Gołąbki Casserole – Quick Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe

Who doesn’t love a good plate of gołąbki? Those tender cabbage rolls filled with savory meat and rice, dipped in a delicious tomato sauce… it’s the ultimate Polish comfort food. But let’s be honest, sometimes life gets in the way. Who has the time to roll all those little rolls?

That’s where this Gołąbki Casserole comes in! It’s all the flavor of your Babcia’s best gołąbki, but with a clever twist. No rolling in the cabbage required!

Think of it: Imagine layers of sweet cabbage and flavorful rice, mingling with ground meat and aromatic spices, all baked to perfection in a rich tomato sauce. It’s gołąbki, deconstructed!

How To Make This Gołąbki Casserole?

Step 1 – Prepare The Rice

Cook rice in salty water for about 10 minutes (from the moment the water is boiling).

Drain the rice and allow to cool.

Step 2 – Prepare The Veggies

Chop the cabbage finely.

Peel an onion and garlic cloves. Chop them finely. Fry diced onion and garlic with 1 tbsp oil for 5-10 minutes.

Step 3 – Form & Fry Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

In a bowl, mix all the ingredients for unstuffed cabbage rolls.

Using wet hands, form the oval-shaped rolls. Coat each roll in flour.

Fry the rolls in oil for about 3 minutes on each side.

Step 4 – Make Tomato Sauce

Blend all the ingredients for the sauce. You may use any other tomato sauce as well.

Step 5 – Make & Bake Gołąbki Casserole

Place unstuffed cabbage rolls in the heat-resistant vessel.

Cover with tomato sauce.

Place the lid on the vessel. Bake at 390F/ 200C for 45 minutes (count the time since the moment the oven is fully heated).

Serve warm!

Tips For Making Gołąbki Casserole

Use any cabbage you want.

I have leftover Napa cabbage rolls (I used the rest to make this Polish gyros salad). Any type of cabbage will work for this gołąbki casserole. Just make sure to chop it finely.

Use wet hands to form the rolls.

It’s best to place some water on a plate and wet your hands everytime you make a new roll.

Use any type of minced meat.

I used beef this time but you can use pork, or mixed meat as well. Chicken or turkey may work as well but I don’t like them in my gołąbki casserole.

Place the vessel in a cold oven

If you are using glass/ ceramic vessels, remember to place them in a cold oven. Placing a cold vessel in a hot oven may result in cracking (the temperature difference will probably destroy the vessel).

If you don’t have a lid to put on the vessel, simply cover it with aluminum foil.

Check out my other gołąbki recipes

I have so many on the blog! Here they are:

• vegan gołąbki
• keto gołąbki
• authentic traditional gołąbki
• gołąbki lasagna
• lazy gołąbki
• stuffed cabbage soup

Gołąbki Casserole Recipe