This is my Meme's (Grandma's) recipe she has been making for YEARS!!!!! It's a lot of work to make Stuffed Cabbage, so she's since stopped making them! In turn, it has motivated ME to make these! ; ) I'm SOOOOO glad I decided to try these in the Slow Cooker! What a success! These turned out perfectly!
I had my mom and Step-Dad over for dinner last night and my step dad had seconds.....maybe even thirds! My mom really enjoyed them. I hope they reminded her of her mom's! :) My daughter.....well, she tried them.....and that's about as far as it went! LOL At least she tried!
What I love most about this recipe is how the lemon brings out the flavors of the fresh tomatoes inside each cabbage roll and the cabbage takes on a "sweetness!" They are so yummy!
Now, just a word of caution. This is a recipe to make when you have a bit of time (and patience.) It takes time to make cabbage rolls. I promise it's well worth it, but it's not worth the frustration if you don't have the time. Don't do that to yourself! :)
Here is the amazing recipe WITH Step-by-Step instructions and pictures for you!
Meme's Stuffed Cabbage
Ingredients:
1 head of Green Cabbage
Filling:
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup Uncooked rice (I used brown because I had just enough to use up!)
1 large onion, chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
1/2 cup Lemon Juice
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. garlic powder
Directions:
First, brown the ground beef with the onions. Once it is cooked, combine all the remaining "filling" ingredients in a big bowl. It will be beautiful and colorful like this!
Next, peel off the outer layers of the head of cabbage that are dirty. Cut the stem off as best you can.
Either parboil or steam your head of cabbage. I chose to steam it in a steamer.
As the head steams or parboils, peel off the outer layer of leaves very carefully as they become soft enough. Usually you can get 2-3 off at a time. Just place the head back into the pot and let it steam or parboil a little longer each time until the leaves become too small to stuff.
Once all you have all your leaves, you will need to thin the vein in each leaf. Turn the leaf with the "bumpy side" up on your cutting board.
Next, starting at the thin part of the vein, run the tip of your knife very carefully toward the thickest part, thinning the vein so it makes the leaf more pliable.
Once all the leaves' veins are thinned, it's time to stuff them. Place the leaf so that the leaf curves upward, like a cup. Place about 3-4 Tbsp. of filling into the leaf (depending on the size of the leaf, use your judgement. It may hold more of less!)
Next, fold the horizontal (left and right) ends in first.
Then, fold the top over toward the bottom.
Lastly, fold the bottom up toward the top to complete your beautiful little cabbage package!
You're going to make layers in the bottom of your slow cooker of TIGHTLY packed cabbage rolls.
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Layer 1 |
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Layer 2 |
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Layer 3 |
The very last thing you need to do is cover these with water. I poured in about 2 1/2 cups in my 3 Quart Slow Cooker. It worked perfectly! You don't want your Cabbage Rolls "floating" so don't overfill with water!
Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.
And VOILA!!! After all of that, you have a WELL-DESERVED, DELICIOUS meal!!!! Enjoy!