afoona
Cabbage Leaves Stuffed with Meat and Rice
Meat

Cabbage Leaves Stuffed with Meat and Rice

Fresh cabbage leaves stuffed with a spiced meat and rice mixture, cooked until tender in a tomato and lemon broth

⏱ 1 hr 30 min🍽 4 servings 🌍 Middle Eastern👩‍🍳 Afoona🧩 2 parts
🥩 Meat🌾 Gluten-free

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Meatball mix

  1. 1
    Mix the ground meat with the onion, garlic, parsley, cumin, rice, salt and black pepper until evenly combined.

To assemble

  1. 2
    Dip the cabbage leaves in a pot of boiling water 2–3 minutes, until pliable. Drain and let cool.
    StoveWide, shallow potColander
  2. 3
    Remove the tough vein from each leaf.
    KnifeCutting board
  3. 4
    Place a little of the mixture in the center of each leaf, fold in both sides and roll up.
  4. 5
    Cover the bottom of the wide pot with a layer of the tomatoes and oil.
    Wide, shallow pot
  5. 6
    Arrange the rolls tightly in a wide pot, seam side down.
    Wide, shallow pot
  6. 7
    Mix the stock and lemon juice and pour over the rolls.
  7. 8
    Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat, cover and simmer 60 minutes, until the rice and meat are done.
    ⚙ SimmeringStoveLid
    💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
  8. 9
    Serve hot with bread.
554calories
23 gprotein
44 gcarbs
30 gfat
● protein 17%● carbs 33%● fat 50%

Per serving (455 g), of 4 servings

For the Meatball mix · To assemble ·

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⚖ About the ingredients

🔧 Tools needed (6) · 🍳 One cooking vessel

  • Stove · 💡 Workaround, changes the dish: Portable hot plate (one weaker burner) · Camping gas stove (One burner, outdoors) · Electric pressure cooker (multicooker) (One pot, no real shallow frying)
  • Lid · Also works: Aluminum foil (tight aluminum foil) · Plate (an upside-down plate)
  • Wide, shallow pot · Also works: Deep skillet (sauté pan) (None) · 💡 Workaround, changes the dish: Pot (Layers instead of a single layer)
  • Cutting board · Also works: Plate (Large plate, dulls the knife)
  • Knife · Also works: Food processor (Fast, less control over size) · Kitchen shears (For herbs/dough)
  • Colander · Also works: Lid (a lid held slightly open over the sink, you lose a little) · Slotted spoon (for small amounts)

By the steps, as the recipe is built now: another version or addition can change the list.

🧩 Built from…

Meatball mix → Stuffed Leaves

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