Croatian Sarma Recipe (Stuffed Cabbage Rolls)
Every bite of sarma is bursting with flavor and texture, making it impossible to resist.
Ingredients
For cabbage rolls
- 1 whole sour cabbage head
- 1½ lb ground meat (beef + pork)
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 large cloves garlic diced
- 1 egg
- ½ cup white rice
- ½ tsp salt
- ⅓ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp hot paprika powder
- 2 tsp sweet paprika powder
- ½ cup bread crumbs
- 200 g smoked bacon
- lard
For the roux
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp sweet paprika powder
- ½ tsp hot paprika powder
- salt
Instructions
- First prepare the cabbage leaves by separating them from the fermented cabbage. Keep in mind that you'll need some cabbage leaves to place at the bottom to create a layer for preventing sticking of the cabbage rolls to the cooking pot. To prevent too sour or salty you can rinse the cabbage leaves under cold water.
- Use a sharp knife to remove the cabbage leaves' rib.
- The exceed cabbage leave you can chop and spread them on the bottom of the cooking pot. Place at the bottom
- Chop the garlic and onion finely and combine them with ground meat and the rest of the ingredients for the filling in a bowl.
- In a large cooking pot over medium heat melt the lard. place a layer of cabbage leaves at the bottom.
- Use a spoon to grab from the mixture and place in the center of the cabbage leave. Roll as a burrito. Repeat with the rest of the cabbage leaves.
- Place them tight next to each other in the cooking pot. Add the water that the sarma is completely covered with it and bring it to a boil. Add the rest of the chopped cabbage leaves. You can place a plate inside the keep the sarma from floating.
- After it start boiling bring the heat to low and cook for another 2.5h. make sure you check the water and add more if necessary.
- Then prepare your roux in a small saucepan by melting the rest of the lard and adding the flour. Stir till brown or light golden color and add the sweet and hot paprika powder.
- Pour the roux to the cooking pot with sarma and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.