Best Slow Cooker Cabbage Roll Casserole

This hearty and savory Crock Pot Cabbage Roll Casserole is cooked in a rich tomato sauce with cabbage, beef, and herbs! Super easy to make, this Crock Pot Cabbage Roll Casserole makes for a perfect weeknight meal!

White plate containing Cabbage Roll Casserole served with a spinach salad.

Calling all casserole lovers!! Ok, here we go...

Cabbage Roll Casserole = seasoned ground beef, tomato sauce, rice, and cabbage topped with melted mozzarella cheese...oh my love!!

This is the most delicious and comforting simple food of my sweet dreams!

I'm southern. I love a good casserole. And this casserole is healthy and can be made gluten free! You just don't typically hear those 4 words together...healthy, casserole, southern, gluten free. But this casserole is just all of THAT.

And it's made in my Crock Pot! Winning! WINNING big time here!!

White plate containing Crock Pot Cabbage Casserole topped with melted mozzarella cheese.

What is Cabbage Roll Casserole?

Who loves cabbage rolls? If you've never had them, a cabbage roll is a boiled cabbage leaf filled with rice and meat and then baked. My recipe is more of an "unstuffed cabbage casserole". It's similar to a cabbage roll, just made in a crock pot with the ingredients layered. I like to refer to this dish as "lazy man cabbage roll casserole" because you literally just throw the ingredients together and let the crock pot do all the hard work.

Video: Making Crock Pot Cabbage Casserole

Take a quick look at this video I put together on how to turn your typical cabbage rolls into a crock pot cabbage casserole.

How To Make Crock Pot Cabbage Roll Casserole

You'll need these ingredients to make this recipe:

ground beef
garlic cloves
onion
tomato sauce
condensed tomato soup
diced tomatoes
paprika
thyme
salt
long grain white rice
cabbage
mozzarella cheese
water

Step 1

The first thing you'll do is chop the onion. Then brown the ground beef and add the chopped onion, garlic, paprika, thyme, and salt over medium heat until no pink remains. Make sure you drain the fat.

Ground beef and onions browning in a skillet.

Step 2

Add 1 cup of the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, 1 cup water, and ½ can of tomato soup to the beef. Stir in rice and mix well until heated through (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat.

Pot containg diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, rice, and ground beef.

Step 3

While your beef mixture is heating on the stove top, chop the cabbage into 4 wedges and remove the core. Chop into large bite sized pieces. Layer ½ of the meat mixture and ½ of the cabbage in the crock pot. Repeat layers by placing half the meat and then half the cabbage in the crock pot.

Now, combine the remaining tomato soup, remaining tomato sauce, and ⅓ cup water. Pour over top of cabbage. Place the top on the crock pot and cook on low 4-6 hours or just until rice is cooked.

Crock Pot containing ingredients for Cabbage Roll Casserole including cabbage, ground beef, rice and tomatoes.

Once done, turn crock pot off, sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top, and let sit 10 minutes to set and melt the cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Oh, that melted mozzarella cheese on this Cabbage Casserole! Is your mouth watering yet? My friend, Vicky Crowley brought this dish to work for several us to try as a part of a lunch coop. FANTASTIC is all that needs to be said on this one! I had seconds...FOR LUNCH. I never do that. It makes me too sleepy to eat that much at lunch! Yep...it's THAT good!

White plate containing Crock Pot Cabbage Casserole sitting on a blue table mat, fork on plate.

Tips for Making Crock Pot Cabbage Casserole

Make sure to follow the instructions on the divided ingredients in the recipe card. It actually does make a difference taste wise.
Adding the shredded mozzarella cheese makes this dish.
Don't overcook this recipe. Mushy cabbage is gross. I've made this recipe at least 12 times now and the magic hour for the perfect doneness is around 5 hours.
If you're gluten free, make sure you use a gluten free version of tomato soup. I love Amy's Cream of Tomato soup.
If you wanted to use brown rice, you can. I don't recommend using cauliflower rice in this dish. It will turn to mush.
I like keeping this dish lean so I use 96% lean ground beef, but you can use any grade of ground beef you like.

White plate containing Cabbage Roll Casserole sitting on a blue placemat, served with a spinach salad, fork and crackers on table.

What to Serve with Cabbage Roll Casserole

My Romaine Salad pairs perfectly with this casserole.
These Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms, Balsamic and Parmesan are full of flavor. I love green beans with casseroles!
This Brussels Sprout Salad with it's dried cranberries and balsamic vinegar pops the flavor in this casserole.

You are going to love this Cabbage Roll Casserole. It's pure comfort in every bite with zero guilt!

Go get'em casserole lovers! Y'all are gonna just LOVE this one!

Enjoy!

White plate containing a serving of Cabbage Casserole, fork on side of plate.

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White plate containing Cabbage Roll Casserole served with a spinach salad.

▢ 2 lbs 96% lean ground beef
▢ 3 garlic cloves, minced
▢ 1 onion, diced
▢ 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce, divided
▢ 1 cup water
▢ 1 can condensed tomato soup
▢ 1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
▢ 1 teaspoon paprika
▢ 1 teaspoon salt
▢ ½ teaspoon thyme
▢ ¾ cup long grain white rice, uncooked
▢ 1 head cabbage
▢ 1 ½ cups Mozzarella cheese
▢ ⅓ cup water

Brown beef, onion, garlic and seasonings over medium heat until no pink remains. Drain.
Add 1 cup tomato sauce, 1 cup water and ½ can of tomato soup and diced tomatoes to the beef.
Stir in rice, and mix well until heated through. Remove from heat.
Chop cabbage into 4 wedges and remove core. Chop into chunks (Vicky's were about ¾"x1.5″).
Layer ½ of the meat mixture and ½ of the cabbage in the slow cooker. Repeat layers. Place half the meat and then half the cabbage in cooker.
Combine the remaining tomato soup, remaining tomato sauce and ⅓ cup water. Pour over top of cabbage.
Cook on low 4-6 hours or just until rice is cooked. Once done, turn Crock Pot off, sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top and let sit 10 minutes to set and melt cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Make sure to follow the instructions on the divided ingredients in the recipe card. It actually does make a difference taste wise.
Don't overcook this recipe. Mushy cabbage is gross. I've made this recipe at least 12 times now and the magic hour for the perfect doneness is around 5 hours.
If you're gluten free, make sure you use a gluten free version of tomato soup. I love Amy's Cream of Tomato soup.

Update Notes: This post was originally published in 2016, but was re-published with updated step-by-step instructions, pictures, and tips in May 2019. You will also find affiliate links on this page.

Hi! I'm Amanda, the founder and creator behind Recipes Worth Repeating! Simply put, I focus on creating delicious recipes for everyone. I offer variety. I offer convenience. I offer yumminess! And that's why people keep coming back. The recipes I create are absolutely worth repeating.

Founded in 2012, Recipes Worth Repeating grew from people routinely asking me to email them the recipe for my latest dish. Recipe development comes naturally to me and I find cooking relaxing. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, I developed a passion for cooking at an early age and I love to showcase a variety of recipes on my blog.Creating delicious new recipes, still photography, and video for Recipes Worth Repeating is the driving force behind what engages my readers to keep coming back for more recipes they will love.

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