Kåldolmar (Swedish Cabbage Rolls)

Tender cabbage leaves wrapped around a beef, pork and rice filling, glazed with golden syrup and butter, baked until caramelized and served with cream sauce and lingonberries. Serves 6.

Caramelized Swedish cabbage rolls in a baking dish, one cut open on a plate with lingonberries
  • Prep 45 min
  • Cook 1 hr
  • Total 1 hr 45 min
  • Yield 6 servings (about 14 rolls)

Jump to: Ingredients | Instructions | Tips | Questions | Print recipe

Tradition says Swedes learned to make cabbage rolls from Turkish dolma, brought home by King Charles XII and his men after their years in the Ottoman Empire in the early 1700s. The Swedish version is distinctly sweet and savory: the rolls are glazed with golden syrup and butter so the cabbage caramelizes in the oven.

They are served with boiled potatoes, a creamy pan sauce and lingonberry jam, and they reheat beautifully.

Ingredients

Rolls

  • 1 large head green cabbage (about 3 pounds)
  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound ground pork
  • 1/2 cup cooked short-grain rice, cooled
  • 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

Glaze and sauce

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons golden syrup or light corn syrup
  • 1 cup beef broth
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water
  • Boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam, for serving

Instructions

  1. Soften the cabbage. Cut out the core. Lower the whole head into a large pot of boiling salted water and peel off the outer leaves with tongs as they soften, about 2 minutes each. You need about 14 leaves. Drain and shave down the thick center rib of each leaf.
  2. Make the filling. Mix the beef, pork, rice, onion, egg, milk, salt, pepper and allspice until combined.
  3. Roll. Place about 1/4 cup of filling near the stem end of each leaf, fold in the sides and roll up tightly. Set the rolls seam side down in a buttered 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
  4. Glaze. Heat the oven to 400°F. Brush the rolls with the melted butter and drizzle with the syrup.
  5. Bake. Bake for 20 minutes, until the tops begin to brown. Pour the broth around the rolls, lower the oven to 350°F and bake 35 to 40 minutes more, basting twice, until browned and the filling reaches 160°F.
  6. Make the sauce. Pour the pan juices into a small saucepan, add the cream and bring to a simmer. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook until thickened. Serve the rolls with the sauce, potatoes and lingonberries.

Tips

  • Freezing the whole cabbage overnight and thawing it softens the leaves without boiling.
  • Golden syrup gives the classic flavor; light corn syrup or a mild honey also works.

Questions about this recipe

Why are Swedish cabbage rolls sweet?
They are glazed with syrup before baking, which caramelizes the leaves. It is the signature of the Swedish version.
Can I make them ahead?
Yes. Bake them, cool, and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for 3 months. Reheat covered at 350°F.

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