Cabbage Roll Casserole
Cabbage Roll Casserole is an EASY version of a classic comfort food made with cabbage, ground beef, tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese, baked and broiled until golden and bubbly!
This casserole is a family favorite in my house, made with a few simple ingredients, it’s the perfect easy version of these Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. We also love to make this recipe to meal prep lunches for the week, especially when it’s getting colder outside and you need something a little more filling. This is definitely going to be one of your new favorite casserole recipes!
If you loved this recipe, you may also love my Easy Cheeseburger Casserole, or my Stuffed Pepper Casserole! This also pairs nicely with a lighter Creamy Cucumber Salad.
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Same Flavor, Less Work – This casserole tastes like stuffed cabbage rolls, without spending time rolling them individually.
Meal Prep – This is the perfect dish for meal prep – it has protein, veggies, and rice all in one!
Perfect Comfort Food – This casserole is savory and hearty, perfect for cold weather or cozy dinners at home!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Green Cabbage. This recipe works best with regular green cabbage. But because we’re not using the cabbage leaves to wrap anything, you could use other types.
For another great cabbage recipe, try my Chicken Cabbage Soup!
Ground Beef. I recommend using lean ground beef, because it won’t have as much grease to drain off after browning, and it’s generally easier to work with. You can also use half ground pork and half ground beef.
If you want to make this lighter, you can also make this with ground turkey and use vegetable or chicken broth instead of beef broth.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil. We’re using this to brown the beef before adding it to the casserole. You can also use butter, avocado oil, or vegetable oil.
Rice. For this recipe I used uncooked long grain white rice. Make sure to wash the rice before using it.
We’re going to parboil the rice with the beef broth, which is a crucial step to make sure the rice is fully cooked at the end of the recipe.
Tomato Sauce. I’m using canned tomato sauce, but you can also use tomato paste whisked together with some water until it’s the right consistency.
If you want some bigger pieces of tomato in the casserole, you can also add some crushed tomatoes or diced tomatoes.
Onion. I like to use Vidalia onion, because it’s on the sweeter side, which helps balance the savory notes. Yellow onion and white onion would also work.
Broth. We’re using beef broth in this recipe, but you can also use vegetable broth.
Brown Sugar. This helps balance out the savory notes in the recipe, and adds a really nice flavor.
Worcestershire Sauce. We’re adding this because it really enhances the beef flavor in the cabbage rolls, and adds a really nice savory note to the sauce.
Spices. We’re keeping this easy with Italian seasoning, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, and black pepper.
For more flavor, add some minced garlic instead of garlic powder. Add the minced garlic with the ground beef during the recipe.
If you need it, check out my recipe for Homemade Italian Seasoning!
Shredded Cheese. This is totally optional, but I like to add some mozzarella cheese on top of the casserole right at the end. You can use any type of cheese that you’d like!
Kitchen Tools
For this recipe, you’ll need a large deep skillet and a 9×13″ casserole dish (the same type you’d make lasagna in).
How to Make Cabbage Roll Casserole
Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a large baking dish and set aside.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and onion. Cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks, about 8-10 minutes. Drain off any grease.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together the tomato sauce and spices. Add the cabbage, stirring until well combined. Pour the cabbage into the baking dish and set aside.
Stir the beef broth into the skillet and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the rice, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar, stirring everything together.
Place the lid on the skillet and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once time is up, pour the beef mixture into the casserole dish.
Use a spatula to mix everything in the baking dish together until well combined.
Cover the baking dish with tinfoil and bake for 1 hour. Once time is up, remove the tinfoil and top the casserole with mozzarella cheese.
Return the casserole to the oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Optionally, broil for 2-3 minutes to make the cheese golden brown and bubbly.
Recipe Variations
- If you’d like this to be spicy, add a small amount of cayenne pepper, hot sauce, chili powder, or red pepper flakes to the tomato sauce before mixing everything together.
- You can also make this with pre-shredded cabbage. Because it’s cut much smaller, it will be softer at the end.
- Try using other types of shredded cheese like Swiss cheese, Monterey jack cheese, cheddar cheese, or pepper jack cheese.
- If you want some bigger tomato pieces, you can also add a can of diced tomatoes to the casserole.
- Try adding other veggies like spinach, green bell peppers, green beans, diced carrots, or zucchini.
Recipe Tip! It’s really important to cook the rice in the skillet with the beef broth for 5 minutes before adding it to the casserole dish. This parboils the rice, which makes sure it finishes cooking completely in the oven!
Frequently Asked Questions
I use regular uncooked long-grain white rice for this recipe. You could also use jasmine rice or other similar types of white rice. Make sure you wash the rice before using it, and follow the recipe instructions to parboil the rice before adding it to the casserole. If you use instant rice, it will be mushy by the time the rest of the casserole is done cooking.
Recipe Tip! This is optional, but you can turn the broiler on after the mozzarella is melted for 2-3 minutes to turn it golden brown and bubbly. Watch it really closely, because it can burn quickly!
More Casserole Recipes
- Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole
- Loaded Baked Potato Casserole
- Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
- Cheesy Spaghetti Squash Casserole
Storage
Refrigerate leftover cabbage roll casserole for 3-4 days in an airtight container.
Freeze in a freezer-safe container for 2-3 months.
Cooking Tips
- Partially cook the rice for about 5 minutes in the beef broth before mixing it into the casserole. This ensures it finishes cooking evenly in the oven.
- We’re covering the casserole in aluminum foil while it cooks, then remove and discard the foil after adding the mozzarella cheese and let it cook uncovered for the rest of the time.
- You could also make this in a dutch oven, just put the lid on the pot and transfer it to the oven to bake.
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Cabbage Roll Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 2 pounds green cabbage, chopped (1 small to medium head of cabbage)
- 29 ounces tomato sauce, (1 big can)
- 3 cups beef broth, low sodium, gluten free
- 1 cup uncooked white rice, washed
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, gluten free
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Equipment
- 1 deep skillet
- 1 9×13" casserole dish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a large baking dish and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and onion. Cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks, about 8-10 minutes. Drain off any grease.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the tomato sauce and spices. Add the cabbage, stirring until well combined. Pour the cabbage into the baking dish and set aside.
- Stir the beef broth into the skillet and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the rice, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar, stirring everything together.
- Place the lid on the skillet and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once time is up, pour the beef mixture into the casserole dish. Use a spatula to mix everything in the baking dish together until well combined.
- Cover the baking dish with tinfoil and bake for 1 hour. Once time is up, remove the tinfoil and top the casserole with mozzarella cheese. Return the casserole to the oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Optionally, broil for 2-3 minutes to make the cheese golden brown and bubbly.
Notes
- Partially cook the rice for about 5 minutes in the beef broth before mixing it into the casserole. This ensures it finishes cooking evenly in the oven.
- We’re covering the casserole in aluminum foil while it cooks, then remove and discard the foil after adding the mozzarella cheese and let it cook uncovered for the rest of the time.
- You could also make this in a dutch oven, then just put the lid on the pot and transfer it to the oven to bake.
- This is optional, but you can turn the broiler on after the mozzarella is melted for 2-3 minutes to turn it golden brown and bubbly. Watch it really closely, because it can burn quickly!
- Worcestershire sauce can vary by brand, just make sure the one you buy is gluten free.
Nutrition
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