What You’ll Need
For the filling, you’ll want a medium head of cabbage, chopped into bite-sized pieces, along with about a pound and a half of ground beef. A large onion and a few cloves of garlic will build your flavor base. For the sauce, grab a can of tomato sauce and a can of diced tomatoes—fire-roasted ones add a lovely smoky touch. Shredded cheddar cheese is perfect for the topping, and you’ll also want some olive oil, salt, black pepper, smoked paprika, and a pinch of red pepper flakes if you enjoy a little heat.
How to Make It
Start by preheating your oven and lightly greasing a large baking dish.
Heat a good drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook it until it’s nicely browned, breaking it up with a spoon as it cooks. Once the beef is browned, add the chopped onion and cook until it softens and turns translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and let it cook for just a minute or two until it smells fragrant.
Now, season everything generously with salt, pepper, and smoked paprika. If you like spice, add those red pepper flakes now. Pour in the tomato sauce and the diced tomatoes with all their juices, stirring everything together until it forms a rich, chunky sauce. Let this simmer for about five minutes so the flavors can start to meld.
While the sauce simmers, place all your chopped cabbage into the prepared baking dish. Pour the hot beef and tomato mixture right over the top of the cabbage. Use a spatula or a big spoon to gently stir everything together so the cabbage gets coated in all that saucy goodness.
Cover the dish tightly with foil and slide it into the oven. Let it bake until the cabbage becomes tender and easily pierced with a fork—this usually takes about forty to forty-five minutes.
Once the cabbage is perfectly tender, remove the foil, sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese evenly over the top, and return the dish to the oven, uncovered. Bake for another five to ten minutes, just until the cheese is fully melted, bubbly, and starting to turn golden in spots.
A Few Helpful Tips
If you’d like to make this casserole heartier, you can stir in a cup of cooked rice or quinoa along with the sauce before baking. For a lighter version, ground turkey or chicken works beautifully in place of beef. And if you have leftovers, this dish tastes even better the next day once the flavors have had time to deepen.
Let it rest for a few minutes after it comes out of the oven, then scoop, serve, and enjoy!