UntrainedChef
Cabbage Pudding - beef, comfort-food recipe

Cabbage Pudding

1 hr 20 min
2 portions

Classic Swedish comfort food that earns its place on the table every time. Cabbage and minced meat baked together with cream, soy, and syrup — serve with lingonberries.

Instructions

  1. 1

    Cut the cabbage in half and remove the hard core. Slice it into thin strips.

  2. 2

    Heat a frying pan with a little oil and fry the cabbage in batches until it starts to soften — you don't want it to burn, just get a bit of colour and go limp.

  3. 3

    Transfer the fried cabbage to a bowl and season with the syrup, salt, and pepper.

  4. 4

    Finely chop the onion and mix it together with the minced meat, egg, soy sauce, cream, and concentrated beef stock. Season with a little salt and pepper.

  5. 5

    Grease an ovenproof dish (about 25 x 30 cm) with a little oil. Spread half the cabbage in the bottom, then dot the meat mixture over it and use a spatula to spread it out evenly. Top with the remaining cabbage.

  6. 6

    Bake in the middle of the oven at 200 °C for about 40 minutes.

Per average serving

591
Calories
kcal
29.5
Protein
g
20.8
Carbs
g
44.8
Fat
g
6.7g
Fiber
12.6g
Sugar
672mg
Sodium

Tips from the kitchen

  • Fry the cabbage in batches like step 2 says, and don't crowd the pan. If you pile it all in at once it just steams and goes soggy instead of catching that bit of colour you want.
  • The syrup goes on the cabbage while it's still warm so it melts in. A small amount is enough, you're after a faint sweetness against the soy in the meat, not candied cabbage.
  • Mix the meat with the cream, egg, soy and stock until it loosens up a little. That liquid keeps the layer from baking into a dense brick.
  • When you spread the meat over the bottom layer, dot it around in small clumps first, then push it out with the spatula. Trying to spread one big lump just drags the cabbage around.
  • At 40 minutes the top cabbage should be browned at the edges and the meat firm when you press it. If it still wobbles, give it another 5 to 10 minutes.

Ways to vary it

  • Pork and beef mince works as well as straight beef if you want a softer meat layer. Use the same 500 g.
  • A pinch of allspice or a little marjoram stirred into the meat mix is a nice optional addition if you like a more old-fashioned flavour.
  • You can swap the white cabbage for savoy if that's what you have. It softens faster, so keep an eye on it when you fry.

Storage & leftovers

Keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days in a covered dish. It freezes fine once cooled, wrap it well and use within 2 months. Reheat covered in the oven at 175 °C until hot through, around 20 minutes, so the cabbage doesn't dry out.

What to serve with it

Lingonberries are the standard partner here, with boiled potatoes on the side. A spoonful of the lingonberry jam against the salty meat is what makes it.

UC
By Untrained ChefPublished 4 June 2026 · Updated 11 July 2026

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