Stuffed Cabbage has as many names as Liz Taylor. My family referred to stuffed cabbage as Piggies in a Blanket or Golumpki. My ex-wife’s family called stuffed cabbage Holubky. Honestly, I think every country or region in Europe had some variation of a similar sounding name for this simple comfort food. I call it delicious! It took a few tries, but I believe I have come up with The Perfect Vegan Stuffed Cabbage recipe!
Traditional stuffed cabbage is made by stuffing boiled cabbage leaves with ground or minced pork or beef, diced onion, and a grain, such as rice or barley. Ground or minced lamb or chicken can be used as well, but those are not as common. The stuffed cabbage leaves are then baked in tomato sauce. The result is a savory stuffing wrapped in cabbage leaves that become a little sweet as they bake in the oven!
How to Veganize the Stuffing
The challenge to veganize the dish is making a stuffing that doesn’t fall apart when cutting into the stuffed cabbage. Ground or minced meat, when combined with the rice or barley, results in a firm stuffing that can be cut with a knife. Challenge accepted!
I thought of using breadcrumbs to help bind the stuffing or maybe day-old pumpernickel bread, but decided against those options. I did not want a “doughy” stuffing or one that resembled an Italian meatball.
The key was to cook down my chosen ingredients longer than normal to create a drier stuffing. This would create a firm stuffing that could hold up while being cooked in the cabbage leaves. Cabbage leaves retain a lot of moisture, as does the tomato sauce, so it was imperative to make the stuffing on the dry side.
The solution?
Pecans. More specifically, finely chopped pecans. The pecans are chopped in a food processor until about 20% of the pecans have the consistency of flour. The rest of the pecans should be roughly the size of a piece of rice.
The stuffing is super easy to make. Long grain brown rice, green lentils, pecans, minced carrot, garlic, tomato paste, and seasonings are cooked down to the point there is no remaining moisture and then allowed to cool. Once cool, the stuffing can be shaped by hand. Firmly packed, the stuffing is placed in the cabbage leaf, rolled, and placed in a casserole dish with sauce. Bake in the oven and serve hot.
The key is to make sure that the stuffing is not runny or contains excess moisture. If there is too much moisture, the stuffing will fall apart when the stuffed cabbage is cut into. You want it to be firm, resembling the ground or minced meat of the traditional dish. If the rice, lentil, pecan, et al mixture is too moist, continue to cook it down to remove all liquid before stuffing the cabbage leaves.
The result?
This stuffing truly mimics the traditional minced or ground meat with rice and onions stuffing. It’s absolutely delicious! The stuffing maintains its shape and holds together as you cut into the cabbage, allowing you to get the stuffing and cabbage all in one bite! I promise your non-vegan friends and family will enjoy it as well!
Two or three pieces of stuffed cabbage is a perfect serving size. I like to serve the stuffed cabbage with vegan mashed potatoes or rosemary and garlic roasted baby potatoes.
Stuffed cabbage keeps very well in either the refrigerator or in the freezer. Personally, I loved leftover stuffed cabbage, so I always try to make extra! The dish also travels well, making it perfect to bring to a potluck dinner!
The Perfect Vegan Stuffed Cabbage is such a delicious and satisfying comfort food. I’m positive it will become a favorite in your home!
Here is a vegan recipe of a classic European comfort food, stuffed cabbage. Known as Golumpki, Holubky, and other variations, this vegan stuffed cabbage roll will satisfy your friends and family with the brown rice, lentil, and pecan based stuffing! No one will miss the meat! With a pairing knife, remove as much of the stem from the head of cabbage as you can. Place the head of cabbage in a large stockpot and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil. Boil the head of cabbage for 12 minutes. Turn off the heat. After 8 minutes, remove the cabbage from the water and place it on a cookie sheet. While the cabbage is boiling, prepare the stuffing. I recommend preparing the brown rice and lentils beforehand, as well as having the other ingredients minced, chopped, and measured. In a large shallow saucepan, under medium-high heat, add ½ cup of vegetable broth and the garlic and onions. Stir the garlic and onions in the saucepan until the onions become translucent. If the broth evaporates, add water (only a tablespoon at a time so as to not boil the onions and garlic). Add ½ can of the diced tomatoes (roughly 7 oz) to the saucepan with the onions and garlic and stir. Let the diced tomatoes cook down until they are soft (roughly 5 minutes), stirring occasionally (adding water a tablespoon at a time if the liquid evaporates). Add the carrots to the saucepan and allow them to cook for a minute with the onions, garlic, and tomatoes. Add the tomato paste and ½ cup of vegetable broth to the saucepan. Stir until the tomato paste is dissolved in the broth. Add the brown rice, lentils, and pecans to the saucepan and stir. Add the dried parsley, ground cumin, ground coriander, paprika, black pepper, and salt to the saucepan and stir until the spices and seasonings are well distributed throughout the stuffing. Continue to cook on medium-high heat until all the moisture from the stuffing is gone and the stuffing has firmness when pressed together. Set aside and allow the stuffing to cool for 12 to 15 minutes. While the stuffing is cooling, carefully remove the cabbage leaves from the head. Place each leaf on the cookie sheet or plate (depending on the size of the head of cabbage, this recipe will yield 12 to 18 stuffed leaves, so remove enough leaves from the head). On a cutting board, remove the hard stem from each leaf, cutting in the shape of a V (the key is for the leaf to be pliable so that it can be easily folded and rolled without breaking the leaf). In a casserole dish, line the bottom of the casserole dish with two or three of the outer leaves from the head of cabbage. On top of the leaves, add the remaining diced tomatoes (about 1 ½ can). Preheat oven to 325 degrees. To roll the cabbage leaves, it takes a little practice, so don’t get discouraged! I’ll describe how to do it below, but honestly, I learned by watching YouTube videos on “How to roll stuffed cabbage”. Take a cabbage leaf and place it on a flat surface. Spoon roughly 3 tablespoons of the stuffing and place it on the cabbage leaf just below the point of the V where the stem was removed. Starting from the bottom of the leaf, roll the leaf over the stuffing, tucking the bottom of the leaf under the stuffing, and pressing to make sure the stuffing is firmly in the cabbage leaf without air pockets. Fold the sides of the cabbage leaf over to match the width of the stuffing in the leaf. Roll the cabbage leaf over again and fold the sides in as needed to have a consistent width throughout. Once fully rolled, place the stuffed cabbage leaf in the casserole dish, opening side down. Repeat until the casserole dish is full (the stuffed cabbage leaves can be tightly pushed together). Spoon the marinara sauce on the stuffed cabbage, covering roughly ¾ of the stuffed cabbage and leaving some of the cabbage leaves exposed. Cover the casserole dish with aluminum foil. Place in the oven and cook for 30 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil and continue to cook for another 30 minutes. Remove the casserole dish from the oven. Allow the stuffed cabbage to rest for 5 to 10 minutes and then serve.The Perfect Vegan Stuffed Cabbage Roll
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