Stuffed Cabbage for Lent

Ștefan Baciu, 01.04.2016, 15:52

Here is a very special recipe, a lent dish as prepared in monasteries in Oltenia Country. It is stuffed cabbage which has fish instead of the regular minced meat used in traditional recipes.

You need 200g of smoked mackerel, a kilo and a half of white boneless fish (preferably pike or perch pike), 200 g of rice, a cup of tomato juice, two or three onions, 3 or 4 tablespoons of oil, ground black pepper, peppercorns, dill (fresh or dried), thyme, bay leaves, salt to taste, one egg, shredded sauerkraut, and whole sauerkraut leaves for the wrapping.

Start by chopping the onion finely and sweating it in the oil, and when it softens add water and cover. After it is done, leave aside to cool. Make sure the rice is properly cooked ahead of time, and the fish, both smoked and raw, is minced. Mix together well the fish with onion, dill, salt and pepper. Add the egg and once again knead together well.

The secret is to balance the salt you add with how salty the smoked fish and sauerkraut are. Roll the mixture in the cabbage leaves.

Line a deep stewpot with oil, shredded sauerkraut and thyme, then proceed to lay the stuffed cabbage rolls in layers, sprinkling in between peppercorns and pieces of bay leaf. Cover the whole thing with whole cabbage leaves, pour over the entire thing the tomato juice, adding water until it almost covers the contents of the pot. Simmer on the stovetop for an hour and a half. Enjoy!