Ah, cabbage rolls. The ultimate polish food (to be contested by Walter, we know!). This meal truly covers most of the popular polish ingredients, from cabbage to rice. Every polish family has their own “secret recipe,” and while ours may not be the most authentic (V8?! Who knew!), it is by far the best.
“Mr Kapusta.” Babcia always laughed at me when I would eat cabbage rolls because I would only eat the cabbage – not the meat. – Maeve
^ That’s too funny. She laughed at a lot of us because we refused to eat the cabbage as kids! I love it all now. – Linden
If anyone decides to test this recipe out (or has an alternate one), pass along the results and any suggestions in the comment section below. Take pictures! Thanks everyone!
Golabki (Cabbage Rolls)
Supplied by: the Kennedys
Yield: ?
Ingredients
1 medium head of green cabbage with thin leaves
1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb lean ground pork
1 large onion chopped and fried (to soften)
2 cups cooked white rice (1 cup uncooked)
salt and pepper (white pepper preferred)
1 can tomato soup
1 can full of V8 juice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp butter
cayenne pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Core cabbage. Boil leaves until they pull apart easily, about 10 minutes. Carefully pull leaves apart onto a cookie sheet. Remove the tough vein with a paring knife.
2. Combine beef, pork, onion, cooked rice, salt, and pepper thoroughly.
3. Stuff cabbage leaves. Place a heaping tbsp of the mixture at one end of the leaf, roll tightly while tucking inside the sides (like a burrito). Place in greased roasting pan. Surround cabbage rolls with remaining cabbage.
4. Combine soup, V8, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a slow boil, stirring frequently, and pour evenly over the cabbage rolls.
5. Bake at 350F for 1 hour. Reduce heat to 325F and cook for another 1.5 to 2 hours.
Notes
This recipe has been tested and confirmed! It takes a bit of practice to get right, as with most polish food.
Tip from Julie: Buy cabbage when it’s in season, prep the leaves, and freeze them to make good golabki all year.
I tested this out! I had trouble finding a good cabbage for it, so they turned out a bit small. The flavours were all spot on though! I used one tomato soup can full of V8 because I wasn’t sure exactly what it meant. – Linden