Labas, Raffies!
Tonight we are going to Lithuania and making some cabbage rolls.
This is a dish you find quite often in Germany, as well. Usually, my grandma used to make them in the oven, though. The Lithuanian version is achieved by simmering the rolls on a low flame.
The recipe is quite simple. For my version, I used this recipe.
Ingredients:
1 cabbage
1 c onion, thinly chopped
1 c celery, thinly chopped
1 c bell pepper, thinly chopped
2 tbsp butter
1 c rice, cooked
700 g ground beef or lamb
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 egg, beaten
1 c tomato purée
1 c stock beef
3 tbsp sour cream
Marjoram
Salt
Pepper
Place the cabbage in a pot with boiling salted water and leave for about 5 minutes. Once soft enough to pull the individual leaves. Remove the leaves.
Chop the leaves that are too small to be filled and set aside.
In a skillet, heat the butter and sautée the onion, celery, bell pepper. Cook until soft and leave to cool down.
In a bowl, mix the rice, the vegetables from the previous step, the meat, garlic, egg, marjoram, salt and pepper. Work until well combined.
Place a handful of meat in every cabbage leaf and fold on three sides and roll up, like a burrito. Place the rolls of cabbage into a Dutch oven or a casserole. Add the chopped cabbage and season with salt and pepper.
Combine the tomato purée and beef stock and pour over the rolls. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat. Cover with a lid and simmer for an hour.
Serve with sour cream and the sauce poured on top.
The flavour was delicious. The sauce mixed with sour cream was great!
Love,
Raffi
