Stuffed Cabbage Casserole (with Rice)

This amazing Stuffed Cabbage Casserole (with Rice) came from my friend Dolores, and it’s the ultimate in healthy winter comfort food! I also have a delicious Low-Carb variation with cauliflower rice for this tasty casserole recipe.

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I’m sharing this delicious Stuffed Cabbage Casserole (with Rice) on my birthday! Having a birthday that’s close to the end of the year means a double-dose of reflecting on life every December. Lately I’ve been thinking how it seemed easier to eat healthy meals when I went off to work every day. When I was teaching school I had to take a lunch! And being forced to plan ahead meant I always made casseroles or soups on the weekend to make sure my freezer was well-stocked.

I’m trying to get that habit back, so over the weekend I made Stuffed Cabbage Casserole and I have six servings of it in the freezer! This casserole started with a recipe that my friend Dolores sent me after she’d mentioned it on Facebook, and as soon as I saw her recipe I knew I’d love it.

I followed her idea for a layered Stuffed Cabbage Casserole with cabbage and a meat-rice-tomato mixture, but I used less meat, spiced the meat up a bit, used more cabbage in proportion to the other ingredients (which Dolores recommended). I also added some low-fat cheese on top, and I love this healthy layered dish made with cabbage. If you like cabbage at all, I hope you try this recipe!

What ingredients do you need?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• Olive Oil (affiliate link)
• ground beef
• onion
• Minced Garlic (affiliate link) or minced fresh garlic
• Dried Thyme (affiliate link)
• sweet Hungarian Paprika, preferably Szeged Sweet Paprika (affiliate link)
• sharp Hungarian Paprika, preferably Szeged Hot Paprika (affiliate link)
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• green cabbage
• caned petite dice tomatoes with juice
• canned tomato sauce
• water
• cooked rice
• grated cheese

What rice did we use for the Stuffed Cabbage Casserole?

We used brown rice for this recipe but a converted rice like Ben’s Original Converted Rice (affiliate link) would also be good.

How high in carbs is the Stuffed Cabbage Casserole?

This recipe has about 22 net carbs per serving, and also 22 grams of protein! See the link below for a low-carb version.

Want low-carb Stuffed Cabbage Casserole?

My site has a popular recipe for a low-carb version of this casserole with cauliflower rice. We were thrilled at how well the low-carb version turned out, so check that out if you’d like a version with less carbs. 

How to Make Stuffed Cabbage Casserole (with Rice):

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. You’ll need two cups of cooked rice, and I used brown rice that I cooked in my much-loved Zojirishi Rice Cooker (affiliate link).
2. Brown the ground beef in a large frying pan.  (If you use lean ground beef, you’ll need a bit of olive oil.)
3. Remove ground beef and then brown the onions in a little olive oil.  When onions are starting to brown, add the minced garlic, thyme, and paprika and cook a few minutes more.
4. Then add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, and browned ground beef and let the mixture simmer for 15-20 minutes. 
5. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper.
6. While that simmers, chop up the cabbage. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan or dutch oven with high sides, and cook the cabbage until it’s wilted and about half cooked. 
7. Here’s how the cabbage looks when it’s done and seasoned with a little salt and pepper.
8. When the meat and tomato sauce mixture has cooked 15-20 minutes and thickened a bit, stir in 2 cups of cooked rice and gently combine
9. Spray a large glass or crockery casserole dish with nonstick spray and start layering, starting with a layer of the cooked cabbage
10. Top that with half the meat-tomato-rice mixture.  Repeat with another layer of cabbage topped with the meat-tomato-rice mixture
11. Cover the casserole tightly with foil and bake at 350F/180C for 40 minutes (or until it’s just starting to bubble on the edges.
12. Cheese is optional, but I removed the foil, sprinkled over 2 cups of a cheese blend, and baked uncovered until the cheese was nicely melted. (I used a blend with 80% mozzarella, 10% cheddar, and 10% Provolone.
13. And here’s how the finished Stuffed Cabbage Casserole looked when it came out of the oven!
14. Thanks Dolores for a recipe idea that I know is going to be a long-term repeater at my house!

Weekend Food Prep:

This Stuffed Cabbage Casserole is perfect for the category called Weekend Food Prep where you’ll find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

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Yield: 10 servings

Stuffed Cabbage Casserole (with Rice)

Prep Time 40 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes

This Stuffed Cabbage Casserole is the ultimate in healthy winter comfort food and this recipe is a variation on cabbage rolls made into a casserole! This recipe has rice, but there's a link to a low-carb version with cauliflower rice if you prefer that option.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 T olive oil, divided (more or less, depending on your pan)
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped small
• 1 T finely minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. sweet Hungarian Paprika (see notes)
• 1/2 tsp. sharp Hungarian Paprika (optional; if making for kids I might leave this out)
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste (for seasoning meat mixture and cooked cabbage)
• 1 1/2 heads green cabbage, coarsely chopped
• 1 14.5 oz. can petite dice tomatoes with juice
• 1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup water (just enough to rinse out each of the cans)
• 2 cups cooked rice (see notes)
• 2 cups cheese (optional; see notes)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F/180C.  Spray a large glass or crockery casserole dish with non-stick spray.  (I used a dish that was 12″ x 10″.)
2. Heat 1-2 tsp. olive oil in a large frying pan; add ground beef and cook until it’s done and nicely browned, breaking apart as it cooks.  (I like to use a potato masher (affiliate link) to break the meat apart once it’s partly done.)  Remove ground beef to a bowl.
3. In the same pan, add a little more olive oil if needed, then add chopped onion and cook over medium heat until the onion is translucent and starting to brown, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the minced garlic, dried thyme, and paprika and cook about 2 minutes more.
5. Then add the diced tomatoes with juice, tomato sauce, and ground beef.  Rinse each of the cans out with a little water (about 1/4 cup total) and add to the pan.  Let mixture simmer until it’s hot and slightly thickened, about 15-20 minutes.
6. While the meat mixture simmers, cut cabbage in half, cut out the core, and remove any wilted outer leaves, and then chop the cabbage coarsely into pieces.  (They don’t have to be all the same size.  I chopped it into pieces that varied from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches.)
7. Heat about 2 tsp. olive oil in a large frying pan or dutch oven with high sides, add the cabbage and cook over medium-high heat until the cabbage is wilted and about half cooked, turning it over several times so it all wilts and cooks.  Season cabbage with salt and fresh-ground black pepper.
8. When the meat and tomato sauce mixture has cooked 15-20 minutes and thickened a bit, stir in the 2 cups of cooked rice and gently combine.
9. Spray a large glass or crockery casserole dish with non-stick spray and the layer half the cabbage, half the meat mixture, other half of cabbage, and other half of meat mixture.
10. Cover tightly with foil and bake about 40 minutes, or until the mixture is just starting to bubble on the edges.
11. Remove foil and sprinkle on cheese (if using.)  Bake uncovered an additional 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and starting to slightly brown.  Serve the Stuffed Cabbage Casserole hot.
12. To reheat, I would recommend thawing overnight in the refrigerator and then either microwaving it until hot or heating in the oven in a glass dish covered with foil.

Notes

I use both Sweet Hungarian Paprika (affiliate link) and Sharp Hungarian Paprika (affiliate link) to make this dish. I love Szeged Paprika (affiliate link) and always use that brand; good quality paprika makes a big difference here. I might leave out the Sharp Hungarian Paprika if making this for kids.

I used brown rice, but use any rice you prefer.

I used a blend of  mozzarella, cheddar, and Provolone for the cheese.

This recipe from my good friend Dolores.

Nutrition Information

Yield

10

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 356Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 8gUnsaturated Fat 8gCholesterol 65mgSodium 508mgCarbohydrates 27gFiber 5gSugar 10gProtein 22g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
If you want fewer carbs, check out the low-carb version of Stuffed Cabbage Casserole, which uses cauliflower rice. Cabbage is a low-carb vegetable, and since this recipe is half cabbage that makes it a good option for phase 2 or 3 of the Original South Beach Diet. If you’re making this for South Beach it’s recommended to use low-fat ground beef, low-fat cheese, and brown rice (or a low-glycemic type of white rice like Ben’s Original Converted Rice (affiliate link) would also work.)

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Casseroles to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
Stuffed Cabbage Casserole was first posted in 2011, after I got the recipe from my friend Dolores. The recipe was last updated with more information in 2025.

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