Stuffed cabbage rolls have always been one of my favorite dishes. There are hundreds of ways to prepare them and more often than not the cabbage rolls are stuffed with a “meaty” mixture (at least I grew up eating them that way). Over this past year, my mom has become a strict vegetarian and is experimenting with new vegetarian options at meal time. It’s quite wonderful really and when she suggested making vegetarian cabbage rolls last night, I was on board 100%!! Of course, she still made a meat filled cabbage roll to appease my father, but Brandon tried both and said he preferred the vegetarian cabbage rolls and made sure to rub it in (there’s a reason why I love him so).
This hearty, low-calorie recipe is super simple to throw together, very figure friendly, and an easy crowd please; wonderful smells will fill your kitchen! I promise!! My only recommendation is to make a little more sauce to bake the rolls in; you’ll definitely want a little extra sauce to pour over your filling once you’ve busted down the center!
Oh and ladies? Don’t be afraid to introduce these vegetarian cabbage rolls to your husband and family. They are mighty tasty, even for the brawniest of men and pickiest of children!
Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Makes 6-8 cabbage leaves
Courtesy of my Mom 
- 1/2 c. uncooked brown rice
- 1 head of cabbage
- 1/2 red pepper, diced (organic please!)
- 1/2 yellow pepper, diced (organic please!)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 (15 oz) can of beans of your choice (Navy beans, kidney beans, black beans, etc), drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
- 2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp sugar (optional…we omitted)
Directions:
For the filling, cook the rice according to package directions. Saute onion, garlic, and peppers on medium heat until cooked through. Add beans and stir until heated. Add cooked rice and stir until heated through. Simple and easy!
For the cabbage, bring a pot of water to a boil and core the cabbage. Place cabbage in pot of boiling water in order to keep loosening the leaves for easy stuffing.
For the sauce, mix tomato sauce and lemon together (no heat is necessary) and pour over each stuffed cabbage. Make a little extra sauce so you will have some at the bottom to pour over your filling!
Fill each cabbage leaf with ~1/2 cup of rice mixture (depending on how big each leaf is) and place seam side down in to an 8 x 8″ baking dish. Pour sauce over top of each cabbage roll and cover. Bake at 350 degrees for ~40-45 minutes.
Nutritional Profile: 145 calories, 1.0 g fat (0.2 g sat.), 30 g carbohydrate, 6.5 g fiber, 3.1 g sugar, 6.4 g protein, 377 mg sodium, 547 mg potassium, 0 mg cholesterol, 110% Vitamin C
[...] Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (Adapted from The Healthy Apron) Makes 12 rolls >> Click Here for Printable Recipe [...]
Made these for dinner tonight. They were really good. Thanks for the recipe. It’s a keeper!
[...] Vegetarian Cabbage Rolls [...]
Interesting. I’ve never had a cabbage roll before
This reminds me of my Nanny that passed last Christmas…she used to make galumpkis on the holidays…they were SO SO SO good! Haven’t had them in years and now I need to make your recipe!!!!
I rarely eat cabbage, but this looks like an amazing way to work it in my diet! Yum!
These sound SO SO good! I’ve had cabbage rolls several times and always loved them. I cook meat very rarely at home so this would be perfect for us! Cannot wait to give these a try!
black beans!
Just found your blog. I AM IN LOVE with your recipes and photos……
Ooooh these look delicious! I’ve never made stuffed cabbage leaves before but these might be a first!
This recipe sound wonderful. Just curious which type of beans your mom used since it was a crowd pleaser?
Those sound delicious and those nutritional stats are impressive too! I’ve never tried making stuffed cabbage rolls but I think I might need to try it!
love this!!!! cant wait to try it out asap!
xoxo from Trinidad
what a great idea! i’ve never had these before, but i love stuffing vegetables, so totally adding this to my list.
Mmmm Love cabbage rolls.
I was suprised when I tried these once and actually like them (not sure why they weirded me out?). But anyway, I had never heard of them until a coworker of mine raved about the ones her dad makes.
I love stuffed cabbage rolls, love that this is a vegetarian version! Thanks for sharing!
I looove cabbage — these are right up my alley. It’s amazing how much the cabbage looks like a little rice wrapper or something.
Awesome recipe!!! Definitely bookmarking this one!
This is AWESOME! A brand new recipe for me– I’ve never even heard of cabbage rolls!
I’m bookmarking this
These look delicious! I’ve never made cabbage rolls but I have so many ideas for stuffings now with them
I love stuffed cabbage but have never had a vegetarian version, great idea!