Something new concerning cabbage

I have been curious about stuffed cabbage for awhile now.  Not sure why.  Maybe because I’ve never had it and have never seen it as an entrée option on any menu.  It’s “old fashioned Jewish peasant food” according to Ina.  She made stuffed cabbage for Jeffrey (her husband) on one of her episodes about old fashioned Jewish cuisine and she made it look so easy and tasty that I had to make it myself.

I pretty much followed her recipe (featured in Barefoot Contessa At Home, page 106), but I used lean ground turkey in place of the ground beef, I skipped the raisins in the tomato sauce, and I halved the recipe since I was only cooking for my husband and myself.  My recipe serves 3 and Ina’s serves 6 (you can easily double mine)

It’s very easy, but a little time consuming.  However, it’s easy to do ahead of time and the results are very delicious.  The natural sweetness of the cabbage really comes through, but is cut by the savory taste of the filling.  In other words, this dish has it all and it looks impressive to guests! Enjoy!

Stuffed Cabbage

For the sauce:

1 small onion, chopped

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes and it’s juice

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

½ teaspoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

1 head green cabbage, including outer leaves (you won’t use the whole head)

For the filling:

1 pound lean ground turkey

1 large egg, lightly beaten

½ cup finely chopped onion

¼ cup plain dried bread crumbs

¼ uncooked white rice

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves

½ teaspoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

For the sauce, heat a large saucepan over medium high heat, add the onion and cook until translucent

Add the garlic and cook for another minute, stirring the whole time so the garlic doesn’t burn

Add the tomatoes, vinegar, brown sugar, salt, and pepper

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes

Taste for seasoning and set aside

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil

Remove the entire core of the cabbage with a paring knife

Place cabbage in the boiling water for a few minutes until you can peel the leaves off with tongs

For the filling, in a large bowl, place turkey, egg, onion, bread crumbs, rice, thyme, salt, and pepper plus ½ cup of the sauce

Mix lightly with a fork or your hands

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

To assemble, place 1/2 cup of sauce at the bottom of a large Dutch oven

Remove the hard triangular rib from the base of each cabbage leaf with a small paring knife

Place ¼ cup of filling in an oval shape near the rib edge of each leaf and roll up towards the outer edge, tucking in the sides as you roll

Place the rolls, in a single row, seam side down, then cover with sauce

Add more cabbage rolls alternating with sauce and end with sauce on top

Cover dish with a lid and bake for 50 minutes until meat is cooked