Reuben Cabbage Rolls
With these crazy good Keto Reuben Cabbage Rolls, you’re getting all of the classic Reuben flavors without the extra carbs. This tasty gluten-free appetizer is perfect for St. Patrick’s Day or any day of the year!
Hey there! Before we jump into the nitty gritty of this recipe, I thought I should introduce myself! I’m Krista, the blogger and recipe developer over at paleoishkrista.com. I don’t remember exactly what sparked the friendship between us many moons ago, but overtime Val and I have bonded over our passion for creating delicious nutrient-dense recipes (and our mutual distaste for drinking soup from a plastic bottle). Over on my corner of the Internet, you’ll find my tried and true real food focused recipes intertwined with always keeping it real. I’m super excited to share my recipe for Keto Reuben Cabbage Rolls with the Thyme and Joy community, so without further ado…
I’m just going to go ahead and tell you to put in the extra effort by making it from scratch and using Val’s recipe for Keto 1000 Island because it’s DELICIOUS! 🙂
Keto & Paleo Thousand Island Dressing
🥣 How To Make Reuben Cabbage Rolls
1️⃣ The first feat to accomplish is getting the cabbage leaves pliable. You’re going to do so by carefully cutting out the cores and then dropping the cored heads of cabbage into a stockpot of salted boiling water. After about 10 minutes, the first few leaves will begin to peel away on their own. When this happens, remove the cabbage from the pot and set it aside until it’s cool enough to handle. You can cool it off quicker by simply refrigerating it for a few minutes.
2️⃣ While the cabbage is boiling, go ahead and prepare the filling. Start by cooking the cauliflower rice according to the package directions and mincing up the corned beef (or pastrami). Now all you need to do is mix the cauliflower rice, deli meat, sauerkraut, cheese and salt and pepper together.
3️⃣ Once the cabbage is cool enough to handle, carefully peel away the larger outer leaves. You’re going to need 16 total. On the bottom of each leaf, there’s a thick spin that I recommend trimming down a bit to make the cabbage easier to work with. It’s totally cool if the leaves aren’t perfect. You can use the inner smaller leaves to patch up any tears and imperfections! Make sure to pat the leaves as dry as possible before rolling!
Take note next time you’re at Chipotle because their burrito rolling method is identical to this cabbage rolling method. It’s a lot easier than it looks.
4️⃣ With the bottom of the cabbage leaf facing towards you, spoon about a ¼ cup of the filling into the center of the leaf. Now fold the left side over the filling, followed by the right side. To finish, simply start at the bottom and gently roll away from you until all of the filling is wrapped up in a cute little roll.
5️⃣ So at this point there’s nothing raw about these wraps, so the goal isn’t to cook anything but rather heat them through and melt the cheese. You can do this in an air fryer or an oven.
🔌 Air Fryer Cabbage Rolls
Simply place the rolls seam side down in an even-layer in the fryer basket and “air fry” at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until the rolls are heated through and nice and toasty.
I think it’s safe to say most air fryer baskets aren’t large enough to fit all 16 rolls in an even-layer, so you’ll have to do this in batches.
♨️ How to Make Keto Reuben Cabbage Rolls in the Oven
Likewise, you can finish these in the oven by placing them seam side down on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and heating them through for 20 minutes. Truthfully, this method is probably easier because you can get them all heated through in one batch.
❔FAQ
If you must. I’ll be honest. I really do not recommend doing this. A reuben without the cheese is basically just corned beef and cabbage. Perhaps it’s just me but that sounds a lot less appetizing than a reuben. Substituting real cheese for one of the many Vegan cheese alternatives is also an option, but from my experience that stuff doesn’t melt well. Use at your own risk.
You sure can. These are a great make ahead appetizer because they don’t need to be cooked, per se. You can make the rolls a day or so in advance and then heat them through before serving. Keep in mind that you’ll probably need to extend the heating time a bit as they’ll be going into the air fryer or oven straight from your refrigerator rather than at room temperature.
More Recipes From Paleoish Krista
- Instant Pot Beef, Sausage and Butternut Squash Chili
- Crispy Harissa Orange Chicken Wings with Tahini Ranch Dressing
- Whole30 Salisbury Steak with Gluten-Free Mushroom Gravy
- Beef Kofta Meatballs with Lemon Herb Tahini Sauce
Reuben Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 heads of cabbage
- 1 cup frozen riced cauliflower
- ½ pound deli-sliced corned beef or pastrami
- 1 cup sauerkraut
- 1 cup shredded swiss cheese
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- [½ cup thousand island dressing]
Instructions
To Prepare the Cabbage Leaves:
- Bring a stockpot of salted water (large enough to submerge both heads of cabbage) to a rolling boil. Meanwhile, using a sharp knife carefully cut away the cores from the cabbage heads. Transfer the cored cabbage heads to the boiling water, cover and boil for 10 minutes or until the cabbage becomes soft enough to pull off individual leaves with ease. Remove from the pot and set aside.
- Once the cabbage is cool enough to touch, pat each leaf dry with a paper towel and gently peel away 16 large individual leaves. Using a paring knife, trim down the thick center stem on each leaf. You can use any leftover smaller leaves to patch up any tears in the large leaves.
For the Filling:
- While the cabbage heads are boiling, prepare the filling. Cook the cauliflower rice according to the package directions. Mince the corned beef.
- In a large bowl, mix cooked cauliflower rice, corned beef, sauerkraut, cheese and salt and pepper.
To Assemble:
- With the bottom of the leaf facing towards you, place about a ¼ cup of filling in the center of each leaf.
- Fold the left side of the leaf over the filling, then flip the right side over the filling. Flip the bottom of the leaf over the filling and begin rolling away from you until the filling is completely enclosed within the roll.
To Heat in the Air Fryer:
- Working in batches, position rolls in an even-layer in air fryer basket.
- “Air fry” at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until the rolls are heated through.
To Heat in the Oven:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Position rolls in an even-layer on to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the rolls are heated through.
- Serve alongside 1000 island dressing for dipping and ENJOY! 🙂
Notes
- To cool the cabbage quicker, simply place it in the fridge until it’s cool enough to handle.
- These rolls can be made in advance and heated through before serving.
This looks fabulous! Can these be frozen? I’m a big fan of making a double batch of recipes and freeze 1/2 or just freezing the leftovers.
I’m not sure I would! The cabbage may get mushy and lose its texture when they are defrosting unfortunately! 🙁