This Instant Pot stuffed cabbage casserole is so tasty! Simple pressure cooker cabbage recipe with ground beef deconstructed to make dinner easy. Unstuffed cabbage is so much easier to make than the traditional method. The ultimate 15 minute comfort food, we love this recipe!

instant pot stuffed cabbage casserole
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This Instant Pot stuffed cabbage casserole as we called it was full of flavor, the cabbage maintained a perfect not too soft and not underdone consistency, and overall was a healthy meal for all 5 of us. Definitely one of our favorite Instant Pot recipes now! (affiliate links present)

Instant Pot Unstuffed Cabbage

I hadn’t ever had a stuffed cabbage roll at all until I met my husband. He raved about this dish his grandmother used to make so I gave it a whirl years ago and shared it here on my slow cooker stuffed cabbage post.

I didn’t always have the time to go thru all the steps to make that one so I started thinking outside of the box. If I used the same ingredients but didn’t roll them up it would be just as good but less work for me. So I went for it and unstuffed cabbage rolls was what we got!!

If you are new to pressure cooking we have a lot of easy one pot meal recipes for you here. To begin with let’s start with a few basic tips:

For reference, this is the model I have (a 6 quart) and use for all recipe creations.

A white Instant Pot with a Star Wars theme sits on the kitchen counter, ready to tackle your favorite beef arm roast recipe. The digital display glows "On." Next to it lie a patterned cloth and some green onions, all against the backdrop of blue kitchen cabinets and a stovetop.

In the past making stuffed cabbage was quite time consuming, and my kids found it hard to eat. SO I thought a deconstructed version would be a bigger hit in our house. That is where this creation came about. 😉

I got to experimenting and boy did it come out great! On the first go around it was perfect, and thinned out with some more broth it makes a great soup reheated as well. Two meals out of one creation is my kinda one pot meal I tell you.

Instant Pot Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

I thought about this dish the other night since I hadn’t made it in a while. A sort of deconstructed Instant Pot stuffed cabbage dish was what I wanted. It took only 12 minutes to cook and was great!

instant pot stuffed cabbage casserole 4

I love being able to dump and go with my pressure cooker and have a complete meal in under 30 minutes including the time it takes to pressurize. I typically use ground beef but the meat is up to you really.

What kind of meat goes well with cabbage?

If making this you can opt for ground beef or I like a mixture of 1/2 lb. spicy ground sausage and 1/2 beef. You really can use anything though that will give it more flavor. Diced ham after the holidays is another great choice.

What do you eat cabbage casserole with?

Unstuffed cabbage casserole really is a complete meal. Other than a dinner roll I don’t serve it with much.

Can you freeze cooked cabbage casserole?

You could but the consistency of the leaves will be a bit mushy when reheated. I suggest storing in the fridge and reheating in the next 2-3 days for the best results. 1 min. in the microwave should do it.

The cabbage cut up into little squares works perfectly when you’re ready to eat and makes it the perfect consistency once it is done. I don’t like it too wilted and soft or super crunchy either. This timing made it turn out perfectly. Even the kids said it was a winner of a dinner. 😉

instant pot stuffed cabbage casserole 3

Instant Pot Unstuffed Cabbage Casserole Ingredients

My mother in law was over and raved about it too. You could use ground turkey if you rather, and topped with grated parmesan cheese at the end is a must!

  1. 1/2 head of cabbage
    1. cabbage leaves cut into 1″ squares
  2. 1 jar spaghetti sauce (I just grabbed what was on sale)
  3. Can of tomato soup
    1. or tomato sauce if necessary
  4. 1 lb. ground beef….or ground sausage is amazing – this is how to defrost Instant Pot frozen ground beef in case you forgot to thaw it out the night before. 😉
  5. Onion and garlic
  6. White rice – uncooked
    1. some have used brown rice, cook times would be different if using this
  7. Beef broth
    1. could use water 
  8. Spices, salt and pepper

Like I said, it is a really easy dinner to put together and probably something new you haven’t tried before.

ground beef
Pressure Cooker Cabbage Soup

Other 30 minute pressure cooker recipes you’ll love

If you love Instant Pot casseroles we have a few here on our site so after you’ve tried and love this you should head on over and make our Instant Pot chicken parmesan casserole too. 😉

If you want to make a similar dish but on the stovetop, try our unstuffed cabbage casserole recipe here. I have also made a slow cooker stuffed cabbage soup that was amazing but of course took all day to cook

If you’re looking for more easy Instant Pot sausage recipes we have more to enjoy!

easy cabbage casserole

How to make stuffed cabbage casserole in pressure cooker

Time needed: 15 minutes

Instant Pot Cabbage Casserole

  1. Saute

    Turn Instant Pot to saute, normal. Add a bit of olive oil, ground beef and diced onion. Could add minced garlic too. Cook until beef is not pink and onions soften

    Turn Instant Pot OFF/cancel button and deglaze your pot. Important step so pot does not overheat and can cool off while draining grease and adding other ingredients.

    If you do not turn it off in between you may have an error/burn code come on as it senses it is overheating.how to deglaze your instant pot

  2. Add ingredients

    Pour in all other ingredients EXCEPT rice and cabbage. Do not stir.
    When all other ingredients are added pour uncooked rice in, do not stir.

    Break up chunks of cabbage and add to top of your mixture, gently push down into the liquid. (make sure pot is not more than 3/4 full or it may not reach pressure)

  3. Cook

    Put lid on and close steam valve. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes (or if you don’t have that option push your rice button which will automatically set for 12 minutes).

    Do a natural release for 2 minutes, then a quick release.

  4. Serve

    Lift lid carefully, stir, and serve! Can top with chives or even cheese!! It will thicken more as it sits.shredded cheese

* NOTE: Make sure you do a quick release at the end or else the cabbage will become too soft. Also, this will thicken quite a bit as it cools and sits in the pot. Initially it will be a bit thinner.

Just allow the cooked rice and cabbage to sit after pressure cooking to get thicker. Consistency in the photos is approx. 5-10 after taking lid off.

instant pot stuffed cabbage casserole 3
4.46 from 31 votes

Instant Pot Stuffed Cabbage Casserole

By The Typical Mom
Instant Pot stuffed cabbage casserole is so tasty! Really simple to make with the same stuffed cabbage flavors you love just much easier to make and eat. Only 12 minutes in your pressure cooker creates the perfect comfort food that will remind you of your childhood.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 12 minutes
Total: 20 minutes
Servings: 8
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Equipment

  • 1 pressure cooker

Ingredients 

  • 1 lb ground beef, or ground sausage
  • 3 1/2 c beef broth
  • 1 tbsp garlic, minced
  • 1 c rice, white, uncooked
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 jar spaghetti sauce, 20 oz
  • 1 can tomato soup, 10 oz
  • 1 dash hot sauce, optional
  • 1 tbsp worchestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp garlic salt
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 2-3 c cabbage, cut into small chunks 2×2 pcs

Instructions 

  • Turn Instant Pot to saute, normal. Add a bit of olive oil, ground beef and diced onion. Cook until beef is not pink and onions soften
  •  Turn Instant Pot OFF/cancel button and deglaze your pot. Important step so pot does not overheat and can cool off while draining grease and adding other ingredients. If you do not turn it off in between you may have an error/burn code come on as it senses it is overheating.
  • Add in all other ingredients except rice and cabbage. Do not stir.
  • When all other ingredients are added pour uncooked rice in, do not stir.
  • Break up chunks of cabbage and add to top of your mixture, gently push down into the liquid. (make sure pot is not more than 3/4 full or it may not reach pressure)
  • Put lid on and close steam valve.
  • Push rice button, or if you don't have that then choose pressure high for 10 minutes.
  • Allow to naturally release steam for 2 minutes followed by a quick release.
  • Lift lid carefully, stir, and serve! Can top with chives or even parmesan cheese!! It will thicken more as it sits.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 3oz, Calories: 292kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 15g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 40mg, Sodium: 1309mg, Potassium: 774mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 529IU, Vitamin C: 18mg, Calcium: 53mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Entree, Main Course
Cuisine: American
Tried this recipe?Mention @thetypical_mom or tag #thetypicalmom!

About The Typical Mom

Justine is the creative mind behind The Typical Mom and The Typical Family on YouTube. She began blogging about easy recipes, budget friendly activities for kids, and fun family travel destinations in September 2012.

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105 Comments

  1. This recipe looks good. My Insta pot should be here by Wednesday. Can’t wait!

  2. If you want to make it into soup, do you add broth before cooking and how long would you cook for? Thank you!

  3. The picture shows that there are tomato’s added. Can a can of drained diced tomato be added??

    1. Yes you can absolutely .. I put a can of fire roasted tomatoes on top of the cabbage. Worked really well!

  4. Unfortunately my Instant Pot, a 6-quart, kept coming up with the “burn” code with this recipe. I scraped the bottom well while trying not to mix the rice in too much. Restarted and got the same problem. 2nd time I scraped and added in 1 cup additional beef broth but still got the burn code. After 4 times of the burn code issue and adding more broth, I gave up. Fortunately by that point the ingredients had been boiling for so long that it was cooked. I loved the flavor, so did my husband, I would love to be able to have this recipe work in my Instant Pot. Any idea why I keep having the issue?

    1. It states to not mix ingredients when adding to the pot after ground beef is done, that is probably the issue. If you mix them up it will stick more as the ground beef acts as a buffer on the bottom while cooking. You just make sure rice is covered with liquid by gently pushing down, not stirring.

    2. I’ve found that after using the saute function, you must deglaze, and scrape the bottom with a wooden spoon to make sure nothing is stuck, or you will get the burn code.