I rec'd a few PMs / emails requesting the recipe that Richard used for his latest party. He was so kind and reached out to me re: an authentic Hungarian rec for stuffed cabbage. While I have not made it in a while, my MIL is an expert. SO, below, find the rec as well as her notes on the family recipe. I will mention to you that I have NEVER made it to the extreme that Richard did, he did the whole nine yards. dh spoke to our relatives in Hungary and they were ALL impressed!!!
From my MIL:
Stuffed cabbage is delicious but a pain in the neck to make, especially if you are as clumsy as I am. (The rolling is what kills me). The recipe below is from a fabulous Hungarian cookbook by George Lang.
1/4 c. uncooked rice
1 lb. lean ground pork
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
2 garlic cloves, mashed
2 medium onions, chopped fine
1 egg
1 tbs.. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
2 tabs. Hungarian paprika (from Szeged)
1 head of fresh cabbage
2 lbs. sauerkraut
1/2 c. tomato juice
1/2 lb. smoked pork butt, sliced
2 tbs. lard
2 tbs.flour
1/2 c. sour cream
1. Cook ride in 1/2 c. water for 10 minutes. Drain, if needed.
2. Thoroughly mix the ground pork and beef with garlic, half of the onion, the egg, salt, pepper, 1 tbs. of the paprika and the drained rice. Put stuffing mixture aside.
3. Core the cabbage and cook the cabbage head in enough water to cover it for 10-15 minutes. Gently take apart the cabbage, leaf by leaf. Cut out heavy veins, if any. (My friends tell me that if you freeze the cabbage head it will fall apart very nicely, but I have not tried it as yet).
4. Use a large oval casserole,about 6" high, 16" long and 8-10" wide or a round one of similar size. Put sauerkraut in the casserole with tomato juice and sliced pork butt in enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Fill the cabbage leaves with the stuffing mixture; with well floured hands form rolls. (This is the worst part). Do not make the rolls too tight, for the stuffing will expand in cooking. Pinch the ends of the rolls together to seal them. Leftover stuffing can be made into meatballs and added.. Cut remaining cabbage leaves into fine shreds and add to the casserole.
6. Make room in the sauerkraut with a wooden spoon and place the cabbage rolls in it. Cook, covered, over very low heat for 1 hour.
7. Meantime, make a roux out of hot lard, flour and remaining chopped onion. Cook it for about 10 minutes until golden yellow. Turn off the heat, stir in 1 tbs. paprika and whip it up with 1 c. cold water.
8. Very gently remove the stuffed cabbage rolls from the casserole. Take out a ladleful of sauerkraut broth and whip it into the roux. Return this liquid thickening to main casserole, stirring it well. Bring to aboil.
9. Put back the stuffed cabbage leaves, cover the casserole, and finish it in a 350F oven for 15 minutes or more.
10 Before serving, pour the sour cream over the casserole, making sure not to break the cabbage leaves.
This will give you roughly 17-19 cabbage rolls. I might suggest that you should increase the spices and the onions. I add 2 onions to the pork/beef mixture and another onion to the roux.. If I am inspired, I also cook the rice in some onion.and add onion to the sauerkraut.
An interesting option is to fry 1 chopped onion in 1/4 lb. diced bacon for 5 minutes. Add a pinch of marjoram, then proceed to mix with other stuffing ingredients.
Instead of the pork butt, you might want to try smoked pork hocks. If you do, pre-cook them for about 1 and a half hours and add the liquid to the cabbage rolls. Some sliced and smoked Hungarian pork sausage does not hurt either.
A somewhat easier version makes you start with the roux; add sauerkraut and slowly cook it for 15 minutes. Proceed preparing the stuffed leaves and cook as directed above.
I hope I have not confused you too much. As I mentioned earlier, it is a pain in the neck to make, but if it turns out, it is well worth the trouble.
In Transylvania, they often add a handful of fresh dill and a glass of white wine in addition to the usual ingredients. George hates dill, so he is no fan of this version.
I add much more sour cream than 1/2 c.
From my MIL:
Stuffed cabbage is delicious but a pain in the neck to make, especially if you are as clumsy as I am. (The rolling is what kills me). The recipe below is from a fabulous Hungarian cookbook by George Lang.
1/4 c. uncooked rice
1 lb. lean ground pork
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
2 garlic cloves, mashed
2 medium onions, chopped fine
1 egg
1 tbs.. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
2 tabs. Hungarian paprika (from Szeged)
1 head of fresh cabbage
2 lbs. sauerkraut
1/2 c. tomato juice
1/2 lb. smoked pork butt, sliced
2 tbs. lard
2 tbs.flour
1/2 c. sour cream
1. Cook ride in 1/2 c. water for 10 minutes. Drain, if needed.
2. Thoroughly mix the ground pork and beef with garlic, half of the onion, the egg, salt, pepper, 1 tbs. of the paprika and the drained rice. Put stuffing mixture aside.
3. Core the cabbage and cook the cabbage head in enough water to cover it for 10-15 minutes. Gently take apart the cabbage, leaf by leaf. Cut out heavy veins, if any. (My friends tell me that if you freeze the cabbage head it will fall apart very nicely, but I have not tried it as yet).
4. Use a large oval casserole,about 6" high, 16" long and 8-10" wide or a round one of similar size. Put sauerkraut in the casserole with tomato juice and sliced pork butt in enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Fill the cabbage leaves with the stuffing mixture; with well floured hands form rolls. (This is the worst part). Do not make the rolls too tight, for the stuffing will expand in cooking. Pinch the ends of the rolls together to seal them. Leftover stuffing can be made into meatballs and added.. Cut remaining cabbage leaves into fine shreds and add to the casserole.
6. Make room in the sauerkraut with a wooden spoon and place the cabbage rolls in it. Cook, covered, over very low heat for 1 hour.
7. Meantime, make a roux out of hot lard, flour and remaining chopped onion. Cook it for about 10 minutes until golden yellow. Turn off the heat, stir in 1 tbs. paprika and whip it up with 1 c. cold water.
8. Very gently remove the stuffed cabbage rolls from the casserole. Take out a ladleful of sauerkraut broth and whip it into the roux. Return this liquid thickening to main casserole, stirring it well. Bring to aboil.
9. Put back the stuffed cabbage leaves, cover the casserole, and finish it in a 350F oven for 15 minutes or more.
10 Before serving, pour the sour cream over the casserole, making sure not to break the cabbage leaves.
This will give you roughly 17-19 cabbage rolls. I might suggest that you should increase the spices and the onions. I add 2 onions to the pork/beef mixture and another onion to the roux.. If I am inspired, I also cook the rice in some onion.and add onion to the sauerkraut.
An interesting option is to fry 1 chopped onion in 1/4 lb. diced bacon for 5 minutes. Add a pinch of marjoram, then proceed to mix with other stuffing ingredients.
Instead of the pork butt, you might want to try smoked pork hocks. If you do, pre-cook them for about 1 and a half hours and add the liquid to the cabbage rolls. Some sliced and smoked Hungarian pork sausage does not hurt either.
A somewhat easier version makes you start with the roux; add sauerkraut and slowly cook it for 15 minutes. Proceed preparing the stuffed leaves and cook as directed above.
I hope I have not confused you too much. As I mentioned earlier, it is a pain in the neck to make, but if it turns out, it is well worth the trouble.
In Transylvania, they often add a handful of fresh dill and a glass of white wine in addition to the usual ingredients. George hates dill, so he is no fan of this version.
I add much more sour cream than 1/2 c.