One of my favorite foods is stuffed cabbage. I started making Stuffed Cabbage when I was first married, trying to copy my Bubby’s version. I remember my mum and grandmother making huge vats of it and storing them in smaller containers in the freezer.
For my catering business or for myself I always make large quantities too. What makes life so much easier now is that Gourmet Glatt now sells the leaves softened and pre-checked. It’s almost as easy as making meat balls. It went from making Stuffed Cabbage a big chore to making it super easy.
Stuffed cabbage
Meat mixture
2 to 3 heads of cabbage or 4-6 packages of Checked leaves from Gourmet Glatt
5 pounds chopped meat
1 large onion grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup seasoned panko or breadcrumbs
3 eggs
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon salt
Dash pepper
¼ cup ketchup
Combine onion, meat, garlic, panko, eggs, paprika salt, pepper and ketchup and mix well and set aside.
Sauce
3- 46 oz cans large cans Sacramento tomato juice
11/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3-4 fresh lemons, squeezed
2 cup brown sugar
2-3 marrow bones
Note: If you like it sweeter add more sugar, if you like it tart, add more lemon.
On a medium flame mix the sauce ingredients together and bring to a boil.
Cabbage Leaves Preparation
Steam cabbage in boiling water for about 20 minutes, until the outer leaves separate. After they have been drained and cooled, separate off the leaves removing the thick core.
Another option is if you are very organized, is to place a cabbage head in the freezer for a few days. Remove the day before from the freezer; this makes the cabbage soft and easy to work with.
Assembly
Place a 1/4 cup of meat mixture in the center of a leaf, roll up and tuck in sides. Repeat using up the cabbage leaves and meat. If you have extra meat leftover you can roll them into meatballs and cook them in the sauce. If you have left over cabbage, you can shred it and cook it with the prepared sauce too.
Place stuffed cabbage in prepared sauce and cook for 11/2 –2 hours on low.
