Cabbage Rolls With Walnuts and Sour Cream
- Total Time
- 2½ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 2medium yellow onions (about 1 pound), peeled, halved and sliced
- ¾cup/170 grams unsalted butter
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
- 1large savoy cabbage (at least 2½ pounds)
- 1teaspoon ground allspice
- ¾teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½teaspoon ground cumin
- 1cup/100 grams walnuts, roughly crushed with a mortar and pestle
- 3tablespoons pine nuts
- ½packed cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
- ½packed cup finely chopped fresh dill, plus 1 tablespoon to serve
- 3tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons)
- 1heaping cup sour cream
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
694 calories; 67 grams fat; 29 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 16 grams monounsaturated fat; 16 grams polyunsaturated fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 767 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Place the onions, ½ cup butter and 1½ teaspoons of salt in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and browned.
- Step 2
While the onions cook, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high. Prepare the cabbage: Remove the very dark green outer leaves and save them for another use. Use a small knife to cut around the stem of the cabbage to release the base of the leaves; discard the core. Carefully peel off 12 leaves, taking care not to rip them. Set aside the remaining cabbage for later. Place the 12 leaves into the pot of boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes. Using tongs, remove the cabbage leaves and transfer to a large colander. Place in the sink under cold running water to cool down, then leave to strain.
- Step 3
Once the onions are cooked, add the spices, walnuts and pine nuts and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and lightly toasted. Place a heatproof sieve over a small saucepan and strain the mixture, reserving the spiced butter. Transfer the strained onion mixture to a medium bowl; combine with the parsley and dill, then set aside.
- Step 4
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Finely slice about 4 cups of the remaining unblanched cabbage and place it in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. To fill the cabbage rolls, place the blanched leaves on a chopping board, stem side up. Use a peeler or a small sharp knife to shave the stem along its length so that it’s no longer raised and is level with the leaf. Divide the onion mixture into 12 portions (about 2 tablespoons each). With the stem side of a cabbage leaf facing you, place one portion of filling in the center of each leaf so it’s perpendicular to the stem. Bring the base and then the sides into the center, then roll the cabbage leaves all the way up to seal. Place each roll into the baking dish, seam side down, then pour over the lemon juice, dot with the remaining ¼ cup plain butter and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt.
- Step 5
Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake the cabbage rolls for 1 hour. Remove the foil then return to the oven for about 20 minutes more, until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Step 6
While the cabbage is cooling, add the sour cream to a small saucepan and heat over medium for 3 minutes, stirring constantly, to loosen and warm through. Don’t let it bubble at all; you don’t want it to split. At the same time, gently reheat the spiced butter in its saucepan until melted. Next, pour the sour cream into the cabbage roll dish; avoid pouring it directly on top of the rolls. Shake the dish gently to mix the sour cream in, then pour the spiced butter over the cabbage rolls. Sprinkle with the extra dill, season with a good grind of black pepper and serve directly from the baking dish.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Martha
My Aunt Carol makes excellent sarma, a Croatian version of stuffed cabbage. Instead of blanching the cabbage, she put the head in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. That softens up the leaves sufficiently and saves her (and her helpers) from dealing with a boiling hot head of cabbage.
Mary Anderson
You'd need a chef to prepare this. Why not simply roast slabs of cabbage in olive oil at 400 in the oven and top with walnuts and sautéed onion and spices -- skip the butter. Add sour cream if you want the calories.
Ohio eater
Lacking an army of babushkas, I’ll appropriate this delicious sounding recipe and convert it to a casserole. Less work but still promising.
Ohio eater
When I think of cabbage rolls, I envision an Orthodox Church kitchen, filled with babushkas, seriously at work producing brassica rolls for sale. To earn a spot as a roller, one must have been there in that kitchen for forty years. Younger cooks get the tedious or dangerous jobs, such as blanching the cabbage leaves and retrieving them from a steaming pot. The top babushkas roll the bundles as tightly as they’d swaddle a newborn, limbs carefully tucked in the receiving blanket.
Leslie B.
Freeze the whole head of cabbage for a few hours or overnight and the leaves will peel off with ease when you're ready to cook. Much easier.
Elle
This was so much fun to make. I prepped it today for a twist on the flabby cabbage served with corned beef on St. Paddy’s Day. It was easy to make and it smells scrumptious. Someone mentioned pine nuts being expensive. This recipe only had three tablespoons. I purchase pine nuts from Trader Joe’s, and they are much less expensive there.
Caryn B.
Pine nuts, while delicious, are pricey. I have often substituted hemp hearts with good results.
Lurlene
Re step 4: The stem is very thick at the base of each leaf and then thins out toward the top of the leaf. That thick part at the base is a problem because it's too stiff to roll up the way you need it to (even after blanching). So, you hold a knife parallel to the cutting surface and basically shave down the stem where it protrudes thickly near the base. Then it's easier to fill and roll up the leaf.
John
Cabbage rolls brings to mind my partner hosting two Ukrainian ladies for an English instructors seminar. They arrived straight from Ukraine, had never seen or used a seat belt before. They wanted to cook dinner. We visited a Safeways to buy supplies. Much discussion with the butcher on the proper grind of beef. Then cabbage selection. We left with four of the largest heads of cabbage for a dinner party of four. Four or five hours later we had a feast. Wonderful food and lifelong friends.
DW
In step 4, the 4 cups of finely sliced cabbage is placed in the baking dish. The cabbage rolls go onto the bed of sliced cabbage.
Stella Luna
This was sublime. I made it for friends, along with a simple fish fillet under broiler. A bit of rice pilaf with lemon zest, parsley and sliced almonds on the side, and people were asking for the recipes. Spiced walnuts and creamy cabbage stole the show.
Lurlene
A couple days ago right after I rolled up and arranged some cabbage rolls in a plan, my son saw them and said excitedly, "They look like giant larvae!"
Anna
Another substitute for pricey pine nuts are cooked/canned garbanzos/chick peas. I use them all the time for pesto.
Willa
Non fat yogurt works for sour cream.
John
I buy pine nuts in the bulk section of my local Winco. About $9 a pound. I find I can buy a serious amount for very cheap. I keep them in a sealed glass pint canning jar in the freezer. Easy peasy and cheap.
Barbara Spencer
We found this recipe fun and easy to make, although it does take some time. Good for a rainy day. The cabbage leaves came off easily without coring the cabbage first, and we just blanched them for a couple of minutes. The leaves were very pliable for rolling and didn't break at all. The savoy cabbage with the tasty filling and toppings made for a completely new, unique, and interesting taste. Great texture with the savoy cabbage filled with walnuts and pine nuts. Had to have seconds. Delicious!
Madeline
To Mary Anderson's suggestion—thank you! I'm not adverse to this recipe but am all "cooked out" after Christmas gatherings with fun but significant dinners each night, so my plan for the cabbage rolls was just too muh for New Year's Day. It modified well into roasted cabbage steaks topped with the walnut/onion mixture. Another time for this one.
Gary
Fabulous! I threw some chanterelles in with the onions at about 15 minutes. So good!
McBread
Yum! Made it dairy free and bulked it up for a filling main dish: used olive oil instead of butter, added 1/2 a block of crumbled tofu to the onion and nut mixture (subbed sunflower seeds for pine nuts), and added cooked bulgur for heft. Added chicken broth to the pan so they wouldn't dry out during cooking. Topped with almond yogurt. Very filling and spiced.
Benedicte
I never thought that I would ever freeze a full (and beautiful) head of Savoy cabbage. I understood the science, but it still seemed somewhat sacrilegious. Could it really be that easy? Having tried, I do recommend the trick. You are robbed of the wonderful smell of blanched fresh cabbage, but it beats dealing with scalding water. The recipe is delicious, too!
PAW
The filling hits the hallmark flavor profiles of Middle Eastern type of expensive restaurants. Wrapped in cabbage, after an hour in the oven, the dish melds and smells wonderful. On the palate, comes across as a less-sour sauerkraut with a lot of rich complexity and an a warm Greek dolmas swimming in butter.
Christine Ducey
I made this recipe as it is written and it is well worth the hour of prep! Even though the prep time is long it’s very straight forward—not a lot of complex thinking. Once it’s in the oven you can sit back and enjoy a glass or two of wine while you wait for the dinner bell. The leftovers are also delicious. I would not change anything about the recipe.
Name gurukaram
We loved these! I made them for lunch with a friend and my husband and did not find the process to be too time consuming or onerous. I was able to assemble the rolls in less than an hour and then they baked for another hour. I did not strain the onions though and used 2 TBS of ghee to cook them. I also added 2 shredded carrots to the stuffing and used about 1.5 TBS of ghee on the bed of shredded cabbage. Do not skip the lemon juice! I used plant based “sour cream” for the sauce. YUM!
Name gurukaram
This was so good, but I think next time I will increase the spice level by 1/2 again as much
Silvia Rennie
PS: Also as a vegan, I of course skipped the butter and just used olive oil. But mostly, I couldn't imagine rubbing the filling through a sieve. I went at it a bit more with a pestle after cooking it and loved the crunchy, chewy result.
Silvia Rennie
BIG hit! As a vegan, instead of sour cream I diluted Tofutti cream cheese with some runny but well soured yogurt (Melissa Clark's cashew milk recipe) and sprinkled my favorite condiment, Nature's Seasons, on it and it was delicious. Before putting the thinly sliced cabbage into the baking dish, I mixed it with olive oil and Nature' Seasons. The filling was just brilliant! I agree with the reader who suggested simplifying this dish by layering cabbage and filling lasagna-style. Next time!
lkmemphis
Neither having nor being an Eastern European mama, I enjoyed making this recipe! I did grow up south of Pittsburgh, where cabbage rolls featured regularly in school lunches and wedding receptions! I tried the freezing trick and it worked really well. I used avocado oil in lieu of most of the butter and cut back on the final bit of dotting butter over the rolls using only about 2 Tbs. The sauteeing procedure in 1/2 cup butter in addition to sour cream sauce seemed rich enough! Delicious.
janis
Delicious and fun to make. Add raisins, brings this dish over the top.
Katy
This is time consuming, but so worth it. The yummiest cabbage rolls I've ever had/made. I froze the cabbage for half a day, as others suggested, and the leaves were NOT easy to peel off. I'll blanch next time. Substituted raisins for pine nuts. Served them with a lemon parsley rice pilaf. So very flavorful and satisfying.
CpBoston
Delicious meal that makes you feel like you are eating a combination of tastes you have not had before! It’s like something you might get at a very fancy, unique vegetarian restaurant. Pairing with a rice makes for nice meal and complements the strong flavors in this dish. Make sure to read the accompanying article. It takes some time, but using a food processor to do some of the prep work helped. Definitely worth the effort, it impressed! For leftovers, try serving with cold sour cream.
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