabbage to a large pot on the stove with 1/2 cup of hot water and let it reduce as you stir on medium-high heat. You have to stir a few times so that the cabbage has reduced by at least a third.
- Add the meat and rice mixture to the reduced cabbage in the pot. Add extra paprika and salt if needed and stir.
- Take it out and pour into a baking dish with an additional cup of hot water, cover with foil and bake at 400F for 35 min. open it and let it broil for a few min on top. Dill for garnish, and enjoy.
My Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This sounds super tasty, and can be packed easily into individual servings for an easy lunch when you don’t have a lot of time to prepare a meal
Yes exactly Chris 🙂
Made it this week was so delicious! A keeper
Hi Carm! So glad you enjoyed these! ❤️
My Bulgarian wife passed a year ago and it would be her birthday, she would make this in the winter and I loved it so I’m making it in her memory.
Thank you.
Hi, Fernando! Thank you for making this recipe. I’m so honored you shared this special memory with me. ❤️
I made this dish today and it was a success. I will definitely make it again! Thank you so much 🙂
Hi Evi! Omg soooo happy 🙂
Super easy recipe! I really liked it for leftovers as well. In Step 2, I added cooked rice and it came out good (wasn’t sure if I was supposed to add uncooked rice). I used ground beef and would probably go a bit lighter on the paprika for my personal taste next time. 🤓