One of the most pleasant surprises on our trip to Romania was how delicious the food and wine was in this lovely country. A favorite of ours was the Romanian Stuffed Cabbage Rolls.
Romanian Cabbage Rolls
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup long-grain rice (uncooked)
- 2 pounds ground pork
- 1/4 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
- 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh dill
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 head cabbage
- 15 slices bacon, chopped
- 4 cups tomato juice
- 1 tablespoon Tony Chachere's original seasoning
- sour cream, for serving
Instructions
- Carefully separate the leaves from head of cabbage.
- Bring a large and generously salted pot of water to a boil.
- Cook the cabbage leaves in the boiling water for about 3 minutes.
- Remove the cabbage leaves and let them cool.
- Cut out the thickest part of the cabbage leaves at the bottom by slicing on each side of the rib to form a triangle. Put cabbage leaves on a large plate and set aside.
- Heat the oil in a skillet, add the onions and cook until softened and translucent.
- Add the rice to the onions and cook another minute.
- In a large bowl, add the ground pork, salt, pepper, parsley, dill and the onion and rice mixture.
- Mix well with a large wooden spoon or clean hands.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Fill each cabbage leaf with about 1/4 cup of the meat mixture and roll tucking in the ends to keep the meat mixture in the cabbage leaves. Repeat with all the remaining meat and cabbage leaves.
- Place half of the stuffed cabbage leaves in a lightly greased Dutch oven, in a single layer. Sprinkle the cabbage leaves with the chopped bacon. Sprinkle with 1/2 tablespoon Tony Chachere's seasoning.
- Place remaining cabbage rolls on top of the single layer of cabbage rolls. Sprinkle with bacon. Sprinkle with 1/2 tablespoon Tony Chachere's seasoning.
- Pour tomato juice over the cabbage rolls and add additional water as needed to completely cover the cabbage rolls.
- Cover the Dutch oven with the lid or aluminum foil if your pot does not have a lid. Place Dutch oven in the oven. Bake for 2 hours, then remove the lid or foil and cook for another 1 to 1.5 hours. Serve with sour cream.
