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+ servings
A serving bowl filled with cabbage and meatballs.

Grandma's Unstuffed Cabbage and Meatballs Recipe

Sandi Gaertner
My grandmother's easy deconstructed, unstuffed cabbage rolls recipe. This is an amazing sweet and sour cabbage and meatballs recipe.
4.83 from 58 votes
dairy free allergen icon
gluten free allergy icon
nut free allergen icon
soy free allergy icon
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 55 minutes
Course Gluten Free Dinner Recipes, Meal Recipes
Cuisine American
Servings 8 people
Calories 433 kcal

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Ingredients
  

  • 14 ounces diced tomatoes do not use any flavored tomatoes
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • ¼ cup brown sugar (coconut sugar works too!)
  • cup raisins
  • 1 onion diced
  • 4 cup cabbage (1 medium cabbage)
  • cup ketchup
  • ¼ cup grape jelly (apricot jam also works)
  • 1 ½ pounds ground beef * see note
  • 1 cup rice * see note
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 ½ cups water

Instructions
 

Instant Pot:

  • Set Instant Pot to sauté and cook onion and olive oil for 3 minutes. The last couple of minutes, add the cabbage. (Stovetop: brown onion with olive oil until the onions are soft. Add cabbage to the pot.)
  • In a large bowl, add ground beef, egg, and uncooked rice. Mix well. Form small meatballs and drop them into the Instant Pot. This is the same for the stovetop version.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients to the Instant Pot or stovetop pot.
  • Instant Pot, set it to stew and cook for 35 minutes. Stovetop: cover and set to low temperature. Simmer 1-2 hours.
  • Serve hot

Stovetop:

  • Follow the above directions to make the meatballs and slice the cabbage.
  • In a large soup pot, add the oil and sauté the onion until it is soft.
  • Add the rest of the liquid ingredients to the pot.
  • Drop the meatballs gently into the pot and add the cabbage.
  • Do not stir the meatballs while they are raw or they will break apart.
  • Cover and cook on medium heat for 30 minutes, then reduce the heat to simmer.
  • Gently stir being very careful not to break the meatballs.
  • Continue cooking an additional 30 minutes. This can simmer much longer and the flavors will continue to develop and blend overnight in the refrigerator.

Notes

  1. You can use any ground meat in this recipe. Ground turkey and chicken will make it low-fat, but ground beef will give the most flavor. I have not tested Impossible meat.
  2. Use plain no salt-added canned diced tomatoes, not seasoned.
  3. I recommend using long-grain rice. You can use brown or white rice for the porcupine meatballs. Note you will need a longer cook time and more liquid if you use brown rice.
  4. Note this recipe can also be made stovetop.
  5. The flavor of this cabbage and meatballs recipe will continue to get better overnight as it sits in the refrigerator.
  6. These meatballs will keep up to 4 days in an airtight container, or up to 4 months in the freezer.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 433kcalCarbohydrates: 46gProtein: 18gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 323mgPotassium: 543mgFiber: 3gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 173IUVitamin C: 23mgCalcium: 71mgIron: 3mg
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Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.