Country – Ukraine

Paleo – Strict Paleo says no rice, but “today’s Paleo” seems to accept this. Your body your decision. I included a cauliflower rice version as well for the strict folks, which I prefer. Add more of the seasonings to compensate for the blandness of the cauliflower. Also, butter is not Paleo and ghee does not have the same sweetness. 🧈 Traditionally butter is added to the meat sauce and as a garnish after serving yourself on the individual plate.

FODMAP – No issues ✅ Of course do not add onions and garlic ❌🧅🧄Luckily, it still tastes amazing without them! You can try the powders if you want to experiment.

Macros – You’ll need to make a recipe in your app and decide how many rolls you’re going to eat and make a serving size accordingly. 🔢 Every time you make this dish, it will yield a different amount of rolls because of the size of cabbage, so adjust your servings each time.

Serving size – 8

Ingredients
– 1 pound of ground beef (traditional 2 pounds)
– 1 pound of ground turkey (not traditional but used to lessen the fat)
– 2 heads of cabbage
– 2 cups of cooked white rice or 2 cups of uncooked cauliflower rice
– 1 jar of marinara sauce *lowFODMAP make sure it’s garlic and onion free
– 1 can of tomato sauce, plus fill the can with water
– 2 tablespoons of dried basil
– 2 tablespoons of dried oregano
– 2 tablespoons of dried parsley
-1 teaspoon of salt
– 1 tablespoon of ghee *OMIT for low FODMAP
– 1/2 medium peeled and diced onion *OMIT for low FODMAP
– 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder or to taste *OMIT for low FODMAP

Steps

Steps

1a-If adding onions, sauté for a few minutes before adding the meat.

1-Using a large frying pan, cook both pounds of ground meat and add the basil, oregano, parsley and salt, along with garlic powder if using. Once it is cooked, add the marinara sauce, cover and turn to simmer. Stir occasionally. Add more seasonings to personal preference.

2-Using a large soup/stock pot big enough that the water covers the cabbage, boil water then add one head of cabbage. Give it 5 minutes. Using long tongs, grab the core and using a knife in the other hand cut the outer leaf and let it pull away from the head of cabbage to let it cook on its own. Once the color has changed and it looks almost see through, use the tongs to remove that leaf to set aside. Continue until all the pieces are cooked even the small ones at the end! Repeat with the other cabbage head.

3-Add the rice (or cauliflower rice) to the meat sauce and remove from heat. Set up your assembly line however it works best for your organization. After many different set ups, my favorite is my working casserole pan in the middle, the cabbage on my left and the meat sauce on my right side.

4-Preheat the oven to 350°. Pour enough tomato sauce in the casserole dish to cover the sides and the whole bottom. Keep the rest for the final step.

5-To assemble take one piece of cabbage at a time, placing the stem towards yourself. Add the meat sauce based on how big the cabbage piece is, at least one large spoonful. Fold the edges from the outside over the meat sauce, start from the stem and start rolling it, trying not to break the cabbage and to keep it in a roll. Place the roll in the casserole dish lining them up in rows. Do not over stuff the pan. Use a second pan if necessary, which it usual is.

6-Once all the rolls have been made, layer the top with any meat sauce that was unused and any small cabbage pieces that were too small to make rolls can be used as a layer. Then pour the tomato sauce all over the rolls. Refill the tomato can with water and pour that all over the cabbage rolls as well. Use your hands to work the sauce between the rolls and the sides of the pan and a little between the rolls. Cover with tin foil and bake for 3 hours. Remove the foil and bake for 15 minutes.

7-Serving. Traditionally butter or sour cream will be added on top. To stay Paleo you can use ghee or a Paleo version of sour cream, which you can make with coconut cream and lemons if you don’t want to buy some. There is a pretty good almond sour cream product and a cashew one (don’t use for lowFODMAP though). Personally, I love this dish without anything extra, but my Ukrainian husband makes his Paleo exception to have butter with his.☺️

Helpful hints – Organic cabbage is smaller than regular, so get three heads if you’re buying that.

-Be careful not to cook the cabbage too long in the boiling water.  It will continue to cook in the oven plus if it’s cooked too thin it’ll rip when rolling it.

-Since sizes of cabbage vary, I make one side the large rolls and the smaller ones next to it, so they fit end to end, which makes two rows down the casserole dish.

-Cook time can vary. Some people pull it out when they can smell it throughout the house.  Some people want the cabbage to be slightly hard and some people pull it out whenever they’re tired of waiting for it. 😂 Watch the tomato sauce to make sure it doesn’t burn though. You can cook this too long!😵

-Also, I use the marinara sauce with the meat for more flavor.  Traditionally it would be just tomato sauce. Because we like spicy,🌶 I’ve tried it with arrabiata sauce which changes it too much.

Nutrition Facts

Calories – 290
Protein – 25g
Carbohydrates – 15g
Fats – 14g

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