Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls are the ultimate winter comfort food! Perfect for the holidays or anytime you need a warm, delicious meal. Made with some smoked pork ribs and served with sour cream on top, few people resist the temptation to devour this dish.
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In the traditional cuisine of Transylvania, a woman who knows how to make Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls means that she has become a perfect housewife who cooks well. That's because the recipe is a little more complex than most others and requires little skill. But the result can lift you to glory.
How Many Types of Cabbage Rolls Recipes Are There?
Pick your cabbage! This recipe offers versatility when it comes to the cabbage selection. Fresh cabbage provides a mild, slightly sweet base for the filling. For a bolder flavour profile, consider using sauerkraut or pickled cabbage, which will impart a delightful tanginess to your stuffed cabbage rolls. Stuffed cabbage made with fresh cabbage is a summer recipe. I add in this recipe tomatoes or tomato broth. Another great recipe you must try is the best stuffed cabbage recipe.
Don't limit yourself to cabbage! You can use this same delicious filling for grape leaves or collard greens, creating a fun and flavourful variation, like in the best stuffed collard greens recipe.
Minced meat and rice are a classic filling for stuffed cabbage rolls, but don't forget the vegetarians! Use mushrooms and rice for a hearty and flavourful plant-based alternative.
Today we will make the version with sauerkraut stuffed with minced pork and rice but with smoked pork next to it in the pot. But let's see the ingredients!
Ingredients
We need two heads of sauerkraut that you can find in stores with Eastern European products or sauerkraut leaves. Both are good too.
We also usually use sliced sauerkraut, about 400 g, but I will also put the small leaves remained after I open the cabbage heads and which I will slice.
For the filling, we need minced meat. I will put 1 kg pork mince with at least 15% fat, but it is also possible with a mixture of pork and beef.
Also, for the filling, I will use two medium-sized yellow onions and about 400 g of rice. I found rice from Romania, especially for stuffed cabbage, but you can use any round-grain rice.
And do not forget to add something smoked meat in the pot because the Hungarian stuffed cabbage roll can't do it without it. I found smoked pork ribs, from which I will use 350 g. But you can put smoked pork sausages or pork hock, and the condition is to be smoked naturally.
Preparing the Ingredients
Because we do not have many ingredients, their preparation does not require much time. We will start with the cabbage heads that we have to open the leaves. If we have to remove the core of the fresh cabbage first, for the sauerkraut, it is already cut.
We unfold the leaves individually and put them on each other until we reach the small leaves. That cannot be filled and which we slice thinly. A little clarification. I usually taste the sauerkraut, and if it is too sour or too salty, I put it in cold water and rinse it well before filling it.
Peel the onions and finely chop them. Put the rice in a strainer, rinse it in cold water, and let it drain.
I cut the smoked pork ribs into pieces so we could quickly put them in the pot. If you use pork sausages, also cut them into pieces, but not very small.
How to Make the Best Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe?
I will show you how to make Hungarian stuffed cabbage by going through three stages. We will make the filling first, then we will fill the cabbage leaves, and at the end, we will place them in the pot, and we will put the pot to boil. But let's take them one at a time!
How to Make the Filling From Cabbage Rolls?
The filling I use contains three basic ingredients, minced meat, rice and fried onions. So we start frying onions first. To do this, heat 100 ml of sunflower oil in a saucepan and fry the chopped onion.
Season with a half teaspoon of sea salt and fry the onion until it softens and becomes glassy; it doesn't have to change its colour; after which, I add a tablespoon and a half of Hungarian sweet paprika powder.
Stir, leave for another half a minute and be ready to turn off the heat.
In a bowl where we will make the filling, we first put the minced meat over which we pour the rinsed and drained rice.
Add the sauteed onion and season with a teaspoon of freshly ground pepper, sea salt and a teaspoon of a vegetable mix for soups.
Mix all the ingredients well with a wooden spoon or even by hand until you get a homogeneous paste.
How to Fill the Cabbage Leaves?
This is the part that everyone is afraid of, but believe me, it is not very complicated; you need a little skill.
Take a cabbage leaf in your palm, and using a small knife, cut a thin sliver off the thickest central vein of each leaf.
Holding the cabbage leaf in our palm, we put a spoonful of filling on the leaf, with which we will fill it.
Fold the edges of the leaf over the filling and then roll the cabbage to the end of the leaf.
I inserted the ends of the roll inside with our fingers, and ready, we finished the first roll of stuffed cabbage.
We continue like this until we finish filling all the cabbage leaves and put them all on a plate, one on top of the other.
How to Arrange the Cabbage Rolls in the Pot
This technique of arranging the rolls depends on their number and size and the pot size in which we cook them. Slow simmering over low heat is key to this classic Hungarian stuffed cabbage recipe. To achieve the most flavourful results, use a cast-iron pot or clay pot. These heavy-bottomed pots distribute heat evenly and gently, ensuring your cabbage rolls cook through beautifully.
Because I don't currently have a clay pot for this recipe, I'll make it in a five-litter cast iron pot where I will place a little sliced cabbage and a few pieces of smoked ribs on its bottom.
Now place the cabbage rolls one by one, starting from the edge of the pot inwards, leaving the middle of the pot for the ribs.
We continue the arrangement until we finish all the rolls on the plate, putting sliced cabbage and pork ribs between them, and at the end, we cover them with sliced cabbage.
How to Cook the Best Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe?
Pour cold water into the pot to cover the rolls, place the lid on and put the pot to boil, first over medium heat until the water starts to boil, then over low heat for about two hours.
If the pot is too big for the amount of stuffed cabbage, I usually put a smaller lid or a plate turned over the cabbage to stay as fixed as possible, not to spread during cooking.
You can put the pot in the oven at a low temperature of 140-150 degrees, and it will be just as delicious. If too much liquid evaporates, you can top it up with warm water.
The aroma of these Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls will waft through your entire house, making your family hungry for a taste! They're ready to serve and guaranteed to satisfy.
Frequently Ask Questions (F.A.Q.)
Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls, or "töltött káposzta" are a traditional dish where cabbage leaves are stuffed with a savory filling. This filling typically features ground pork or beef, rice, onions, and a blend of spices. The beauty of this dish lies in its adaptability! While some regions and families have their own twists, you'll often find variations that include paprika, garlic, tomato sauce, sauerkraut, or even sour cream.
For Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls, you want a large, firm-headed cabbage. Look for one with thin, flexible leaves that detach easily without ripping. Savoy cabbage is a popular choice because its leaves are tender and pliable. Still, regular green cabbage can also be used. Some Hungarian recipes specifically call for "sour cabbage", a fermented cabbage with a tangy, acidic flavour.
If the cabbage on your cabbage rolls is tough, there are a few possible reasons why this may be the case:
-Undercooked cabbage: If the leaves were cooked longer before stuffing and baking, they might be tricky and difficult to chew.
-Overcooked cabbage: On the other hand, it can become mushy and lose its texture if cooked too long.
-Thick or coarse cabbage leaves: Some types of cabbage have thick or coarse leaves that can be tough even when cooked properly. If you are using this type of cabbage, try removing some of the more rigid outer leaves and using only the more tender inner leaves for your cabbage rolls.
Serving
Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls we usually serve hot as a main dish. Here are a few ideas for doing them:
- Sauce: Hungarian cabbage rolls are often served with a tomato-based sauce poured over the top. This sauce can be made from canned or crushed tomatoes, with additional seasonings such as paprika, garlic, and onion.
- Sides: Traditional Hungarian side dishes with cabbage rolls include boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes, or rice. You can also serve a simple green salad or pickled vegetables on the side.
- Toppings: Sour cream is a popular topping for Hungarian cabbage rolls. You can also sprinkle chopped parsley or dill over the top for extra flavour and colour.
- Bread: Crusty bread, such as a baguette or a sourdough loaf, is a great accompaniment to soak up the sauce and juices from the cabbage rolls.
Overall, serving Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls is a personal preference, so feel free to experiment with different sauces, sides, and toppings to find the combination you like best.
If you have decided to cook the best Hungarian stuffed cabbage rolls recipe, and you are passionate about cabbage recipes, I recommend the following recipes from our blog:
- Delicious Cabbage Casserole Recipe
- Vegan Cabbage and Pasta Recipe
- Beef and Cabbage Stew Recipe
- Best Cabbage Soup Recipe
- Sauerkraut Sausage Soup Recipe
- Cabbage Soup With Pork Meat
- Frankfurter Soup With Savoy Cabbage
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Best Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Dutch oven pot
Ingredients
- 2 pieces pickled cabbage head sauerkraut
- 400 g pickled sliced cabbage
- 1 kg pork mince 15% fat
- 2 pieces onions medium size
- 400 g rice round grain
- 350 g smoked ribs or smoked sausage
- 2 teaspoons sea salt kosher
- 1+½ tablespoon paprika powder sweet Hungarian
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper freshly ground
- 1 teaspoon vegetable mix for soup
Instructions
- Unfold the leaves one by one and put them on top of each other.
- Peel the onions and finely chop them and put the rice in a strainer and rinse it in cold water and let it drain.
- Cut the smoked pork ribs into pieces so we could easily put them in the pot.
- Heat the sunflower oil in a saucepan and fry the chopped onion. Season with a half teaspoon of sea salt and fry the onion until it softens and becomes glassy after, add the Hungarian sweet paprika powder.
- In a bowl, first put the minced meat over which we pour the rinsed and drained rice.
- Add the sauteed onion and season with freshly ground pepper, sea salt and vegetable mix for soups.
- Mix all the ingredients well with a wooden spoon or even by hand until you get a homogeneous paste.
- Take a cabbage leaf in your palm and using a small knife, cut a thin sliver off the thickest central vein of each leaf.
- Holding the cabbage leaf in the palm, we put a spoonful of filling on the leaf, with which we will fill it.
- Fold the edges of the leaf over the filling and then roll the cabbage to the end of the leaf.
- Insert the ends of the roll inside with our finger and ready, we finished the first roll of stuffed cabbage.
- Continue like this until we finish filling all the cabbage leaves and we put them all on a plate one on top of the other.
- Place a little sliced cabbage and a few pieces of smoked ribs on its bottom.
- Put the cabbage rolls one by one, starting from the edge of the pot inwards, leaving the middle of the pot for the ribs.
- Continue the arrangement until we finish all the rolls on the plate, putting sliced cabbage and pork ribs between them, and at the end, we cover with sliced cabbage.
- Pour cold water into the pot to cover the rolls.
- Place the lid on and put the pot to boil, first over medium heat until the water starts to boil, then over low heat for about two hours.
- Served hot, with a little sour cream on top and necessarily with fresh bread.
TECH RVL says
Oh my God, these look absolutely fantastic! This sounds like a great recipe for a nice homecooked dinner with your girlfriend or wife, or just a friend! I've never tried Hungarian food, some of the ingredients seem quite interesting. I'm Jamaican and American, but I like to try different cuisines.
Timea says
Hungarian cuisine is very interesting, tasty and very filling, I recommend you try it.
Zeljko Bosnjak says
Never heard about hungarian style, bosnian, croatian or serbian yes. We call that sarma.
Laci says
The recipe has spread throughout the Balkans, including Hungary-töltött káposzta, Romania Sarmale, Ukraine-holubtsi and Poland-golabki. In our family, we put onions previously sautéed and seasoned with paprika in the filling.
S. Balazs says
Exactly like my Great Grandma made them except she went with half rice/half barly and 1 pound of lean ground beef and 1 pound of mild Itilian sausage for the stuffing with onions,minced garlic etc..Smoked ham hocks and sour cream put the rolls over the edge. 2 heads of cabbage gives us 32 to 36 rolls. Going to make a batch next week!!! Our family came from Dombrad,Hungary in the early 1900s.