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stuffed savoy cabbage rolls with potatoes and sauce on a plate.
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4.67 from 3 votes

Stuffed Savoy Cabbage - German Recipe

Traditional German stuffed savoy cabbage rolls with minced meat served with a comforting white sauce and boiled potatoes.
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: German
Servings: 8
Calories: 496kcal
Author: Adina

Equipment

  • Dutch oven or a deeper pan large enough to hold the rolls in a single layer

Ingredients

  • 1 large Savoy cabbage
  • 2 oz day-old white bread 60 g
  • 14 oz ground meat a mixture of beef and pork, 400 g
  • 1 small onion
  • 2 teaspoons mustard
  • 1 pinch of sweet paprika powder
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 cups beef or chicken stock 500 ml
  • 1 cup whole milk 250 ml
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • fine sea salt and pepper
  • potatoes to serve

Instructions

Prepare leaves:

  • Boil water: Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
  • Cabbage leaves: In the meantime, remove the wilted outer leaves from the Savoy cabbage and carefully remove the leaves by cutting them off the core. The recipe will make 8 rolls, but you will need to prepare more leaves; you will sometimes need 2 or 3 leaves to form a roll.
  • Blanch cabbage leaves: When the water boils, add some salt and blanch the leaves until wilted, about 2-3 minutes. Drain well. Pat them dry with kitchen paper before filling them.

Filling:

  • Soak the white bread in a little warm water. Chop the onion very finely.
  • Combine filling: Place the ground meat, onion, mustard, sweet paprika powder, salt, and pepper into a bowl and mix well. Squeeze the bread well to remove the excess moisture, and add it to the bowl as well. Mix everything very well together.

Fill and roll:

  • Lay one large Savoy cabbage leaf on the working surface. If the leaves are too small or broken, overlap 2 or 3 cabbage leaves.
  • Fill: Divide the filling into 8 portions and form 8 cabbage rolls. Place some filling onto the middle-lower part of the leaf, fold the right and left sides over the filling, and roll the parcel starting at the base. Place them seam down on a plate.
    Repeat to form all the rolls.
  • Tip: Some people bind the rolls with cooking string. You could do it if you are unsure that the rolls will hold their shape, but I've never done it, it always worked well.

Cook:

  • Heat the oil in a pan large enough to hold all the rolls in one layer.
  • Fry the rolls on all sides; they should be golden brown all over.
  • Simmer: Pour the stock into the pan, cover, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and simmer the cabbage rolls for about 25 minutes.
  • In the meantime, cook the potatoes in salted water.
  • Keep warm: When the cabbage rolls are cooked, carefully remove them from the pot. Place them on a platter and keep them warm.

Sauce:

  • Add the milk to the cooking liquid in the pan. Bring to a boil.
  • Cornstarch slurry: In the meantime stir the cornstarch with a little water to form a paste. Slowly pour into the pot while whisking continuously.
  • Let bubble a couple of times. Add some gratings of nutmeg and adjust the taste with salt and pepper.
  • Serve immediately with boiled potatoes.

Notes

The nutrition is calculated including the sauce but not the potatoes.

Nutrition

Serving: 2cabbage rolls with sauce | Calories: 496kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 703mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g