Stuffed Corned Beef and Cabbage
During various holidays, I tend to buy a little extra of whatever is on sale, to have on hand for the future. For example, an extra turkey before Thanksgiving, which can always be eaten in December, or a Ham for the freezer, at Easter, and around Saint Patrick’s Day, cabbage and corned beef! I make the traditional boiled dinner, with carrots, potatoes, and onions, which we enjoy for a couple of days, as there are always left-overs; but this spin on stuffed cabbage is a great way to utilize that third head of cabbage and extra pound of corned beef.
The rolls can certainly be made as a main course, served with a few vegetable side dishes, like roasted beets and carrots, and a green salad; but they also make a fantastic hot appetizer course. Baked on a bed of sauerkraut with either a little plain sour cream, or sour cream with horseradish sauce for dipping, they are a great way to start off a dinner party.
Below this recipe, you will also find my traditional recipe for stuffed cabbage.
Ingredients:
One large head of Cabbage
1 pound of cooked Corned Beef per 1 large red Potato
1 large Onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon of Garlic, smashed
2 tablespoons of oil (I prefer a couple of table spoons of Fat from the corned beef!)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 cup of Sauerkraut
¼ – ½ cup of Water or Stock (The Stock which the corned beef was boiled in works beautifully.)
1 tablespoon of Butter
Directions:
In a large stock pot, bring about 2 cups of water to boil. Wash the cabbage and remove spoiled leaves, then with a very sharp knife, keeping the head whole, remove as much of the core, as you can. Place the whole cabbage in the stock pot and cover tightly; steam the cabbage for about 10 minutes, until it is soft and pliable. Once the cabbage is soft, but not mushy, place it in a colander, and run cold water over it, or plunge it in a large bowl with ice water, to stop the cooking. Let the cabbage cool and drain, then with a very sharp paring knife, remove the back vein or stem from each leaf of cabbage, so that you will be able to use the leaf to form a packet, for the stuffing. You will fold this much as you would a burrito, making sure you tuck both ends in, so that the stuffing does not escape during cooking.
While the cabbage is cooking, dice your potato into very small, bite size pieces, and boil them until there are just tender. In a large skillet, sauté the onions for a couple of minutes and then add diced corned beef, heat through, and add tender potatoes. Let this mixture sauté for about five minutes, so that all flavors meld; then remove from heat to cool to the touch.
In an oven proof baking dish that can also be used to serve your rolls, place a layer of sauerkraut, which will cradle your cabbage rolls. Grab your first leaf, you may want to work on a cutting board, and place the end that was attached to the core, closet to your body. Place several table spoons of the cooled corned beef and potato mixture on a leaf, then fold the end closest to you over the mixture, then fold in the right and left side of the leaf, and roll away from you. Place on the sauerkraut with the seam side down, and continue stuffing the leaves, until the pan is full. Put about a quarter inch of water or stock in the pan, cover tightly, and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes, until warm. As I made these as an appetizer, they were smaller and thus heated quickly. When you pull them out of the oven, you can brush them with a little butter; and serve warm.
Stuffed Cabbage
The first time I had stuffed cabbage was in Cleveland. A neighbor brought us a casserole dish of bright, green, little packets of cabbage, that sat cradled in a pool of tomato sauce. I was incredibly intrigued. Though my Mother made stuffed peppers, which are very similar, she had never made stuffed cabbage.
Stuffed cabbage is a good dish to prepare for a small dinner party. It can be made several days ahead, or weeks ahead and frozen. This is a time intensive dish, but when holiday seasons draw near, I will often make several batches, of stuffed cabbage, in disposable tin pans, and tuck them in the freezer, for a quick supper, when an unexpected guest drops by, or if I need a dish to take to a potluck. Along with meat loaf, it is also one of my “home from a trip” dishes. I find that we always arrive hungry, from vacations, that I am not in the mood to cook, and that the refrigerator is usually, intentionally under stocked. Having something, in the freezer, which can be easily heated, helps make the transition, back into our life, much easier. For company, serve with mashed potatoes, and enough of the tomato sauce to serve as gravy.
Ingredients:
2 cups of cooked Rice
Sauce
1 large can of Tomato Sauce
1 medium can of Crushed Tomato
1 small can of Tomato Puree
1 ½ cups of Beef Stock
2 Bay Leaves
1 large Onion – finely minced
2 stalks of Celery – sliced or diced very fine
2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
2 teaspoons of Thyme
2 teaspoons of Marjoram
1 teaspoon of Celery Seed
Salt and Pepper
Stuffing
1 large head of Green Cabbage
1 pound of Ground Beef
1 pound of Ground Pork
1 large Onion – diced
2 teaspoons of Garlic – diced
1 tablespoon of Thyme
2 teaspoons of Sweet or Half –Sharp Paprika
Salt and Pepper
Directions:
Make 1 cup of dry rice, which will yield 2 cups of cooked rice, in your rice cooker, or the day ahead, cool and reserve till later.
After you put on the rice, make the sauce. There are hundreds of variations, for this sauce, most people keep it rather plain, mine is a little more spicy, but it is not a thick sauce. In a large stock pot, sauté onions, celery, thyme, marjoram, and celery seeds in some olive oil, for about five minutes. Add tomato products and stock, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat, to low, and let it simmer while you prepare the cabbage. Stir it periodically and by all means skim the scum.
In a large stock pot, bring about 2 cups of water to boil. Wash the cabbage and remove spoiled leaves, then with a very sharp knife, keeping the head whole, remove as much of the core, as you can. Place the whole cabbage in the stock pot and cover tightly; steam the cabbage for about 10 minutes, until it is soft and pliable. Once the cabbage is soft, but not mushy, place it in a colander, and run cold water over it, or plunge it in a large bowl with ice water, to stop the cooking. Let the cabbage cool and drain, then with a very sharp paring knife, remove the back vein or stem from each leaf of cabbage, so that you will be able to use the leaf to form a packet, for the stuffing. You will fold this much as you would a burrito, making sure you tuck both ends in, so that the stuffing does not escape during cooking.
In a small skillet, fry hamburger and pork, until about halfway cooked, then add onions, garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper; and finish cooking. I tend to use very lean beef, so there should not be a lot of extra fat, if there is, you may want to pour it off, before you add rice. Mix meat and rice well, and let them cool, so they will be easy to work with, when you begin to make your rolls.
In a large baking dish that can go to the table, pour about a cup of sauce, spreading out over the pan. Grab your first leaf, you may want to work on a cutting board, and place the end that was attached to the core, closet to your body. Put a couple of tablespoons of the meat and rice mixture in the center of the leaf. How much stuffing, you put in the leaf, will vary, depending on the size of the leaf. They should be substantial, but contained. Fold the piece closest to you over the mixture and the fold in the right and left sides, then roll the leaf forward, making a tight little package. Place them in the baking dish, seam side down. Continue until the dish is full. Then pour the sauce over the cabbage rolls, and on the sides – you should still see the green rolls.
Cover the pan with foil, and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes, until warmed through.
