Best Polish Cabbage Rolls Recipes

POLISH STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS (GOLABKI / GOLUMKIES / GOLUMPKIS)

Steps:

• Cut 12 large leaves off of cabbage head, cover leaves with boiling water, let stand until leaves are limp (2-3 minutes); then drain OR core cabbage head, and boil cabbage until leaves are tender enough to remove easily (10-15 minutes), very carefully remove 12 large leaves (You may have to peel the outer layers first and then return the cabbage to cook and continue peeling the leaves until all are done); then drain.
• Mix beef, pork, rice, egg, milk, seasonings, and vegetables.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Put 1-4 tablespoons (depending on size of leaf) of meat mixture in center of each leaf; tuck in sides and roll to cover meat (I roll any leftover filling into meatballs and cook them with the cabbage rolls).
• Place, seam side down in baking dish.
• Mix tomato sauce with the sugar; pour over rolls.
• Cover and bake for 45-60 minutes.

GOLABKI (POLISH STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS) (VEGETARIAN VERSION)

Steps:

• Slice through the base of the cabbage and cook in lightly salted boiling water until tender.
• When the leaves are tender, peel off (You may have to peel the first layers first and then return the cabbage to cook and continue peeling the leaves until all are done).
• Boil the rice until just tender; drain and set aside.
• Fry the onions in the butter until softened.
• Dice the mushrooms and fry lightly with the onions, and the Worcestershire sauce, if using.
• Mix with the rice and season with salt, pepper, garlic, paprika and parsley.
• Place a tablespoonful of the rice mixture in each cabbage leaf; carefully, tuck in sides and roll to cover rice.
• Heat the oven to 400°F.
• Grease a roasting pan and place cabbage rolls seam side down in pan, packing them tightly together.
• Pour enough juice or stock over the top to cover them.
• Sprinkle lightly with remaining paprika.
• Cover and bake in oven for 20 minutes.
• Remove cover and bake for another 10 minutes to brown the cabbage lightly.

GOLUMPKI - POLISH STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Take as much core out of the head of cabbage as possible. Place in a microwavable bowl with 1/2 cup of water. Put in microwave. Set for about 10 minutes. Carefully take out of microwave and pull off as many leaves that will come off easily. Repeat process for more leaves.
• OR.
• Place head of cabbage in a pot of boiling water. Be very careful taking the head out to take a few leaves off at a time and replacing it back into the water. I use a large serving fork to stab it in the core area.
• Put your ground beef in a large bowl. Add 2 cups cooked rice, the minced onion, 1 cup of water, salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder or double if you like that flavor. Mix with hands. Take a hefty size tablespoon full and place on stem end of a cabbage leaf. Bring each side of leaf over into middle and roll. Place roll in baking dish (sprayed with PAM) with the seam side down. Repeat until all meat is used.
• Pour your tomato juice into a bowl. Add the mushroom soup and whisk these together until smooth. Pour over top of rolls. An added delicious treat is to place sliced kielbasa around the cabbage rolls if you wish. Cover with foil and bake about 1 1/2 hours on 350 degrees.
• These are great served with mashed potatoes and peas.
• They are even better a few days later. You can bake these ahead and put them in the refrigerator 2-3 days. The flavor all comes together.

SUPER EASY POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 baking dish.
• Bring the rice and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes. Allow rice to cool slightly.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Remove the core from the cabbage, and place cabbage in the boiling water. Remove the outer leaves as they soften. Set leaves aside.
• Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat, and cook and stir the onion until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir together the cooked onion, ground chicken, cooked rice, eggs, garlic, salt, pepper, and marjoram in a bowl.
• Place about 1/4 cup of the meat mixture in the center of each cabbage leaf. Roll leaf and tuck ends in to enclose filling. Secure each roll with a toothpick if necessary. Place rolls into prepared baking dish. Pour tomato sauce over the rolls.
• Bake, covered, in the preheated oven until the meat in the rolls is no longer pink, 45 to 60 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of casserole should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

GOLABKI - POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Chop onion.
• Mince garlic.
• Saute garlic and onion in 2 T butter over medium heat until onions are caramelized. Remove from heat and let cool to near room temperature.
• Beat 2 eggs thoroughly with 2 T marjoram, 1 T thyme/sage, salt, and pepper.
• In bowl, add ground beef, pork (or veal), rice, onion, garlic, and eggs.
• Mix thoroughly with your hands.
• Cover and let rest in the fridge. (You can let it sit overnight, it will just let the flavors permeate more.).
• Core cabbage.
• Blanche cabbage leaves in boiling water, peeling them off as they become limp. (Alternatively, after coring the cabbage, you can put it in the freezer and after it's frozen, let it thaw and the leaves will be limp--you can just pull them off. **If you choose to freeze, freeze the cabbage the night before and keep in mind it will take a few hours for it to thaw**).
• Once you've separated all the leaves, take a paring knife and cut off any thick stems preventing the limp leaf from bending/rolling.
• Put about 2 T of meat filling in the center of each leaf. Fold the sides of the leaf in and roll it up into a little package. Put each golabki seam-down into a casserole dish. (At this point, if you like, you can freeze them and thaw them later. Once thawed, continue with the recipe steps below.).
• Once you've used up all the cabbage leaves or meat filling, take your cans of tomatoes and pour them over the golabki.
• Sprinkle the remaining teaspoons of marjoram into the tomato sauce before pouring it over the golabki and tomatoes.
• Bake covered at 350 for 2 hours.

INSTANT POT® GOLABKI (POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS)

Steps:

• Core cabbage from the bottom, being careful not to split the head, to keep leaves whole.
• Fill a large pot halfway with water and bring to a boil. Carefully submerge the cored cabbage into the water, cover, and boil for 8 minutes.
• Carefully remove cabbage from water. Use tongs and a spatula to gently separate outer leaves and lay them on a clean plate. Continue removing leaves; when leaves resist removal, return cabbage head to boiling water. Cook another 6 to 8 minutes. Repeat procedure until leaves are less than 4 inches in size. Chop remaining cabbage and set aside. Drain water from the pot and return it to the stove.
• Add butter to the pot and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add ketchup, vinegar, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, marjoram, onion powder, and salt. Bring to a light boil, about 3 minutes. Add diced tomatoes. Cover and simmer sauce until needed.
• Combine ground beef, 1 cup cooked white rice, eggs, black pepper, and garlic powder in a bowl. Use hands to mix filling well.
• Place a rack inside a multi-functional pressure cooker (such as Instant Pot®). Add 1 cup water.
• Meanwhile, assemble cabbage rolls on a clean cutting board. Lay 1 cabbage leave with stem facing you and outer surface of leaf facing down. For larger leaves, place 2 tablespoons meat filling on the leaf. Roll up to center first, tuck in left and right sides, and continue rolling to completely enclose filling. Place rolls, seam-side down, in a single layer on the rack in the Instant Pot®. Cover layer with 1/2 to 1 cup of sauce. Create another layer of rolls and cover with sauce. Repeat to within 1 inch of the top of the Instant Pot®; if you have excess rolls, cook another batch separately.
• Close and lock the lid. Set the vent to sealing and select high pressure according to manufacturer's instructions; set timer for 18 minutes. Allow 10 to 15 minutes for pressure to build.
• Release pressure using the natural-release method according to manufacturer's instructions for 15 minutes. Release remaining pressure carefully using the quick-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 5 minutes. Unlock and remove the lid.
• Carefully remove rolls from the pot using tongs and transfer to a casserole dish. Cover with aluminum foil. Remove wire rack from pot. Turn Instant Pot® to saute mode.
• Stir cornstarch and water together in a bowl. Stir mixture into the sauce using a spatula; keep stirring until sauce has thickened, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour sauce over rolls in the casserole dish and serve hot.

VEGETARIAN POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Core cabbage, place in pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and cover with a lid. Cook until slightly softened. Remove cabbage and place in a dish to cool.
• Meanwhile, in a large pot, saute onions and garlic in the olive oil until transparent. Add crumbles, rice, spices, egg, and vegetable broth. Mix well.
• When cabbage is warm to the touch, peel leaves and place on cutting board. You should have six very large leaves.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Divide filling mixture into six equal parts.
• Fill cabbage leaves and roll. Place filled rolls with folded end down into baking dish.
• Combine soup and tomatoes along with tomato juice from can in separate bowl. Add half of soup can worth of water to sauce. Mix well.
• Ladle over rolls. Cover rolls in aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes or until cabbage is easily poked with a fork.

POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS-GOLABKI

Steps:

• 1. Core cabbage and place cored side up in a deep bowl or saucepan. cover with boiling water; let stand 5 minutes to soften and loosen leaves; drain. Remove 18 leaves and reserve. Place remaining cabbage on cutting board and shred or slice up. Place the shredded cabbage in the bottom of a buttered or sprayed baking pan. Sprinkle lightly with ground clove; set pan aside.
• 2. In a large bowl combine the beef and pork,salt and pepper,egg, shredded apple , onion and garlic; mix until well combined.Place mixture into a large skillet and cook until mixture is cooked and scrambled and meat is no longer pink- it does not need to be fully cooked it will finish in the oven. Drain any grease.
• 3. Preheat oven to 350^. Mix the cooked rice into the meat mixture. Stir well to blend. Place about 1/2 cup of mixture in the center of each cabbage leaf. Roll up, folding ends over,envelope style- like egg roll. Place each roll seam side down in baking pan on top of the shredded cabbage.Combine wine and beef broth and pour over cabbage rolls.
• 4. Combine tomato sauce, brown sugar and lemon juice; set aside. Cover pan with foil and bake for 40 minutes.Remove cover and pour tomato mixture over cabbage and bake for 20 minutes uncovered.
• 5. Serve with pan juices and drizzle of sour cream or thicken the pan juices with sour cream and pour the sauce over the cabbage rolls.

STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS-OLD POLISH RECIPE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and add a cabbage. Reduce heat slightly and blanch cabbage, turning a few times, about 5 minutes, until leaves begin loosening and look translucent. With cabbage in water, use long-handled fork or tongs to pull off leaves as they loosen. Remove what's left of cabbage and repeat with other cabbage. Don't discard inner leaves or broken leaves. Reserve water. Let cabbage cool.
• In large bowl or tub, put ground beef, onion, celery, rice, eggs, parsley flakes, garlic salt, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix well with hands, adding 1/4 cup water if mixture feels "tight".
• With paring knife, trim thick cores from outer sides of cabbage leaves. Coarsely chop smaller leaves and cabbage; strew half in bottom of an 18x10x3 inch heavy-duty foil roasting pan. Pour reserved cabbage water over sauerkraut in a colander to rinse more, if you like. Drain well. Strew half the kraut over cabbage in pan. Pour in half the crushed tomatoes and 1 cup tomato juice. Season with salt & pepper, mix well.
• For rolls, shape about 1/4 cup meat into a sausage (not too tight) for a large leaf; less for a smaller leaf. Use your hand as a cup to shape rolls, with curved side of leaf facing your palm and core end towards your wrist. Put filling on the bottom of the leaf, and fold the bottom over the filling, pressing in. Fold in the sides, pressing and rolling, but not too tight, not worrying if leaf breaks. Filled leaves are placed seam-side down in pan, in even rows, 5 or 6 across, making 25 to 28 rolls. Strew remaining chopped cabbage (chop any unused leaves) and sauerkraut over the rolls. Top with remaining crushed tomatoes and tomato juice. Salt & pepper generously. Rinse crushed tomato can with about 1/2 can water. Pour water over top; don't worry about mixing it. Cover pan tightly with foil.
• Bake in 325-degrees F oven for 1 hour, check after 30 minutes to be sure it is bubbling. If not, turn oven to 350-degrees F. After 1 hour, reduce temperature to 250 degrees F. Bake 1 to 1 1/2 hours longer, until rolls are tender & meat & rice fully cooked-cut one open to check. You can add small amounts of water periodically if needed.

STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS - POLISH STYLE

Steps:

• Coat 3 quart saucepan w/ the oil & place over med heat. Add garlic & saute for 1 min. Add tomatoes & cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 mins. Add vinegar & sugar; simmer until sauce thickens, about 5 mins. Season w/ salt & pepper & remove from heat. Place a skillet over med heat & coat w/ 2 Tbs olive oil. Saute onion & garlic for about 5 mins, until soft. Stir in tomato paste, a splash of wine, parsley, & 1/2 cup of prepared sweet & sour sauce, mix to incorporate & then take it off heat. Combine ground meat in large mixing bowl. Add egg, cooked rice, & sauteed onion mix. Toss filling together w/ hands to combine, season w/ generous amount of salt & pepper. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Remove large, damaged outer leaves from cabbage & set aside. Cut out cores of cabbages w/ sharp knife carefully pull off rest of leaves, keeping them whole & as undamaged as poss (get rid of all small leaves). Blanch cabbage leaves in a pot of boiling water for 5 mins, or until pliable. Run them under cool water & then lay them out so you can assess how many blankets you have to wrap up filling. Next, carefully cut out center vein from leaves so they will be easier to roll-up, Take reserved big outer leaves & lay them on bottom of casserole pan, let part of leaves hang out sides of pan. This insulation will prevent cabbage rolls from burning at bottom when they bake. Use all of good looking leaves to make cabbage rolls. Put about 1/2 cup of meat filling in center of cabbage & starting at what was stem-end, fold sides in & roll up cabbage to enclose filling. Place cabbage rolls side by side in rows, seam-side down, in a casserole pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Pour remaining tomato sauce over cabbage rolls. Fold hanging leaves over top to enclose & keep moisture in. Drizzle top w? olive oil. Bake for 1 hr until meat is cooked.

POLISH CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• 1. In large bowl: Mix together well the meat mixture ingredients. Set aside until cabbage is ready.
• 2. Remove core from cabbage. Remove any loose leaves from the cabbage. Place them in a large pan of boiling water until they are softened enough to roll up with out breaking. Transfer them to a colander rinse with cool water. Drain well. Put remaining part of cabbage head into the water in the pot. after about 8 - 10 minutes, peel off cabbage leaves being careful not to rip them. Rinse in cool water. Repeat until done.
• 3. Thin out the thick stem part of the leaf by carefully cutting across the stem taking one or more layers out so you can roll each leaf easily. Put some of the meat mixture into a cabbage leaf that has been prepared. Start rolling away from you. Fold over each side. Continue rolling up (like an egg roll). Optional: Use a toothpick to secure cabbage leaf if needed. Roll them up like you would an egg roll and place seam side down on a platter. When these are all done, set aside a few minutes.
• 4. Mix the sauce together in a big stainless steel pot. Bring to a boil, then turn down heat to a simmer.
• 5. Place unused cabbage leaves in the bottom of the pan. Place all of the cabbage rolls on the unused leaves.
• 6. Simmer for about an hour with a lid on the pot. Or you can bake at 350 degrees , covered with lid or foil for about an hour. **** Serve with corn and mashed potatoes, using the sauce as your gravy. Make sure you remove the toothpicks if you choose to use them.