Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls
Unstuffed cabbage rolls are essentially deconstructed cabbage rolls. You can also think of it as cabbage rolls' not so pretty sister, however, she is beautiful on the inside. If you love cabbage rolls, but do not love the time it takes to make them, then you will love this recipe.
Equipment
- Chopping board
- Large sharp knife
- Medium Heavy bottom stockpot
- Wooden Spoon
- Measuring cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Large plate
- Kitchen spider or a slotted spoon
- fine sieve
Ingredients
- 2 pounds cabbage leaves
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 cups long grain rice
- 3 1/2 - 5 cups chicken broth this depends on the type of rice you are using
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon parsley
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped garlic if you are not a garlic lover like I am, you could cut that amount in half or even completely take it out.
- 4 to 5 cups water or chicken broth if you are not using the chicken bouillon
- Water for blanching the cabbage
Instructions
- Start by slicing the cabbage head in half away from the stalk. Slice it length wise into 2-inch-thick slices, then slice them into 2-inch cubes. You’ll need about 2 pounds of sliced cabbage.
- Set the pot on high heat and bring the water to a boil.
- Once the water had reached the boiling point, place the sliced cabbage leaves into the boiling water and allow them to blanch for about one minute or until they slightly deepen in color.
- Pick up the leaves using a kitchen spider or a slotted spoon and transfer onto a plate.
- Once all the leaves are blanched allow them to cool down until they are easy enough to handle.
- Dump the water that we were using to blanch the cabbage.
- Rinse the pot with cold water and dry with a clean kitchen towel.
- Place the rice into the pot and rinse two to three times.
- Drain the rice using a fine sieve.
- Add the ground beef into the pot with the rice.
- Add the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, black pepper, parsley flakes, and olive oil. Mix until well combined.
- Add the blanched, chopped cabbage into the pot.
- Using your clean hands, or you can put on cooking gloves if you wish, mix everything together until very well combined.
- Using the palm of your hand, level the mixture in the pot.
- Using your index finger, poke multiple holes in the mixture, reaching all the way down to the bottom of the pot.
- Add the amount of chicken broth that is required to cook the rice of your choice plus an extra 1/4 t- 1/3 cup. (this information is usually available at the back of the rice bag. Most rice requires a 1 to 2 ratio. That would be 1 cup of rice to two cups of water. For the amount of rice that we are using, you may need 4 cups of chicken broth.)
- Place the pot on high heat, and bring to a boil.
- Once the liquid has begun to boil, stir the mixture using a wooden spoon making sure to break up any large clumps of rice. This will allow the water to penetrate all the crevices and it will ensure that everything cooks evenly. Otherwise, you will end up with a clump of mixture that contains uncooked rice.
- Level the mixture again and place a bay leaf over it. After the mixture is all stirred up, lower the heat to medium low, and let it cook for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the rice is fully cooked.
- Remove the bay leaf. Serve with your favorite side dish. Enjoy!