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The other day I asked my wife if there was anything special she wanted for dinner this week. She said cabbage rolls. I instantly thought smoked cabbage rolls. I didn’t necessarily run the ‘smoked’ part of the idea by her. But that’s what I made, and they came out tasting absolutely fantastic. Juicy, moist, flavorful stuffing, wrapped in tender steamed cabbage leaves, all in a simple but still yummy tomato sauce. Smoked for about an hour, these cabbage rolls combine the traditional with just a hint of smoky flavor. We both agree, these are fantastic and that it’s ok that I didn’t run the idea by her first!
You can also make these awesome cabbage rolls in the oven, baking them at 350 F. Smoking them does give them a different, unique, wonderful flavor, but they are still great in the oven. If you have a smoker, I definitely recommend the little bit of extra effort it takes to fire it up to make these rolls.
I prefer to use fruit or nut woods when I smoke unless I want a heavier smoke flavor. Pecan, apple or cherry are my favorites. For these rolls I went with apple. The results were amazing!
Also try my slow cooker stuffed cabbage rolls.
Smoked Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
For the rolls
- 1 medium green cabbage core removed but keep the head intact
- 1 ¼ pounds ground beef
- ¼ pound bulk pork sausage
- 1 cup white rice cooked ,cooled
- 1 small sweet onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ tablespoons Cajun seasoning
For the sauce
- 14 ½ ounce petite diced tomatoes not drained
- 10 ¾ ounce tomato soup condensed, undiluted
- Kosher salt
- ground black pepper
Instructions
- Fire up your smoker for high heat (350 F) cooking. Use whatever wood you prefer. You can also cook the rolls in the oven at 350 F.
For the rolls
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add the cabbage with the hole where the core was facing down.
- Cover and boil for 10 minutes.
- Remove the head from the water and let cool slightly. Gently remove 10 large leaves. You might need more or less depending on how large they are.
- Lay the leaves flat so that the stem side is up. Using a sharp knife, gently cut the stem section horizontally, removing as much of the stem as you can without cutting the leaves.
- Combine remaining roll ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well.
- Working in batches, form meat into a miniature log that is about 1″ or so in diameter, and about 2″ long.
- Place each log onto a leaf near the stem. Fold in the sides then roll up from the bottom (stem area), like you would a burrito.
- Place into a disposable aluminum pan, seam-side down.
For the sauce
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
- Pour sauce over the rolls.
- Place onto smoker and smoke for 15-20 minutes.
- Cover pan tightly in foil and continue smoking for up to 45 minutes or until the internal temperature of the rolls reaches 160 F.
- Let cool slightly then serve.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.
We have been smoking cabbage rolls for years now the flavor is off the charts but still love regular ones also but prefer smoked ones