Unstuffed Cabbage Skillet Dinner

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February 10, 2014 by Judith Hannemann

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Unstuffed Cabbage Skillet Dinner

Here’s a fuss-free skillet dinner for those nights you just don’t want to bother.

This “unstuffed” cabbage doesn’t use a tomato base. Great for those allergic to tomatoes and it’s cooked stovetop!

Also a good meal to keep in mind if you have any leftover cabbage (hint…St. Paddy’s Day).

You can mix about 1/2 cup of sour cream into this if you want–but I caution you to taste it first to see if you like it. It’s fine without it. What I did was put a dollop on top of my portion and mixed it in. It added a wonderfully tart creaminess that I enjoyed. However, I know that some don’t care for that so I made it an optional ingredient.

No baking, make it on top of the stove!

Since I’m not really into anything with a tomato sauce–and for some reason I’m even less into tomato with cabbage–I omitted that usual obligatory ingredient. But that doesn’t mean you can’t add it if you like it and I know I’m in the minority here.

I’ve tried to give directions for that which I feel will work, but please be aware that I did not test that and attempted to get the amount of liquid needed for the rice to cook correctly to be roughly equivalent. But if you try it that way, please keep an eye on the dish while it cooks–it may need more water. I have erred on the side of caution with conservative amounts of liquid there, so it is a possibility that you may need additional liquid.

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Here’s a fuss-free skillet dinner for those nights you just don’t want to bother.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Total Time55 minutes mins

Course: beef, Comfort Foods, Everyday Meals, skillet dinners

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cabbage, skillet dinner

Ingredients

1 lb lean ground beef
3 cups coarsely shredded cabbage
1 cup brown rice*
1 medium onion chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 tubs Knorr concentrated beef stock **
1 tsp garlic powder
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp pepper
sour cream optional

Instructions

white rice may be substituted
**Rich stock in the amount of 2 1/2 cups may be substituted, however, OMIT THE WATER then. If you like a tomato base, you can substitute 1 can (8 oz) of tomato sauce and 1.5-2 cups of water for the stock/water. If you do this, you may have to add more water if the rice is not cooked–I did not test it with this.
Heat a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the ground beef, onion and mushrooms. Brown meat well, draining off any excess fat.
Add the 2 tubs of stock gel and the water. Bring to a boil and add the rice, garlic powder and pepper; stir. Stir in the shredded cabbage.
Reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook for 35-45 minutes or until rice is done and water is absorbed. I would caution checking the water periodically and adding water as necessary so that the rice cooks–brown rice can be tricky this way. Even if you add too much water, the brown rice will absorb it eventually. As I mentioned, white rice may be substituted, and it has a shorter cook time.
Dish is done when rice is cooked and all water is absorbed. Serve with a dollop of sour cream on top.

Nutrition

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Unstuffed Cabbage Skillet Dinner

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Comments

Kelly Miciak says
February 19, 2014 at 4:44 am

This turned out very tasty and so easy. I've always loved stuffed cabbage but it's an all day process. And my Polish husband and I thought the flavor was better in this dish than the actual stuffed cabbage. I do like a tomato sauce base with my cabbage. Instead I just added a can of Italian style diced tomatoes and it was the perfect amount of tomato to go with the cabbage. Thank you for a new and easy take on stuffed cabbage!
Judith Hanneman says
February 19, 2014 at 4:54 am

I'm glad you tried it with the tomatoes Kelly because I really didn't know what to tell folks who wanted to add it–you know, amounts, cook times, etc. because I never did test it. My mom used to make something called "Russian" stuffed cabbage, and I don't know where she found the recipe, but that had very little tomato and the sauce base was sour cream. I'd love to find that one and do up an unstructured skillet dish with that. The real deal, like you say, is an all-day affair LOL and I'm not into fussing now that I'm older.
Mamma Vicious says
February 20, 2014 at 5:21 am

how much is 2 tubs knorr beefstock ?
this measurement tells me nothing on how much it is.need help with that one.ty.
Judith Hanneman says
February 20, 2014 at 3:08 pm

That is sold where boullion cubes are in the store. It's a US product–you don't say where you are located. But in the recipe above I say that liquid beef stock may be substitute for that, or 2 cubes and the equivalent of water. But it you can get the Knorr, it tastes very good. They are little tubs with about 1 tbs of highly condensed stock.
- rich says
  February 26, 2016 at 8:21 pm
  
  I buy this too, and it comes in a small jar.. what it is, is concentrated soup stock.
  - Judith Hanneman says
    February 26, 2016 at 9:22 pm
    
    The Knorr is getting hard to find now too.
Brandye Phillips says
March 6, 2014 at 9:57 pm

Hi Judith,
I tried this and it was so good. I love the knorr stock. I use them all the time and they have the best flavor. I know the cabbage rolls you were talking about and I found a great recipe that I have used several times. Here is the link:
http://natashaskitchen.com/2010/07/05/golubtsi-recipe-a-classic-russian-food/.
I am not a big fan of the tomato sauce so I searched a long time to find a recipe that did not use it. Hope you like these. They do take some time and the recipe makes a lot but I always just separate them out when I make it and freeze a portion. Also, a really neat trick I learned for making cabbage rolls so you can skip the step of boiling it which can be a real pain. Stick the heads of cabbage in the freezer the night before you plan to make them and then pull them out the next morning. They will thaw and the leaves will be perfectly pliable.
Sally Humeniuk says
March 31, 2014 at 5:30 pm

Judith, this looks incredible and I can't wait to try it! Thanks for posting a unique recipe.
Judith Hanneman says
March 31, 2014 at 5:35 pm

Thank you Sally! <3
Lillian (My Recipe Journey) says
October 1, 2014 at 2:23 pm

YUM…just pinned this! =D
Judith Hanneman says
October 1, 2014 at 2:39 pm

<3 Lillian!
lushnluxe says
October 28, 2014 at 6:38 pm

I come from Poland but I have never even attempted the Polish "Golabki". This version of the recipe is simple and enjoyable to cook. I made this today and it turned out absolutely delicious.
Anto says
January 14, 2015 at 5:03 pm

Cabbage and Ground Beef looks different for me. Will try it soon!
Judith Hanneman says
January 14, 2015 at 5:06 pm

This is great when you just don't want to fuss and have leftover cabbage (like from St. Patrick's Day) and really don't want cole slaw!!!
LACEE CHESNUTT says
May 30, 2015 at 10:18 pm

I'm making this now with our first cabbage out of our garden. I'm so excited to try this!
Judith Hanneman says
May 30, 2015 at 10:39 pm

Hope you like it Lacee! Lucky you with cabbage in your garden!!!
Jamila says
September 26, 2015 at 9:23 am

Fantastic blog! Do you have any hints ffor aspiring writers?
I’m hoping to start my own site soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
Wouuld you recommend starting with a fre platform like
Wordpress orr go for a paid option? Ther are so many choices out there that I’m completely overwhelmed ..
Any tips? Appreciate it!
- Judith Hanneman says
  September 26, 2015 at 3:18 pm
  
  ALWAYS start free. I’m self-hosted through WordPress, but I started on Blogger (Google) because it’s free, and that’s the one I recommend for anyone just starting out. At least with Blogger you can put ads on your site. You cannot with the freebie version of WordPress. And also with Blogger, you can buy a domain so you can get rid of the “blogspot” URL as opposed to free WordPress–with that you have to move to self hosting, and that sometimes is not cheap.