It's cabbage leaves stuffed with meat -- beef, lamb or pork -- along with spices and rice!
One of my fondest food memories growing up is watching my grandmother make Stuffed Cabbage ... and then, of course, eating it! She had a "secret ingredient" that made her cabbage rolls the best I've ever had! I'll let you know what that "secret ingredient" is a little later in my lens! This ethnic comfort food was always better the next day, or the day after that.
I hope you enjoy this lens and make it a point to either make Stuffed Cabbage or find a restaurant where you can have some authentic Stuffed Cabbage!
Quick, are you a fan of Stuffed Cabbage?
What is Stuffed Cabbage?
It's a cabbage roll ...
A cabbage roll (also stuffed cabbage) is a dish consisting of cooked cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of fillings. It is common to the peasant cuisines of Europe and Western Asia.
The filling is traditionally based around meat, often beef, lamb or pork and is seasoned with garlic, onion and spices. Grains such as rice and barley, eggs, mushrooms and vegetables are often included in the filling as well. Pickled cabbage leaves are often used for wrapping, particularly in Southeastern Europe. As only the largest leaves can be used, small pieces of cabbages are often mixed into the stuffing and sauce. As the dish originated as a way to use leftover food, other ingredients may also be used in the stuffing.
Cabbage leaves are stuffed with the filling which are then then baked, simmered or steamed in a covered pot and generally eaten warm, often accompanied with a sauce. The sauce varies widely by cuisine. In Finland and Sweden, stuffed cabbage is often served with bittersweet lingonberry jam. In Eastern Europe, tomato-based sauces or plain sour cream are typical.
My grandmother made the best Stuffed Cabbage!
OK, now for what my grandmother called her "secret ingredient." It's Zaprashka, a sauce or gravy that is a thickening added back to the cooking stuffed cabbage.
How to make the Zaprashka: Blend 4 Tbsp. Oil and 4 Tbsp. flour together in a frying pan. Keep on medium heat and keep stirring until lightly browned and the lumps have dissolved. Slowly add the liquid mixture directly from the cooking stuffed cabbage and blend until smooth. Add this mixture back to the cooking stuffed cabbage!
Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Recipe
Preparation time: 165 minutes. Serves 4
Ingredients:1 large cabbage
1 x 800g / 28 oz tin sauerkraut
225g / 1/2 lb minced beef
225g / 1/2 lb minced pork
100g / 4 oz cooked long grain rice
salt and black pepper
1 egg
100g / 4 oz bacon, chopped
150g / 5 oz onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp Hungarian paprika
1 x 400g / 14 oz tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp caraway seeds
480ml / 16 fl. oz. water
2 tbsp plain flour
240ml / 8 fl. oz. sour cream
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees C, 325 degrees F. Remove core from the cabbage, place in a large saucepan, cover with water, then bring to the boil and cook until the outer leaves begin to loosen.
2. Lift out the cabbage, remove the softened leaves and return the head of cabbage to the pan of boiling water to soften more leaves. Repeat until all leaves are removed.
3. Once all the leaves have been softened, remove the center stalks from each leaf and set aside.
4. Meanwhile, place the beef, pork, rice, salt, pepper and egg in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Set aside.
5. Place the bacon, onion and garlic in a saucepan and sauté until the onion is soft.
6. Add half of the onion mixture to the beef mixture and mix well.
7. Spoon half the sauerkraut into the bottom of a deep casserole and set aside. Using the 12 largest cabbage leaves, place about 3 tablespoons of the meat mixture on each cabbage leaf and roll up, tucking in sides. (Do not pack too tightly, or they'll come out very hard.) Place rolls, seam side down, on top of the sauerkraut in the casserole dish.
8. Coarsely chop any remaining cabbage leaves and place over rolls.
9. Add the paprika, cayenne pepper, tomatoes, caraway seeds, water and remaining sauerkraut to the remaining onion mixture, place in a saucepan and cook until heated through.
10. Pour the hot mixture over stuffed cabbage rolls, cover and bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes.
11. At the end of the cooking time, mix together the flour and sour cream in a small bowl. Add in 2 tablespoons of the hot cooking liquid from the casserole, mix well then spoon over cabbage rolls. Continue to bake, uncovered for an additional 15-20 minutes. Serve hot. --experience.com.
Cooking the Hungarian Way
Cooking the Hungarian Way: Revised and Expanded to Include New Low-Fat and Vegetarian Recipes (Easy Menu Ethnic Cookbooks)
Amazon Price: $20.21 (as of 07/25/2008)
An introduction to the cooking of Hungary, including recipes for such dishes as goulash, stuffed peppers, and paprika chicken. Also discusses the geography and history of this central European country.
Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage :: Toltott Kaposzta
A Vegetarian Recipe
Saute in a pan:
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 small onions, chopped
1 eggplant, peeled and cubed
12 oz. tofu, crumbled
1 Tbsp. season-salt mix or Vegeta
Next add to above:
1 pkg. Morning Star crumbles
1 Tbsp. Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1-2 cups finely ground walnuts
1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
1-2 cups bread crumbs -- may substitute with Pepperidge Farm Herb stuffing mix
Then add:
4 eggs beaten
4-5 cups Brown Minute Rice or cooked Brown Rice
Approx. 1 cup water
Pinch of seasoning
Few drops of oil
Put all the above into a pressure cooker or microwaveable dish: Wrap above filling, large spoonful each, into parboiled cabbage leaves. Then place the stuffed cabbage pockets into microwave dish or pressure cooker. Fill with about 1 inch of water seasoned with seasoning salt or Vegeta and bit of oil.
Steam cook in pressure cooker about 4 minutes or in microwave. (Time depends on quantity -- just a few minutes cooking time is all that is needed.)
Prepare shredded cabbage:
Approx 1/4 cup olive oil
2 small onions thinly sliced
1 small head of cabbage (use outer leaves for rolls and shred remainder)
1 pkg. of sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
1 bay leaf
Seasoning salt or Vegeta
1/2 cup water
Pam or other vegetable spray
Sour cream
Salt to taste
Slice onions thin and saute in oil for a few minutes - until glassy. Add cabbage, sauerkraut, seasoning and salt. Cook shredded cabbage mixed with drained sauerkraut until cabbage is soft. In baking dish spray pam on bottom. Spread approx half of cabbage on bottom. Then place stuffed cabbages next to each other throughout the pan. Cover with remainder of cabbage. Spread top with sour cream. Bake 350-375 for about 1/2 hour until it bakes through real well and sour cream is well set. --magyarmarketing.com.

Stuffed Cabbage -- Toltott Kaposzta : Habeas Brulee
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls video
Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Check the website, foodwishes.com, for the story, recipe ingredients and more details. Enjoy!
Runtime: 7:41
24242 views
10 Comments:
Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls: Pork
Preparation time: 90 minutes. Serves 4-6
Ingredients:2 lbs sauerkraut
1 large head green cabbage
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 tsp of finely chopped garlic
1 lb ground lean pork
1/4 cup rice, cooked in boiling salted water (yielding 3/4 cup cooked)
2 lightly beaten eggs
2 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika
1/8 tsp marjoram
1 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
1 cup water mixed with 1 cup tomato puree
1 cup sour cream
Rinse the sauerkraut in cold water. If needed, soak in cold water 10-20 minutes to reduce sourness. Squeeze dry and set aside. In a large saucepan, bring to a boil enough salted water to cover the cabbage. Add the cabbage, turn the heat to low and simmer 8 minutes. Remove the cabbage and let it drain while it cools enough to handle. Pull off 16 large unbroken leaves and lay them on paper towels to drain and cool further.
In a 10-inch skillet, saute the onions and garlic in olive oil, until the onions are lightly colored. In a large mixing bowl, combine the pork, rice, eggs, paprika, marjoram, the onion-garlic mixture, salt and a few grindings of black pepper. Mix well with a fork or wooden spoon.
Place 2 tablespoons of the stuffing in the center of one of the wilted cabbage leaves and, beginning with the thick end of the leaf, fold over the sides, then roll the whole leaf tightly, as you would a small bundle. Repeat with more leaves until all the stuffing has been used.
Spread the sauerkraut on the bottom of a 5-quart casserole and arrange the cabbage rolls on top of it. Add the water mixed with the tomato puree. Bring the liquid to a boil, then cover the pan tightly and cook the stuffed cabbage over low heat for 1 hour. Transfer the rolls from the casserole to a warm plate. Stir in the sour cream to the sauerkraut. Simmer another 5 minutes. Lift the sauerkraut onto a serving platter with a slotted spoon. Arrange the cabbage rolls on the sauerkraut and pour some of the sauce over them. Serve the rest of the sauce in a sauceboat. --elise.com.
June Meyer's Authentic Hungarian Heirloom Recipes
June Meyer's Authentic Hungarian Heirloom Recipes
Amazon Price: $20.00 (as of 07/25/2008)
95 wonderful kitchen-tested family recipes. It is nicely organized with one recipe per page and each recipe is preceded by a short colorful remembrance or historical fact. The cookbook has 195 pages, measures 9X7 and is spiral bound so it will lay flat in the kitchen. A chapter on Hungarian Christmas Cookies, The Danube Swabian Coat of Arms, A History of German Settlement in Southern Hungary and a History of The Danube Swabians in the Twentieth Century by Historian Susan Clarkson. It also contains the Origin of June Meyers Family Recipes and an account of life in Altkeer, Batchka region, Hungary around the turn of the century.
The Recipe Categories include Relish & Pickles, Salads & Slaws, Soups and Dumplings, Main Course, Side Dishes, Sauces, Pastries, Hungarian Christmas Cookies, Fillings For Kipfels And Cookies, and Other Hungarian Goodies.
June Meyer, a Chicago native and graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, taught Art at Deerfields Wilmot Elementary School for 25 years until her retirement in 1994. June grew up with these recipes since both of her parents were born in Hungary and they brought their ethnic dishes with them when they emigrated to America.
Her family recipes had never been written down, cooking was done with a handful of this, a pinch of that. They were passed from generation to generation by daughters cooking at the elbows of grandmother and mother. As an avid reader of the rec.food.cooking newsgroup on the Internet, June found that there was a need to preserve these wonderful old recipes for future generations due to the fact that most families never wrote down the beloved family recipes and were lost when grandma died.
June has assembled a sizable collection of her family's Hungarian recipes. In 1996 June and her son Aaron decided to publish her cookbook entitled June Meyer's Authentic Hungarian Heirloom Recipes. The collection grew until it finally included ninety five authentic Hungarian recipes and stories.
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Hungarian Cookbook: Old World Recipes
Hungarian Cookbook: Old World Recipes for New World Cooks (Hippocrene Cookbook Library)
Amazon Price: $18.21 (as of 07/25/2008)
Hardcover: 230 pages
Publisher: Hippocrene Books; Expanded edition (July 2003)
Stuffed Cabbage as it's known worldwide!
* Golabki (little pigeons) - Poland
* Halubcy - Belarus
* Holishkes - Ashkenazi Jewish
* Holubki - Czech Republic and Slovakia
* Holubtsi - Ukraine
* Kaldolmar - Sweden
* Kaalikaaryle - Finland
* Kohlroulade and krautwickel - Austria and Germany
* Lahana dolmasi - Turkey
* Rouru kyabetsu - Japan
* Sarma - the Balkans
* Sarmale - Romania
* Toltott kaposzta - Hungary
* Malfoof - Jordan (Middle East)
Some Great Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
From around the world!
Galil Stuffed Cabbage, 14-Ounces (Pack of 12)
Ready to eat. No preservatives, no artificial colors or flavors. All natural. Galil Stuffed Cabbages processed with great care and stuffed with traditional recipes that will delight both home and professional chefs. Product of Turkey.
Amazon Price: $28.62 (as of 07/25/2008)
La Briute Self Heating Meal, Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage, 16-Ounce Meal (Pack of 6)
Stuffed Shells: Pasta (Durum Semolina, Niacin, Ferrous, Sulfates, Thiamine, Mononitrate, Riboflavin). Filling: Soy Protein Concentrate, Water, Sugar, Tomato Paste, Vinegar, Modified Food Starch, Saut?ed Onion, Mashed Potato (Water, Potato Flakes, Mono & Diglycerides, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Citric Acid), Corn, Carrots, Black Pepper, Oregano, Basil, Flavoring (Hydrolyzed Soy Protein with Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Soybean and/or Cottonseed). Sun Dried Tomato Sauce: Water, Tomato Paste, Whole Peeled Tomatoes, (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Salt, Citric Acid), Modified Food Starch, Onions, Sugar, Garlic, Soy Oil, Salt, Black Pepper, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Parve Chicken Base (Dextrose, Corn Starch, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Soy, Corn, Canola), Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Spices Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Turmeric), Soy Oil. Vegetables: Peas, Corn, Carrots, Green Beans.
Amazon Price: $40.71 (as of 07/25/2008)
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves (Sultan) 375g
Ingredients : Cabbage leaves, rice, dry onion, water, refined sunflower oil, mint, salt, spices, citric acid. Nutrition Facts for 134gr: Energy 220kcal, Fat 15gr, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 500mg, Carbohydrate 19gr, Sugar 0gr, Protein 3gr . Product of Turkey.
Amazon Price: $2.49 (as of 07/25/2008)
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves with Rice (Arora-Gradina) 280g
Product of Bulgaria.
Amazon Price: $2.49 (as of 07/25/2008)
Stuffed Cabbage, Prepared Food 425gram
Turkili Stuffed Cabbage INGREDIENTS Water Onion Rice Cabbage Sunflower oil Salt Mint Currants Black pepper Pine nut Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid). Product of Turkey.
Amazon Price: $3.99 (as of 07/25/2008)
Grandma used a huge cast iron pot ...
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Drop me a line ...
Do you love stuffed cabbage? Got a great recipe? Please share comments, raves, remarks ... and recipes!
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tropicalstarlet
thank you for the recipes, better to try it. very nice lens anyway. Posted July 20, 2008 |
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NAIZA
I love the juicyness of cabbage esp with meat or fish in a dish.. It's a perfect combination.. Wonderful and yummy recipes! Posted July 15, 2008 |
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youhavegottobekidding
I have not really tried this dish but i am really willing to give it a try, coz it looks really yummy. Posted July 13, 2008 |
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alicesy
Excellent Lens. I like the quality insight you have provided here about Stuffed Cabbage. Keep up the good work. Posted July 02, 2008 |
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susanelainegalloway
Nice and comforting nothing better than hot food to warm you through. I love the dark green leafy cabbage too. Posted June 19, 2008 |
Hey Stuffed Cabbage Lovers!
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P.S. Martha Stewart loves Stuffed Cabbage!
And, she is reading my lenses ...
Check out this yummy picture of stuffed cabbage from Martha Stewart's show.-
Martha Stewart is Reading MY Lenses
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Well, I've been watching Martha Stewart's TV Show for quite some time. And, I've noticed that several of her segments have seemed pretty familiar. Hmmm, can Martha Stewart be reading Squidoo lenses -- MY lenses? If it's not Martha Stewart herself, i...
I dedicate this lens to my loving grandmother, Julie Nagy!
She was my namesake and my superhero ...
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Julia Nagy -- My Grandmother is My Namesake and My SUPERHERO!
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Yes, thinking about the 'superheroes' in my life, the very first person that comes to mind is my grandmother! First of all, my grandmother was my namesake -- I was named in honor of my grandmother! And, I can't think of a day that goes by that I do N...
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