Oven Braised Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

I went native today. So it's not your fault if you don't recognise what this is - Kohlroulade mit Hackfleisch Füllung und Kartoffelpuree or simply Rolled Cabbage Leaves stuffed with minced meat and served with mashed potatoes. Tastes better than it sounds.. The inspiration came from a shopping mall. I was walking past a shopping mall in Heidelberg, this one known as Galeria Kaufhof, and they have a restaurant on the top floor of the 5 storey building. Quite a nice view from up there serving pastas, salads and soups and other German and European dishes with a corner selling cakes and pastries with coffee. You take what you want, you bring your dish of choice to the cashier and you pay.  Afternoons are really full with the working crowd so that was why I chose to duck the crowds and instead go home and recreate the daily special. And being me, I'm sure I added more herbs and spices than usual. But I am also sure it tasted better! For me at least. So if you want a taste of Germany, Andriana style, and in half an hour, here is the recipe.


Ingredients (for 8 rolls)

For the Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

8 large cabbage leaves
300g minced beef or chicken
Dashes of garlic powder,
Rosemary powder
Black pepper,
Paprika powder,
Salt
1 small egg, beaten
1 teaspoon of flour

For the sauce

150ml apple juice
100ml water
2 teaspoons (more or less) of Worcestershire sauce
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder
Squirt of tomato paste

I started off with making the sauce first. Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a bowl and put aside.  It should taste tangy sweet.

Prepare the cabbage leaves by first boiling them briefly in hot water (just enough to submerge) with about 1 tablespoon of sugar to make them both more pliable and palatable. Remove when soft enough, drain and set aside.

Add all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and mix them thoroughly. That's it, don't  be squeamish, scrunch it up with your hands!

When the cabbage leaves are sufficiently cool, place one flat on your cutting board. Take a chunk of minced meat filling. roll up into a sausage and place it in the middle of the cabbage leaf.  Fold the leaf in left and right, then fold the bottom upwards making sure that the minced meat sausage fits snugly like a bolster. Then roll the leaf up and either tie up the ends or if you can't be bothered like me, just place it in a casserole dish, folded side down. Do the same for the rest and make sure they all fit in snugly together in the dish to prevent unfolding. Make sure you add oil to the casserole dish beforehand to prevent sticking.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees until they have brown edges and the meat filling juices run clear (about 20 mins). At this point, I add the sauce and bake further until the sauce is reduced to about the height of the cabbage rolls.

Remove and serve on warm plates together with mashed potatoes and perhaps some steamed vegetables if you are so inclined.

Guten Appetit!