A healthier take on rolls with napa cabbage leaves filled with a savory meat filling. Napa cabbage rolls are steamed and served with a thick soy sauce mixture. It is easy to make this in 10 easy steps!
What Are Napa Cabbage Rolls?
Napa cabbage may also be referred to as Chinese cabbage, celery cabbage, or winter cabbage. It is a popular ingredient in Asian dishes, from salads to wraps and soups. You will love napa cabbage for its many health benefits, such as being rich in Vitamins A, C, B6, and B12, boosting heart health, and supporting bone strength.
Using napa cabbage leaves as your roll wrapper gives you a hint of sweet and earthy taste with a delightful crunch. As for the filling, I used minced meat seasoned with green onions, ginger, salt, chicken bouillon powder, and white pepper powder. Then, I also added an egg and cornstarch to thicken the filling.
The napa cabbage rolls are steamed for about 8 minutes and served with a savory sauce. The sauce is a mix of water, salt, chicken bouillon powder, light soy sauce, bell peppers, and cornstarch slurry. If you love napa cabbage, you can make these recipes:
- Cabbage Kimchi
- Easy Kimchi(Quick version)
- Gamjatang 감자탕 / Korean Pork Bone Soup
- Galbijjim 갈비찜 / Beef Short Ribs Stew
The Ingredients For Napa Cabbage Rolls
Check out the breakdown of ingredients below and learn about their alternatives and taste contribution to the rolls. You can customize the ingredients according to your preferred taste. Here’s what you need to know:
- Napa cabbage: This ain’t your ordinary round green cabbage as napa cabbage is oblong and elongated with long leaves. It is typically 25 to 50 centimeters long and 15 to 20 centimeters wide. When choosing napa cabbage, choose the leaves that are green, thick, and crinkly. It should feel dense and heavy when picked up. To use the leaf as a wrapper, it is first blanched in boiling water for 10 seconds. It should become soft for folding but still strong enough to avoid tearing. The best alternative to napa cabbage is savoy cabbage, which can be blanched for 10 seconds or more if needed.
- Meat filling: Whether you like pork, shrimp, or veggie-filled filling, it is up to you to alter it according to your taste and preference. In this recipe, the meat filling is made with minced meat, chopped, green onions, ginger, salt, chicken bouillon powder, white pepper, egg, and cornstarch.
- Minced meat: Choose any type of minced meat, such as pork, chicken, beef, and shrimp. You can buy pre-minced meat or opt for meat cuts which you can chop into small bits or blend. If you want to make a veggie filling, use chopped dried shiitake mushrooms, crumbled firm tofu, or soy minced meat.
- Green onions: Green onion is a common ingredient for meat fillings for rolls, dumplings, and wontons. It adds a mild sweetness and delightful oniony taste. This can be swapped with chives, shallots, white onions, yellow onions, or red onions.
- Ginger: Chopped ginger provides a peppery taste and a warming kick to a dish. This can be replaced with ground ginger, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger for every 1 tbsp of fresh ginger.
- Salt: Salt brings out the flavors of each ingredient. Use any type of salt, such as sea salt, pink salt, and kosher salt.
- Bouillon powder: I used chicken bouillon powder as a flavor enhancer. Aside from chicken powder, this can be swapped with vegetable powder, plant-based chicken powder, or Italian seasoning mix.
- White pepper powder: White pepper powder imparts an earthy taste and subtle heat. This can be substituted with black pepper powder, but the taste will be hotter and woodier. Use pepper powder or cracked peppers.
- Whole egg: Mixing a whole egg is needed to serve as a binder to retain the filling’s shape and add moisture. This can be optional in case the filling can already hold its shape on its own and has the right consistency. If you need an egg substitute for the filling, I recommend the following alternatives for 1 whole egg:
- 1/4 unsweetened applesauce
- 1 cup soy milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (this makes buttermilk)
- 3 tablespoons of chickpea flour with 3 tablespoons of water
- 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed mixed with 3 tablespoons of water
- 1 tablespoon of ground chia seeds mixed with 3 tablespoons of water
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch is important in making the filling less runny or soft. If you don’t have cornstarch, you can substitute it with the following:
- All-Purpose Flour (1:1 ratio)
- Arrowroot Powder (1:1 ratio)
- Tapioca Starch/Flour (1:1 ratio)
- Potato Starch (1:1 ratio)
- Rice Flour (1:1 ratio)
- For more filling ideas, check out my dumpling and wonton recipes below and incorporate the filling you like for the rolls:
- Sauce: The sauce is poured over the steamed folded napa cabbage rolls. It is savory, umami, and creamy! You also get a bit of sweet crunch with diced red and green bell peppers. To make the sauce, you will need the leftover water produced from the steamed rolls, giving the sauce a flavor boost. Then, add more water and season with salt, chicken bouillon powder, and light soy sauce. The sauce is thickened with the added cornstarch slurry which you can make by mixing 2 teaspoons of cornstarch with 3 teaspoons of water. Light soy sauce makes the sauce salty and umami. You can substitute light soy sauce with dark soy sauce, tamari, liquid aminos, coconut aminos, or gluten-free soy sauce.
Checklist of Kitchen Tools And Ingredients
You will need to prepare a pot for blanching and cooking the sauce. Moreover, it helps to have a large mixing bowl for the filling and a steamer with a steamer basket. If you don’t have a steamer, you can still steam without a steamer in 5 ways: pan with steamer rack, microwave, pan with sieve, rice cooker, and instant pot.
The ingredients are as follows:
- 1 whole napa cabbage
- Meat filling
- 200g of minced meat
- 1 tbsp of chopped green onion
- 1 tbsp of diced ginger
- 1/2 tbsp of salt
- 1/2 tbsp of chicken bouillon powder, optional
- 1/2 tbsp of white pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
- Sauce
- 50g of water
- 1 tbsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of chicken bouillon powder, optional
- 2 tbsp of light soy sauce
- Cornstarch slurry (2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 3 teaspoons of water)
- 20g of diced red and green bell peppers
10 Steps To Make Napa Cabbage Rolls
Making this recipe is super quick and easy with simple steps like blanching and steaming. The step that may take time is wrapping the filling with a napa cabbage leaf. Check out how I wrapped the rolls with my short tutorial guide on Instagram or TikTok.
If you loved this recipe, don’t forget to tag @kitchenmisadventures to share your finished creations! Leave a comment for your thoughts and recommendations.
- Prepare the napa cabbage. Chop off the base, separate the leaves, and rinse with water to clean.
- Bring water to a boil in a pot. Blanch the napa cabbage leaves in boiling water for 10 seconds. Remember, blanching should only be done for a few seconds and not longer than 10. Otherwise, the leaves will wilt and become too soggy for folding.
- Remove and cool the leaves in a bowl of water. Drain out the excess water by gently squeezing the leaves. Cooling the leaves in water will stop them from further cooking, preventing them from going too soggy.
- In a large bowl, mix minced meat with chopped green onions, diced ginger, salt, chicken bouillon powder, white pepper, an egg, and cornstarch. Stir well.
- Fold the rolls. Place the meat mixture at the bottom, on the white base of the napa cabbage leaf. Roll the leaf starting from the white base and going to the green part on top. Bring the left and right ends together by folding them downwards to the middle of the roll. The folded part should be facing the bottom to lock it and prevent it from opening as it steams. If you want to make the rolls more attractive, you can tie the folded rolls with long thin carrot strips to serve as a ribbon.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Place the rolls on a serving plate in a steamer basket. Steam in a steamer for 8 minutes.
- After steaming, water should be pooled at the steamer’s base. Use this steamed soup and transfer it to a pot to serve as the sauce base.
- Add 50g of water, salt, chicken bouillon powder, and light soy sauce.
- Thicken the sauce with cornstarch slurry (2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 3 teaspoons of water). Add diced red and green bell peppers. Simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Pour the sauce over the steamed cabbage.
Steamed Cabbage Rolls Recipe In Savory Sauce
A healthier take on rolls with napa cabbage leaves filled with a savory meat filling. Napa cabbage rolls are steamed and served with a thick soy sauce mixture. It is easy to make this in 10 easy steps!
Ingredients
- 1 whole napa cabbage
Meat filling
- 200 g of minced meat
- 1 tbsp of chopped green onion
- 1 tbsp of diced ginger
- 1/2 tbsp of salt
- 1/2 tbsp of chicken bouillon powder optional
- 1/2 tbsp of white pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
Sauce
- 50 g of water
- 1 tbsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of chicken bouillon powder optional
- 2 tbsp of light soy sauce
- Cornstarch slurry 2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 3 teaspoons of water
- 20 g of diced red and green bell peppers
Instructions
- Prepare the napa cabbage. Chop off the base, separate the leaves, and rinse with water to clean.
- Bring water to a boil in a pot. Blanch the napa cabbage leaves in boiling water for 10 seconds. Remember, blanching should only be done for a few seconds and not longer than 10. Otherwise, the leaves will wilt and become too soggy for folding.
- Remove and cool the leaves in a bowl of water. Drain out the excess water by gently squeezing the leaves. Cooling the leaves in water will stop them from further cooking, preventing them from going too soggy.
- In a large bowl, mix minced meat with chopped green onions, diced ginger, salt, chicken bouillon powder, white pepper, an egg, and cornstarch. Stir well.
- Fold the rolls. Place the meat mixture at the bottom, on the white base of the napa cabbage leaf. Roll the leaf starting from the white base and going to the green part on top. Bring the left and right ends together by folding them downwards to the middle of the roll. The folded part should be facing the bottom to lock it and prevent it from opening as it steams. If you want to make the rolls more attractive, you can tie the folded rolls with long thin carrot strips to serve as a ribbon.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Place the rolls on a serving plate in a steamer basket. Steam in a steamer for 8 minutes.
- After steaming, water should be pooled at the steamer's base. Use this steamed soup and transfer it to a pot to serve as the sauce base.
- Add 50g of water, salt, chicken bouillon powder, and light soy sauce.
- Thicken the sauce with cornstarch slurry (2 teaspoons of cornstarch mixed with 3 teaspoons of water). Add diced red and green bell peppers. Simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Pour the sauce over the steamed cabbage.
Nutrition
Calories: 207kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 14gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 77mgSodium: 3631mgPotassium: 742mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 950IUVitamin C: 68mgCalcium: 197mgIron: 2mg
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