Grandma’s Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage

• total time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 large head green cabbage

tablespoons extra virgin peo.

cup minced onions

1/4 teaspoon minced garlic

1 pound ground pork

3/4 cup cooked white rice (from about 1/4

cup of dry rice)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika (or plain paprika if your market doesn't offer a choice

2 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 cup water

1 cup tomato puree

1/4 cup full-fat sour cream

1 pound sauerkraut

1 pound pork, kielbasa, sliced

Directions

Prep the sauerkraut:

Rinse the sauerkraut in cold water. Squeeze out excess moisture and set aside.

Cook the cabbage:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil (1 tablespoon of salt for every 2 quarts of water). Add the whole green cabbage to the boiling water. Cook for 10 minutes. Remove the cabbage from the water and let drain until it is cool enough to handle. Pull off as many large, unbroken

leaves as you can and lay them on paper towels dry. Chop up small inner leaves and use with sauerkraut.

Sauté onions and garlic:

Heat olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the onions and sauté them until translucent and beginning to color. Add the garlic and cook half a minute longer. Sprinkle with salt. Remove from heat.

4.

Make pork mixture:

In a large bowl, place the ground pork, cooked rice, beaten eggs, paprika, marjoram, the cooked onions and garlic, salt, and several grinds of black pepper. Mix with your clean hands or a wooden spoon until just combined.

5.

Stuff the cabbage rolls:

Working one at a time, place a couple tablespoons of the pork stuffing in the center of a blanched cabbage leaf. Start at the thick end of the leaf and fold the sides of the cabbage over the stuffing. Then roll up the whole cabbage leaf into a tight bundle.

Repeat with the remaining leaves until you have used up all of your stuffing.

6.

Layer stuffed cabbage rolls on top of sauerkraut and sliced kielbasa:

Place the rinsed and drained sauerkraut in an even layer on the bottom of a Dutch oven, then layer the kielbasa on top of the sauerkraut. Place the cabbage rolls on top of the sauerkraut.

7.

Simmer the rolls:

Mix the cup of water with the cup of tomato purée, and 1 teaspoon of salt, and pour over the cabbage rolls. Heat on high to bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook the cabbage rolls on a low simmer for one hour.

8.

Make the sauce:

Remove the stuffed cabbage rolls from the pot and place on a warm dish. Slowly stir the sour cream into the sauerkraut/kielbasa.

Bring to a simmer and let cook for about 5 minutes. Salt to taste.