that I'd started substituting ground turkey for the ground pork Betty used while keeping the ham which is essential to the flavor of the dish. I'm making a batch of these on Friday. Here's the recipe:
Date: 09-Jan-2003 18:42
Author: Jenise Email
Subject: RC: Evil Stepmother's Hungarian Cabbage Rolls
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Yesterday, the ham I baked for New Years Day turned into it's last--and my favorite--incarnation: Hungarian Cabbage Rolls. They're Hungarian because, though I never had a recipe, I've created a lighter version of my Hungarian stepmother's all-pork cabbage rolls, a recipe she learned from her old-country mother who, though she lived 60 years in America, never learned to speak English. Hers were not only the first cabbage rolls I ever tasted, they are the only version of the dish I've truly loved, bursting as they are with the flavors of smokey ham and sausage, tart sauerkraut, garlic and paprika. In comparison, all other cabbage rolls are...well, wimpy. I serve them with spaetzle.
Now, these little bundles of pleasure are a little laborious to make, but it's the kind of earthy, elemental kitchen labor most true cooks love, and the rewards are ample. A potful based on just two pounds of meat will feed a large family--my recipe makes about two dozen rolls, and two rolls is a serving. Cabbage rolls are also a wonderful do-ahead, for they seem to take on flavor every time they're reheated. Preparation time: about an hour to steam the cabbage and fold the rolls plus a few minutes to add the remaining ingredients. After that, two hours of effortless braising.
The ingredients:
1-2 heads green cabbage (for a more spectacular look and texture variation, use some collard greens, too)
Filling:
1 lb baked ham, ground (I chop it with the steel blade on my food processor)
1 lb raw ground turkey
1/2 c long grain uncooked rice
1 large egg (or two small)
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
Braising liquid:
1 quart ham or chicken broth
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 quart sauerkraut
2 tblsp good quality paprika, preferably Hungarian (there is no other like it!)
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 cloves garlic
1/2 - 1 lb (or more) Kielbasa or other smoked sausage
2 tblsp finely chopped parsley
optional: red chilis or red chili flakes for heat
Prepare the cabbage: Remove the core from a head of cabbage and place the head, core-side down, in a pot containing about an inch of boiling water. Have a kettle of hot water standing by to replenish. As the leaves steam and separate from the head, remove them with tongs to a clean towel for drainage. Expose any uncooked parts of the leaf briefly to the cooking water or zap them for 30 seconds in the microwave--any uncooked parts will be too crisp to roll. Continue until all of the medium to large leaves have been softened. After they're steamed, cut out the first two-three inches of stiff/thick stem in each leaf.
Note: an advantage to using some collard greens, they're MUCH easier to prepare--just blanch and cut out the stem.
Prepare the filling: Combine ground turkey, ground ham, egg, rice and garlic in a bowl until thoroughly mixed.
Make the rolls: this takes some getting used to because as the size of the leaves change, so does the best way to make the rolls. The two important things to do are 1) shape the meat into little logs that are about three inches long by one inch in diameter, and 2) have enough cabbage leaf to cover the meat. It's best if you have a leaf about an inch and a half wider on each side than your meat that you tuck in, then roll, but perfection is not important. Indeed, two smaller leaves can be used in combination to make one roll. As the rolls cook, the cabbage exterior adheres to the meat center. Larger outer leaves can sometimes be cut in half or trimmed.
As you make them, nest the rolls snugly in the bottom of a Dutch oven. This recipe should make exactly two layers. Slice the garlic and the sausage, and place on top of the rolls. Pour the sauerkraut over the sausage. Mix about one cup of the ham or chicken broth with the tomato sauce and paprika, pour that over the rolls and then add more broth to fill the pot to the sauerkraut. Place on high heat until the liquid starts to boil, the cover and simmer for about two hours.
When the rolls are done, add the parsley and serve over warm spaetzle or steamed potatoes.
Or do those 2 words just naturally go together?