These amazing crockpot cabbage rolls with a mixture of ground beef, ground pork, rice, and a perfect blend of spices are cooked up tender and flavorful in a lightly sweetened tomato sauce with garlic and dill. You will love these tasty slow-cooked cabbage rolls.
My family is hooked on these. They are just that good! Of course, we love cabbage. If you are a cabbage lover, try fried cabbage, braised cabbage, and corned beef and cabbage.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
See the complete list of ingredients below on the recipe card.
- Cabbage: Regular green cabbage or savoy cabbage. Savoy cabbage has softer leaves and a shorter boiling time, but it is more difficult to find.
- Apple cider vinegar: You can substitute white wine or rice wine vinegar.
- Dill: I like the flavor that fresh dill adds, but you can substitute fresh thyme or parsley.
- Ground meat: I use a mixture of ground pork and ground beef, but you can use all of one or the other. My husband loves them made with mildly seasoned pork sausage.
- Long grain rice: Basmati or jasmine rice are my go-to long grain rices. Their consistency and texture work well in this recipe.
- Paprika: Use sweet Hungarian paprika NOT smoked paprika.
How to Make Crockpot Cabbage Rolls
This is a summary version; for the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please refer to the recipe card below.
- Boil the cabbage, carefully removing the leaves as they soften.
- Sauté the onions and garlic in a little olive oil. Remove half the onion mixture.
- Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, vinegar, brown sugar, and fresh dill. Simmer while you make the meat mixture.
- Combine half the onion mixture, ground pork, ground beef, egg, rice, paprika, salt, pepper, and parsley. Working with the cabbage rolls on a flat surface, add about 1/3 cup of the meat mixture to the center of each cabbage leaf. Fold in the sides and roll up the cabbage. Place cabbage rolls seam-side down in a single layer in the crockpot.
- Pour half the sauce over the first layer of cabbage rolls. Stack the rest of the cabbage rolls on top and add the rest of the sauce.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Preparation Tips
- The ground meat does not need to be precooked.
- After boiling the cabbage and cooling enough to safely handle, use a sharp knife to slice the root end off about 1/2–3/4 inch up. This will make it easier to remove the leaves.
- Cabbage rolls are best cooked on low so the rice cooks through properly and the cabbage leaves soften.
How to Soften and Remove Leaves From the Cabbage
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Submerge the cabbage in the boiling water for 5-10 minutes, rolling it over halfway through. Remove it and drain it in a colander. You may need to return the cabbage to the boiling water to soften more inner leaves further. A large head of cabbage will give you about 12-20 leaves for rolling.
You can also freeze the head of cabbage, but it takes some advance preparation. Cut out the core of the cabbage and place it in a freezer bag. Freeze overnight up to a few days. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
More Cabbage Recipes
Crockpot Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 large head green cabbage
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (15-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- 1 lb ground pork
- ½ lb ground beef
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup long grain rice
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ treaspoon freshly ground black peppper
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Submerge the cabbage for 5-10 minutes in the boiling water, rolling it over halfway through the boiling. Remove it and drain it in a colander. Remove 12-14 leaves. You may need to return the cabbage to the boiling water to soften more inner leaves.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onions until soft. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute while stirring. Remove half the onion mixture.
- Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, vinegar, brown sugar, and fresh dill. Simmer it while you make the meat mixture.
- Combine half the onion mixture, ground pork, ground beef, egg, rice, paprika, salt, pepper, and parsley. Working with the cabbage rolls on a flat surface, add about ⅓ cup of the meat mixture to the center of each cabbage leaf. Fold in the sides and roll up the cabbage. Place cabbage rolls seam-side down in a single layer in the crockpot.
- Pour half the sauce over the first layer of cabbage rolls. Stack the rest of the cabbage rolls on top and add the rest of the sauce.
- Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Reheat on the stovetop over low heat or in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes or until warm.
Lisa
This is a first for me, I had no idea you could make these in a crockpot! We love these cabbage rolls, they are delicious!
Beth Pierce
Thank you, Lisa! I agree!
Emman
This is the first time I made crockpot cabbage rolls. They were delicious and easy to make.
Ebony
I made these for dinner today and they were a hit! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!