Cabbage Roll Casserole

Name: Cabbage Roll Casserole
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 70 min
Total time: 90 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 1/2 lbs ground beef; 1 onion, diced; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 small head green cabbage (about 2 lbs), chopped into 2-inch pieces; 3/4 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked; 1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes; 1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce; 1 1/2 cups beef broth; 1 tbsp brown sugar; 1 tbsp red wine vinegar; 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp dried thyme

Everyone loves cabbage rolls; nobody loves rolling them.

Jump to recipe ↓

Unstuffed cabbage roll casserole with ground beef, rice, and tomato sauce

AI-generated recipe illustration

Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 hr 10 min
Total time: 1 hr 30 min
Yield: 8 servings

Everyone loves cabbage rolls; nobody loves rolling them. This casserole is the honest solution — all the flavors of golumpki (ground beef, rice, tomato, sweet-sour cabbage) layered instead of wrapped, cutting an afternoon project down to twenty minutes of prep. The cabbage bakes down silky in the tomato sauce, the rice cooks right in the dish, and the flavor is genuinely indistinguishable from the hand-rolled version your great-aunt guarded. We checked. She's forgiven us.

Ingredients

How to make cabbage roll casserole

Heat the oven to 375°F. Brown the beef with the onion; drain, then stir in the garlic, rice, and seasonings.
Stir together the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, brown sugar, and vinegar.
In a deep greased 9x13, layer half the cabbage, all the beef-rice mixture, the remaining cabbage, then pour the tomato mixture evenly over everything.
Cover tightly with foil and bake 60 minutes; uncover and bake 10–15 more, until the rice is tender and the cabbage is silky.
Rest 10 minutes before serving — a dollop of sour cream on top is traditional and correct.

Make it your own

Ingredient	Swap	Good to know
Ground beef	Half beef, half pork	The old-country blend
White rice	Instant rice	Reduce covered bake to 45 minutes
Green cabbage	Savoy cabbage	Softer, sweeter, cooks a touch faster
Brown sugar + vinegar	Omit both	Some families are strictly savory — both camps are right

Storage & leftovers

Refrigerate up to 4 days — like everything tomato-braised, it peaks on day two.

An outstanding freezer meal: portion and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight; reheat covered so the rice re-steams.

A few helpful answers

Is the rice supposed to go in uncooked?

Yes — it cooks in the tomato liquid under the foil. If your rice is still firm at the hour mark, the foil wasn't tight; re-cover and give it 15 more minutes.

Can I make this in the slow cooker?

Very well: same layers, LOW for 6 hours. Use parboiled (converted) rice there so it doesn't blow out.

My family's cabbage rolls were sweet-and-sour — is this that?

The tablespoon each of brown sugar and vinegar nods that way. Double both for full sweet-and-sour; omit both for the savory school.

What cut of cabbage works best?

Regular green cabbage in generous 2-inch squares. Chopped too fine, it vanishes; too big, it stays squeaky.

ESTIMATED NUTRITION · PER SERVING

380 calories · 26g protein · 34g carbohydrates · 16g fat · 820mg sodium