Slow Cooker Cabbage Rolls

slow cooker cabbage roll cut in half with sauce

5 stars from 2 reviews

Slow Cooker Cabbage Rolls are soft, sweet and stuffed with meat and rice. This crockpot cabbage rolls recipe makes an easy weeknight meal!

Author: Donna Elick

Servings: cabbage rolls

Prep Time30

Cook Time3

Total Time3 30

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground sausage mild or hot
1 cup cooked long-grain rice
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 cloves garlic minced, more if desired
1 large egg
1 head green cabbage
15 ounces tomato sauce
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon beef base
1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
chopped flat leaf parsley for garnish

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Carefully place the head of cabbage into the boiling water and boil for several minutes.
Lift the cabbage from the boiling water, and when cool enough to handle, peel off the outer leaves that are soft.
Place the remaining cabbage head back into the boiling water and repeat steps until you have 12-14 soft and pliable cabbage leaves.
Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, sausage, rice, onion powder, salt, pepper, garlic, and egg. Use gloved hands to thoroughly combine all of the ingredients.
Use a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop to portion meat in the center of each cabbage leaf. Use your gloved hands to form the filling into a slight oval shape.
Fold the bottom of the cabbage leaf up, then sides in, and then top back over the filling to make a neat little packet.
Fill cabbage leaves until the meat mixture has all been used.
Place the cabbage rolls in two layers in the bottom of the crockpot, leaving a little space between each to avoid overcrowding them.
In a separate bowl, add tomato sauce, sugar, beef bouillon, and Worcestershire sauce; whisk to combine. Pour the sauce over the prepared cabbage rolls.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours, or until the meat mixture in the center of the cabbage rolls has reached a temperature of 165°F. (This took 3 hours in my crockpot).
Stir the sauce in the bottom of the crock pot and spoon it up and over the cabbage rolls. Garnish with a bit of fresh parsley and serve.

Notes

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 4 days.

You can use any combination of meats - hot sausage makes a spicy cabbage roll, but ground turkey, ground chicken, or regular ground sausage can all be combined with the ground beef for a milder dish.

Some recipes call for uncooked rice, but we use pre-cooked rice to ensure it cooks all the way through and there is enough moisture in the dish. Any long-grain rice will do.

This can also be cooked on low for 5-6 hours. I recommend testing the internal temperature of the cabbage rolls to determine when the dish is done cooking. Ground pork and poultry should be cooked to 165°F for food safety purposes.

Nutrition