Stuffed Cabbage Rolls ロールキャベツ

As you know, Japanese has many yoshoku (western-style Japanese) dishes. I’ve shared them before on Just One Cookbook, such as Hambager Steak (Hambagu), Spaghetti Napolitan, Omurice, etc. One of the popular yoshoku recipes that enjoyed especially in fall/winter time is Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. In case you’re curious, we call this dish Roll Cabbage (ロールキャベツ).

I’m aware that it’s in the middle of summer. In fact, it’s rainy season in Japan where I am currently writing this post. It’s warm, sticky, humid, and I want something light and cold to eat. However, once in a while I throw in some recipes for my dearest readers in the Southern Hemisphere, and this recipe is for you guys and I hope it’ll keep you warm during the cold winter.

Japanese Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls are a dish consisting of blanched cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of fillings, and they are common in cuisines of the Balkans and Central/Northern/Eastern Europe. This dish was introduced to Japan in late 1800s.

Unlike the classic Stuffed Cabbage Rolls you’ve seen before, the Japanese version doesn’t include rice (even though there are various versions within Japan).

Typically in Japan, we sauté onions and combine with the ground meat (usually combination of beef and pork). Then we wrap the stuffing with a cooked cabbage leaf and simmer in some kind of soup base – it can be tomato base like today’s recipe, simple consomé, or a wafu (Japanese) soup base with dashi broth. Sometimes a slice of bacon is wrap around the cabbage roll.

One quick tip is to rest the meat mixture in the fridge for at least 15-30 minutes. Cooling the mixture helps to solidify fat, keep the meat juicy and prevent from drying out, and enhance and trap the umami flavor.

Japanese almost always make this dish on stovetop, mainly because that’s the most common way of cooking meals in Japan (not everyone has an oven like the American kitchen). However, this dish can nicely transform into a casserole dish.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls – Amazing Comfort Food

This may not be a quick weeknight meal per se, but it’s definitely a comfort dish that I look forward to eating when I come home from the cold weather outside. Well, as I am getting older, I feel San Francisco is pretty cold even in the summer time, so I do enjoy eating this all year around.

The great part is that you can make stuffed cabbage rolls ahead of time and they still tastes great, so it can be a nice dish to bring to a pot luck or dinner party.

And speaking of party, you might want to know a good wine paring! We paired this dish with a wonderful wine. Reviewing wine is Mr. JOC’s favorite part of the blogging (next to making videos), and here’s what he wants to say about the pairing.

2011 Inman Family OGV Pinot Noir

I was really excited to try the 2011 Inman Family OGV Pinot Noir, as Pinot Noir is one of our favorite grape varietals. Another reason is we’ve tried Kathleen’s Endless Crush Rosé before and it was absolutely fabulous (read the story behind the Rosé here). At $68, this is not a cheap Pinot Noir, however it’s one you should savor and enjoy for a special occasion or dinner.

To be honest, I was a bit thrown off by the screwcap rather than a cork, but it just made it easier to open the wine so I don’t mind. As your pour and smell the glass, the wine had a deep berry and just a bit earthy aroma, and smelled very clean. As I took the first sip, I was really surprised.

Typically pinot noir I like are very fruity with a sweet note; however this wine was completely different. It tastes very grown up compared to other pinot noir that we’ve tried of the same vintage. As the wine rolls past your tongue, your brain is trying to figure out exacting what flavors am I tasting. For me, it starts off tasting a bit like dried berries, then the flavor completely changes to a more earthy tone. As the smooth elegant wine flows through your mouth and ends in a slightly spicy tone. I’ve never tasted a pinot noir quite like it.

My only thoughts as I am enjoying this wine was what an interesting wine it was. The best part was it paired perfectly with Nami’s stuffed cabbage rolls. The initial fruity flavors worked really well with the tomato sauce while the spices cut through the meat and the butter. It was an amazing dinner!

Here’s the video on How To Make Stuffed Cabbage Rolls on my YouTube Channel. I hope you enjoy this recipe! Thank you so much for reading, and till next time!

Don’t want to miss a recipe? Sign up for the FREE Just One Cookbook newsletter delivered to your inbox! And stay in touch on Facebook, Google , Pinterest, and Instagram for all the latest updates.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Save Print
Prep time 30 mins
Cook time 60 mins
Total time 1 hour 30 mins
Author: Namiko Chen Serves: 4 (12 cabbage rolls)
Ingredients

• ½ large onion
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 1 large head of cabbage (will need 12 cabbage leaves)
• 2 ½ tsp. kosher salt, divided
• 1 lb. (453 g) ground meat (preferably ¼ lb. pork and ¾ lb. beef)
• 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• ½ Tbsp. butter
• Parsley for garnish

For Stuffing

• 1 egg
• ⅓ cup (20 g) panko
• 2 Tbsp. milk
• ½ tsp. nutmeg
• Freshly ground black pepper

For Sauce

• 2 bay leaves
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 (14.5-oz, 411 g) can of diced tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp. white wine
• 1 cup (240 ml) chicken/vegetable stock

Equipment you will need

• 6 ¾ QT. oval Dutch oven or equivalent size pot
• 12 toothpicks
• Otoshibuta (drop lid)
  

Instructions

1. Mince the onion. With the knife tip pointing toward the root, thinly slice the onion within ½ inch off the base. Then slice the onion horizontally.
   

Then cut perpendicular to the first slices you made. If the onions need to be chopped finer, you can run your knife through them in a rocking motion.

In a frying pan, heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil on medium heat and sauté onion until softened, about 4 to 6 minutes.

Start boiling 2 QT (2L) water and add 1 tsp. salt when boiling. Remove the center core of the cabbage with a knife.

Completely submerge the whole cabbage and cook the cabbage until the leaves are pliable and started to peel off, about 5 minutes. Using kitchen tongs or a fork, peel off and take out loosen outer cabbage leaves from the pot.

Soak the cabbage leaves in iced water to stop the cooking process. Remove excess water from them with a salad spinner or pat dry with paper towel. Trim the tough, thick center vein at the base of each leaf (upside-down V shape). Alternatively, you can shave down this thick part. For a beginner cook, I recommend simply cutting it off.

Chop the thick veins into small pieces, which will be added to the stuffing.

In a large bowl, mix the meat, sautéed onion, and the chopped vein parts of the cabbage with your clean hands or a rubber spatula.

Add 1 egg, ⅓ cup panko, 2 Tbsp. milk, ½ tsp. nutmeg, 1 tsp. salt, and pepper.

Mix well until the mixture is sticky and combined. Cover with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes (this step is optional; however, it helps to solidify fat, keep the meat juicy and prevent from drying out, and enhance and trap the umami flavor.).

Try to divide the mixture into 12 equal parts (I roughly divided into 8 first and adjusted the amounts later).

Put 1 Tbsp. of the flour into a fine sieve for dusting. Working with 1 leaf at a time, overlap the bottom of cabbage leaf where you see the upside down V-shape. Lightly dust the flour over the cabbage leaf. The flour helps the stuffing stick to the cabbage and acts as biding agent. Add the stuffing in the center of the bottom part of the cabbage leaf.

Starting with the stem end, roll the cabbage up tightly, tucking in the sides of the leaf as you roll.

Use one hand to pull the edge of the leaf and roll the fillings tightly toward the edge.

Insert a toothpick to seal and secure the edge so the roll doesn’t fall apart while cooking. Repeat with the remaining leaves and stuffing.

What if the cabbage leaf is broken? You can still use it. Use a smaller cabbage leaf to “patch” up and roll the fillings the same way.

In a large pot (I use 6 ¾ QT. oval Dutch oven), heat 1 Tbsp. of the olive oil on medium heat and cook 2 bay leaves and minced garlic until fragrant. Then stir in the diced tomatoes.

Reduce the heat to medium low. Add 1 Tbsp. white wine, ½ tsp. salt, and freshly ground black pepper, and bring it to simmer on medium heat.

Place the cabbage rolls side by side in rows, seam side down, in the pot. If there are open spaces, stuff the leftover cabbage in the opening so the cabbage rolls won’t move around while cooking. Pour 1 cup of chicken/vegetable broth.

Place Otoshibuta (drop lid) on top of the cabbage rolls. If you don’t have a drop lid or your pot is not round, you can make it with aluminum foil (see how to make it here). Cover to cook on medium heat. After boiling, lower the heat to medium low heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add ½ Tbsp. butter to give it a little shine and more flavor.

When you are ready to serve, carefully pick up the stuffed cabbage roll with kitchen tongs and put in a serving dish. Remove the toothpick and pour the sauce on top. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Notes Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
3.3.3070
Please note: We received Kathleen’s Endless Crush Rosé from Jarvis Communications free of charge to use in exchange for an honest review. We received no compensation for the wine review.

The post Stuffed Cabbage Rolls ロールキャベツ appeared first on Just One Cookbook.