Cabbage Roll Recipe
Recipe Source: Trickum Treats.
About the Dish
From Polish Goląbki and Turkish Sarmale to Japanese Rooru Kabetsu and countless other variations, cabbage rolls are an old recipe that spans multiple cultures and continents. They have been around at least 2,000 years, when Jewish holishkls were served to commemorate the Simchat Torah fall festival, and were popular throughout Eastern Europe. Today, Sweden celebrates Kåldolmens dag (Day of the Cabbage Roll) in late November in honor of King Charles XII, who introduced the recipe to his homeland after fleeing the Ottoman Empire.
The exact recipe varies by region. Cabbage leaves are wrapped around a variety of fillings, including smoked pork and sausage in Romania; beef and rice in Ukraine; raisins, brown sugar, and lemon in Lithuania; and seafood, tofu, and shiitake mushrooms in Asia.
This is a dish that is ready for a fresh introduction. It is a healthy, low-carb meal and easy on the wallet. Cabbage is a healthy vegetable that lasts a good while in the fridge. A wrapped uncut cabbage will last around two weeks in the crisper drawer. Cabbage is rich in vitamins C and K and fiber and low in net carbs. This dish also integrates well into Keto and low-carb diets.
Original Recipe
Recipe Source: Trickum Treats.
This cookbook has been with my family for a long time (exactly how long I couldn’t say). There is no date or copyright. It was published by the Cedar Grove School in Walker County and dedicated to the Cedar Grove Community.
The book is organized by community activities, e.g., Homecoming, Christmas, Stocking up the Pantry, which means you basically need to read it from cover to cover to find recipes. This is fine by me.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium cabbage
- 1 ½ lb. ground beef
- ⅓ cup diced onion
- ¾ cup uncooked oats
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- ½ cup milk
Directions:
Mix beef, onion, oats, egg, salt, pepper, and milk. Set aside. Separate 12 cabbage leaves. Cook for 3 minutes. Drain and dry. Place beef mixture on cabbage leaf. Roll and pin with a toothpick. Place in a large baking dish.
Sauce
- 2 8 oz. cans of tomato sauce
- 1 clove garlic
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup vinegar
- ½ cup water
Pour over cabbage rolls. Bake 1 ½ hours at 350 degrees. Remove sauce from dish. Heat and add 2 tbsp. cornstarch in ¼ cup water. Bring to a boil and pour over cabbage rolls. Yield: 12 servings.
How I Cooked It:
There is no reason to alter this recipe much. This dish has persisted for hundreds of years; who am I to change it? I eliminated the onion and garlic, but only because those ingredients are banned in my house. Variations of stuffed cabbage leaves use parsley, dill, and bacon to turn up the flavor. My advice is to season the meat how you prefer. I don’t think there is a right or wrong way here.
I used green cabbage. The leaves were difficult to separate. So I microwave the head of cabbage for a few minutes so the leaves are more malleable. You could use white cabbage or napa cabbage. Those leaves would be easier to manage.
The only thing I would do differently is skip the last step to thicken the sauce after cooking in the oven. The dish honestly looks wonderful straight out of the oven. Baking already thickens the sauce a bit.
Ingredients:
- 1 medium cabbage
- 1 ½ lb. ground beef
- ⅓ cup shredded carrots
- ¾ cup uncooked oats
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- ½ milk
Sauce
- 2 8 oz. cans of tomato sauce
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup vinegar
- ½ cup water
Ingredients:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix ground beef, carrots, oats, egg, salt, pepper, and milk. Refrigerate while preparing cabbage leaves.
- Separate 12 cabbage leaves and quick-boil leaves for 3 minutes to soften. (Tip: after washing the cabbage, microwave for 2 minutes to help loosen leaves and prevent tearing when separating.)
- Place 2 tbsp. of ground beef mixture in cabbage leaves. Roll leaves, folding the edges in to keep meat from cooking out. Hold roll together with toothpick.
- Grease a casserole dish with butter and shortening.
- Place rolls in a single layer in casserole dish.
- Mix tomato sauce, sugar, vinegar, and water. Pour over cabbage rolls.
- Bake for 1 ½ hours uncovered.
- Remove sauce from dish and heat in a small saucepan
- Add 2 tbsp. cornstarch in ¼ cup water to sauce and bring to a boil to thicken.
- Pour over cabbage rolls. (I found this thickened the sauce too much. Next time, I’m skipping this part. The cabbage rolls and sauce looked amazing right out of the oven.)
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