Cabbage Rolls

 
20210221_155030.jpg

This is a simplified version of a family recipe pared down to make the prep work quicker and easier, although with the very lengthy cooking time you still need to give yourself half a day to get this dish to the table. The good thing is that it’s made in bulk and it freezes really well.

Stuffing Ingredients:

  • 1 large head of cabbage (green, red or savoy all work well)

  • 2 LBS ground beef or vegan alternative. I’ve tried several vegan ground meat alternatives and they all work well.

  • 2 Eggs (This can be substituted for egg replacement powder, or just a couple tablespoons of flour since the purpose is just to bind the stuffing ingredients together)

  • 1 Tsp Salt

  • ¼ Tsp Pepper

  • 1 Package Lipton Onion Soup

  • 1/3 Cup Lemon Juice

  • 1/3 Cup Minute Rice (if you use regular rice you’ll have to partially cook it first before mixing it with the stuffing)

  • 1/3 Cup Water (use 1/2 cup of water if substituting egg for flour)

Sauce Ingredients:

  • 1 Large can (32 oz) Peeled or Stewed Tomatoes

  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste

  • ¾ Cup Brown Sugar

  • ½ Cup Lemon Juice

  • 1 can (32 oz) Sour Kraut (with juice)

  • ½ Cup Water

Method

  • Place the head of cabbage in a large pot of boiling water for just a couple of minutes to soften the leaves to make them easy to peel.

  • While you’re waiting for the cabbage to cool enough to handle, put all the stuffing ingredients in a large bowl, mix well and set aside. Then put all sauce ingredients into a large baking dish and gently warm it on the stove while stirring to make sure the tomato paste and sugar are fully blended with the other ingredients.

  • When the cabbage is cool enough, start peeling the leaves and portion a small amount of the beef mixture into each leaf, then gently roll into shape and place it into the sauce.

  • When you’ve used up all the stuffing, place any remaining cabbage leaves over the rolls so that they don’t burn and then bake in a conventional oven for three hours at 350 degrees.

These rolls go nicely with some mashed potato and a mix of a few other steamed or roasted vegetables, or even just a basic salad.

 
Andrew Williamson