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Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls are for those of us who love traditional cabbage rolls almost as much as we hate the time it takes to roll and bake them. Bites of juicy ground beef with fluffy rice and tangy tomato sauce are made even better in this simple one-skillet meal.
Sometimes (read: most of the time), as much as I love cabbage rolls, I just don’t have the time, energy, or patience to make them on a weeknight. If you’re like me, these Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls might be your newest favorite dinner.
Unstuffed Cabbage
For nearly as long as Sean and I have been married, I’ve been making Layered Cabbage Rolls and Cabbage Roll Soup as a timesaver option for a cabbage roll dinner. My whole family loves them and they’re requested often.
I remember the first time I served that easy variation on cabbage rolls to our friend Joe. Joe was born in Hungary and he was so happy with that dish that he kept smiling and telling stories all the way through the meal.
He told us it tasted exactly as he remembered his mother’s cooking. Joe passed away last year and remembering his happiness over that meal still brings a smile to my face.
A few years ago, I was thrilled to realize that I could get the cabbage roll flavors we love in a simple skillet meal, without even turning on the oven. The ground beef is browned along with plenty of seasonings before simmering in a rich tomato sauce with fresh cabbage and rice.
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls
From start to finish, this meal comes together in under 20 minutes, making it pretty much perfect as far as I’m concerned. I like to serve the Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls with a simple salad and a crusty bread to sop up any juices on our plates. This would also be delicious served with Homemade Pierogies for a full Polish feast!
This is a dinner that checks all my boxes, a quick meal that manages to make everyone happy using simple and inexpensive ingredients. If you have never had the joy of tasting Cabbage Rolls before now, here is your chance.
Cabbage rolls are a classic European dish of cabbage leaves wrapped around seasoned ground meat and baked. Ground beef is a traditional filling for the cabbage but ground lamb and turkey are also popular in some areas.
These rolls make for a hearty and delicious meal that can feed a crowd inexpensively, so you can imagine that finding a way to make them without much time or effort was a huge win.
Skillet dinners are meals where all the ingredients (or almost all of them) come together in one pan.
They may not always be the fanciest, prettiest, or most impressive dishes but they are the ones most likely to become part of your family’s meal rotation. They’re built for busy weeknights and long leisurely weekends alike.
Skillet meals like Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls are the dishes our kids will have fond memories of enjoying together at the dinner table. And because recipes like this don’t require hours in the kitchen prepping dozens of ingredients in advance or cleaning up a bunch of dishes afterward, you can enjoy that time with them, too.
Some other easy skillet dinners to try are our Cabbage and Sausage Skillet and this Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry that’s better than any take-out I’ve ever had.
None of these have ever served me wrong when I’m on the hunt for a fast and filling meal for my family and this recipe is no different.
Deconstructed Cabbage Rolls
Cabbage shows up in so many soups, stews, and stir-fries for a good reason. It’s packed with nutrients, holds up well to many different ways of cooking, and can feed an army with just pennies.
Cabbage rolls and all their variants are possibly my favorite way to enjoy this amazing vegetable but I also completely adore eating it in Mexican White Bean and Cabbage Soup, Kielbasa and Potato Skillet, and in this Corned Beef and Cabbage Stew.
In this recipe, pieces of chopped cabbage are added to ground beef and tomato sauce. You get all the taste of fresh cabbage, tender meat, and tangy sauce in each bite without the hassle of rolling up individual cabbage rolls!
COOK’S TIP: If you don’t have pre-cooked or leftover rice on hand, start a pan of rice cooking on the stove when you begin to brown the meat for this recipe. By the time you need to add the rice, it will be cooked and ready to add with the rest of the ingredients.
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe
A pan full of steaming, mouthwatering Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls begins with browning ground beef in a skillet on the stove. (I use this skillet to make this recipe.) As the meat browns, add chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Crushed tomatoes and sauce, vinegar, and brown sugar then go into the skillet right with the browned ground beef. After the whole concoction comes to a boil, add pieces of cabbage right to the pan along with cooked rice. That’s it!
If you’re looking for more quick and easy 20 minute dinners, check out One Skillet Beef Meatballs with Rice and Peas, and this Caprese Skillet Chicken.
This Spinach Pasta Salad is a light meal that can be made ahead of time and eaten warm or cold. Lebanese Beef with Green Beans is a recipe that my sister made for us many years ago and it’s a regular on our meal plan as well now.
Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp granulated garlic or garlic powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 24 oz crushed tomatoes
- 15 oz tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- ½ head green cabbage about 4-6 cups, chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 2 cups cooked rice (total amount is rice when cooked)
Instructions
- Warm the oil in a large deep sided skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef, chili powder, garlic, salt, and pepper. Crumble the meat as it cooks.
- When the meat has browned, about 8 minutes, add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, vinegar, brown sugar. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.
- Stir in the cabbage, reduce to simmer, and cover with lid. Cook until the cabbage is bright green, tender, and still slightly crisp, about 4-5 minutes.
- Add in the cooked rice and simmer just until heated through about 2 minutes. Serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
{originally published 2/27/18 – recipe notes and photos updated 11/25/22}
I really like this concept due to the ease of making.
Thanks so much for the post.Really thank you! Great.
I make mine in the oven. Haven”t used sauerkraut before, but I will this time. Line of the bottom of a 13 x 9 roasting pan or glass dish with a layer of sauce and kraut/cabbage mixture.. Place cabbage rolls, seam side down, on top of kraut. Top cabbage rolls with remaining sauce and more then cover the whole pan with a layer of cling wrap (yes it can be used in the oven) and then aluminum foil. Bake for 2- 3 hours in a preheated 350F oven. I was told by a Polish friend, that the layer of cabbage on the bottom of the pot was to prevent the cabbage rolls from scorching. This recipe simply sounds divine Tori. And what I like best to do is double or triple the ingredients and get all the work done at one time. Then the cabbage rolls can be baked or cooked on the stove or crockpot or all three and frozen for future dinners. And do they taste even better, if that is possible, reheated. My mouth is watering.
Looooove cabbage rolls but do not love rolling. Haha! This looks perfect!!
Used ground turkey and califlower rice. Sweeter than expected but still delicious!
Would it be ok to use a small shaped pasta instead of rice? I’m not a real fan of rice.
I used a lemon/garlic riced cauliflower and it gave the recipe a fresh popping flavor. A real hit with the whole family.
I like your thinking! This sounds delicious and will try this soon. Lemon garlic riced cauliflower…. Brilliant!
Great recipe! Loved it!
I’m so glad you like them, Kelsey!
You should use sauerkraut instead of vinegar and it is with cabbage
That sounds good too, Jeri.
This tasted awesome!!!!! Added 1/2 pound more meat, but otherwise followed it. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m so glad that you like the recipe, Maxine!
Amazing. I adjusted a few ingredients to make them more like my own. Thank you so much. I am a widow, and cooking for myself is enough of a chore. But making stuffed cabbage is very time consuming, and frankly I just don’t have the desire to spend that much time making something just for me. This is wonderful. I can make it, & it can sit in a pot in the refrigerator. I can take out a little bit at a time; I don’t have to cook every single day and you know yourself, it’s so much better when it sits for a day or two. A couple slices of rye bread and butter and I was good to go. Thanks again for this great recipe!
If you ever figure out, how to make deconstructed pirogi, please post immediately or send me an email. 😀
I am so happy to hear that you love the recipe, Carolyn!
I make a pierogi casserole.
Layer the bottom with cooked lasagna noodles.
Cover it with mashed potatoes (instant actually works best) mixed with sautéed onions and butter and shredded cheddar. Keep layering the same way until pan is full.
Bake at 350 until heated through an cheese is melted. Yum.
I bet that’s delicious, Beth!
This was a win! I made it because I love sarma but don’t have the time for that. I added half a chopped onion to the pan just because. I only had a pound of beef and probably should have adjusted the tomato sauce to accommodate, but I didn’t and it was just fine – if you’re looking to lessen your meat consumption this is def a good option. Served leftovers with a cap of white wine vin because that flavor gets absorbed. Thanks for the inspiration!
Glad you liked it, Danielle.
Question. Has anyone tried freezing this? Anyone know how it tastes after having been in the freezer?
I’ve frozen it in the past and it thaws nicely in the refrigerator. We reheat individual servings in the microwave, Maxine.
Thank you!!
Made this tonight and LOVED it. The only suggestion I have is to not CHOP the cabbage. I had to let it simmer for over an hour before the cabbage was tender enough to eat. Which honestly, wasn’t all that bad though, the flavors mingled more. Next time I will shred the cabbage layer by layer and then cut it up. Thanks for the recipe however. I have never cooked with cabbage before!
I typically slice it into shreds and then chop it into bite-size pieces. I’m glad you liked it, Amber!
My husband and brother both love, love this! This gets two thumbs up in my book! anything that makes my husband happy, makes me happy! I’ve made it both with ground chuck and ground turkey because my husband is now on I strict diet and I also substitute cauliflower rice for regular rice and he says it’s still delicious! His words! ❤️❤️
I’m so very happy to hear that you love this meal, Rose!
These were ok but had a strange sweetness I never had in any similar recipe. I am sorry but will not use this recipe as is. Maybe if I cut way back on the brown sugar.
Sorry to hear that it wasn’t for you, Kay. You can certainly try making it without the sugar.
I Made this recipe. I really like that sweet sour flavor. I think it adds a lot of punch to a recipe that can be kind of boring. Definitely will make this again, and will probably use that sweet and sour sauce mixture for unstuffed peppers too.
I’m so glad that you like the recipe!
Sorry, forgot to add my rating
Thank you, Marilyn!
Great recipe, So much easier than stuffing the leaves. I do the same for stuffed peppers and stuffed shells (isn’t it just baked ziti anyway?)
My mom used 2 cans of tomato soup as a shortcut.
I’m glad you like the cabbage rolls, Chris.
Big hit with our family. We loved the sweetness. My teenage daughter made it . She used napa cabbage and it was delicious. This will be a regular “go to” in our kitchen menu rotation.
I’m glad you like it, Darla.