Sarmale Recipe Success!
Well Ladies and Gentlemen,
What looked like a failed cooking afternoon turned around unexpectedly into a success story. The Sarmale (stuffed cabbage rolls) turned out as it should – the rolls didn’t fall apart, they remained stiff, retaining their initial shape, the taste was full of cabbage flavor with a flagrant tomatoe aroma. One thing that I should have added more was salt. But better less than over-salted.
Cabb ‘n’ Roll Challenged
Forming the rolls was by far the most difficult task from this recipe. The cabbage leaves were very sturdy even if I froze the cabbage for about 24 hours. I used two kind of cabbage types – regular and savoy cabbage, a variety that has curled and crinkled leaves in a compact head. I had to remove the harder stem part of the leave to make rolling possible.
I thing I need a couple lessons from the ladies in Romania like the one in the video here. Just look at the dexterity she is using to roll the sarmale!
Of course the secret lies in making sarmale with brine pickled cabbage. Beside the fact that the leaves become tender without ripping apart, the pickling ads extra flavor to the whole mix.
Adapted Sarmale Recipe
I had to learn the hard way to put up my hopes for a certain dish to taste like in my native land. And of course the main issue having all to do with the way ingredients, legumes, fruits and ultimately meat is grown in America where the agricultural industry is driven by much show but less taste. More on this subject, read Organic America.
I compiled a recipe after reading through a couple different ones from several sources. Obviously I tried to reflect the authentic way of cooking sarmale or at least how I remember it. Plan on usually doing a huge amount. Sarmale get tastier with age in the fridge. Here we go:
1 Lb ground pork
1 Lb ground veal or beef
1 Large onion minced
1 cup rice (white)
1 can tomatoe sauce (non-spiced)
2 cloves garlic
1 Tb paprika
1 Tsp freshly ground pepper
1½ Tsp salt
1 Tbs marjoram
1 Lb sauerkraut
4-5 sprigs of fresh dill or parsley
1-2 bay leaves (imported)
1 Tbs canola oil
6 cups chicken broth (home made)
[ad#468×60]
Some of you are probably frantically looking for the comment button to let me know that I forgot one key element for the sarmale recipe – the smoked bacon! I was aware but willingly omitted that since my wife doesn’t necessarily likes the smoke flavor in the mix.
The procedure is very simple. In a large pan, sautee the minced onion and garlic with the oil for about 5 minutes, add the paprika and take off the heat. Add this to a large mixing bowl together with the ground pork, veal (or beef), rice, ground pepper, salt marjoram, half of the dill chopped and mix well.
Lay a bed of sauerkraut (about 1 inch) on the bottom of a large pot (preferably cast iron for optimal heat transfer and distribution), add 2-3 sprigs of dill and build a surrounding wall out of your stuffed cabbage rolls, by placing them seam down and pointing to the center.
Fill up the center space with the remaining rolls, sprinkle about 1 tsp salt, pepper to taste, add the bay leaves, 3-4 sprigs of dill, and add the remaining sauerkraut on the top. Don’t top the pot to the rim like I did because the rice will expand while cooking pushing the entire sarmale up. Leave about one inch to the rim. Add the tomato sauce and broth making sure that the liquid level comes up to the top level of rolls. Bring it to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Boil it for the next 4 hours.
Legend says that the more you keep the sarmale in the fridge, the better it will become! It is true! The next day they were more tender and full of flavor!
My next step will be making real sauerkraut! I called my Dad in Romania and he gave me precious advice! Hopefully I won’t stink up our whole basement!
facebook
instagram
twitter
Wow, these look great! Good autumn food!
+Jessie
a.k.a. The Hungry Mouse
Okay, so- when am I coming over for dinner?? I’m a nice guest, I eat all that’s put in front of me, and these look stellar! 🙂
V.
Hey there!
I just got back from Romania and was looking for a recipe for Sarmale. My boyfriend’s grandmother made a great one, and what she does with the cabbage (actually kale) leaves is: she soaks the whole head in salt water in a warm place for about 3 or 4 days, and then the leaves are pliable and you use that instead of the bouillon in the final product…
Thanks for the inspiration!
Yum! They look really good. I love cabbage with anything.
Jessie:
Thanks! Yes – autumn and in fact winter. There is no conciveable Christmas in Romania without Sarmale! In fact no wedding – believe it or not!
Vanessa:
Come over any time! I made a huge pot and they keep VERY well for days in the refrigerator.
Katka:
That’s exactly the method my Dad from Romania mentioned. It is like forced-pickling. They ad bread to the whole brine to speed up the picking. There is of course the more slow pickling that take weeks, etc.
Tiffany:
Me too! You wouldn’t believe how many cabbage recipes there are. My grandmother actually made a cabbage cake. Also cabbage pasta!
Thanks for the great tutorial!! My Aunt makes these every year for Christmas but I’ve never tried making them. I can’t wait to check out the rest of your recipes! 🙂
Thanks Steph! It is very easy to make – and you will have them constantly for lunch for a whole week!
I just finished mine! Fed my bro in law’s family, mine and we set for a week for lunch! Lol.
thanks for writing!
Hi, Gabi,
Great blog, brought back great memories from “home” and a smile. Thank you.
Great recipe. I’m glad I found a “recipe” for sarmale. Mine is in pinches, dashes and handfuls (the best way it can be).
I know is hard to find sour cabbage leaves around here, so we learn to improvise. I learned along the years the easiest way to do is to have a large and deep pot of water simmering (not boiling) on the stove. Dip the cabbage head root(?)- cotor, first and leave it for 1-2 minutes. Turn it around so the leafy part gets soaked in hot water for another 20-30 seconds. Take it out with two forks, let it cool slightly and cut the leaves, until you get to unblanched leaves, again. Repeat the process. While the head is simmering, you can tend to the cut leaves, cutting the veins, piling them up. Another trick I found it useful: rolling. Growing up, I watched mom having a heck of a time to roll and fold the ends and not always ending in a success. What I do is quarter roll leaf over the meat, so you can see half the filling covered half not. Bring the ends over, tuck under filling in the middle and finish rolling. Easy and unfailing.
Ahh Gabi these look amazing!!! I am still playing catch up with my blog reading but I am glad to see that you did make the Sarmales you were originally *thinking* of making. 🙂
Maria: Thanks a lot for the tip! Yes, parallel with the frozen cabbage, I tried the simmering tip as well, although I didn’t do the layer-by-layer trick and obviously the inner leaves were not tender at all. Good thing was that I used a Savoy cabbage for the simmering trick and that by default seems to have more tender leaves than the regular one, although much more fragile and they break at the seem easily.
Sam: Thanks! I thought I probably would be denied by the Romanian community if I didn’t include this recipe on the blog 🙂
I just started my first batch of brined-pickled cabbage in a bucket. That sort of cabbage is generally used for Sarmale.
My grandmother always used the same technique as Maria’s above (dip and peel in simmering water til you get to the center.) Though it’s something I’ve had a million times I too have never made my own cabbage rolls. This was a great post, I really want to go and make my own.
Nice, this is real nice. Believe it or not there are many people overseas in hot places that are endeavouring to make sarmale right now.
“O sa iti zic daca merge bine, Gabi.”
Hi Gabi
Great recipe! I got back last week after spending 20 days in Romania – loved the place! Today, I gave my work colleagues a small taste of the beautiful country by feeding them on your sarmale recipe and they loved it!! I was able to buy a jar sarma leaves here in Australia imported from Macedonia – ok..but some had small tears in them.
Keep up the good work!
Hi there,
We too make sarmale at home, but w/ pickled cabbage – we pickle it every year – tastier than the boiling stuff… you can also use sauerkraut found in most food stores. I don’t use the marjoram or garlic for sarmale, but do use the bacon – yummy… I would eat sarmale all day 🙂 my son takes after me 🙂
Have a great New Year!!!!!
It looks really dilicious. Thanks for your recipe and video.
They came out perfect and I love the colour!
Hi Gabi,
find you very beautiful the Romanian cuisine did not forget.
Make the Sarmale exactly like you, I prefer herbs but still savory.
Fine blog.
Greeting Jacob
Gabi, let me teach you what need taught me! I live in San Diego, CA and as you can imagine there are no places where I can get a full head of pickled cabbage or even if I want to pickle it myself it’s way to warm in here. What I can get are jars or plastic bags with German or kosher sauerkraut, very nicely pickled indeed – some brands are better than others, look for those without preservatives.
Once you’ve got these, get your head of cabbage, remove the core as much as you can and then proceed as Maria explained. After you roll the sarmale start layering in a nice Dutch oven: one layer of sauerkraut, then one layer of rolls, as so on and so forth. Make sure you have enough to finish with the sauerkraut. Add water, put the pot on the stove till it starts boiling and then place it in a moderately hot over, with a lid on. When half cooked, remove the lid and allow the top to become nicely browned – it’s absolutely the best part, people fight for it, hehehe. This method never fails; the sauerkraut imparts just enough tartness and saltiness to the dish. Bon Appetit!
Hi Gabi,Very nice your blog, nice pictures and a pleasure to read!!
As I follow you reading your daily recipes, I notice your pain and looking around for “sarmalele romanesti” recipe. The same with me… When i got married I really wanted to cook sarmale, but I didn’t try, it look so difficult and time consuming… but I real like them. 34 years later, I can master them now, especially that my daughter wants only stuffed grape leaves… more complicated, and more time consuming, they are smaller and find a perfect jar of grape leave it is difficult, in this country….
One thing I learn, hear, because I can’t find whole pickled cabbage, beside as Maria said above,to boil the cabbage, you can leave it in the freezer for few days, when they defrost, they are very soft you can easily roll!!!ileana
Hi Gabi,
You should try to mix minced meat with some smoked meat and turkey. Trust me, it will be very hard to stop eating 🙂
My wife uses pork, beef, turkey and some smoked meat. Oh my God, I barely wait to get back home for Christmas 🙂
Greetings, Daniel.
Hi Daniel!
Thank you! That’s a good idea! In fact I remember my Grandma throwing in the pot a piece of smoked pork belly.
What kind of smoked meat would you use?
Hi Gabi, I am an American living in RO and benefitting greatly from the pure and wholesome food. Sarmale are a favorite!!! Would you, if here, substitute patrunjel for the marjarom? I was told it is used in sarmale. How much? Also, when I was back in the States, I utterly failed at making mamaliga. Never could find the right cornmeal and just kept getting powdery sticky goo. And the amazing RO brinza…how do you survive without it? Thanks for a great recipe.
Carolyn – thanks a lot for the comment!
Yes – definitely – I actually recommend substituting patrunjel (parsley) for the marjoram. I’d use the same amount as in the recipe above (that’ll make roughly 2-3 Tbs total marjoram).
And yes – you need the more coarse cornmeal. Look for indian stores and look for the SWAD brand. If not, look for ‘Polenta’ in Italian grocery stores. But hey – you live in Mamaliga country now – so you can find the right stuff and practice!
I am having serious Telemea (REAL Feta cheese) withdrawal. There is no way to find it here unless you pay at least $10 – $13 per pound – the real Greek Feta that is – not the cheap Wisconsin feta (that cheese is a joke) or imported from any OTHER countries than Greece.
Thanks for writing!
I always find it hard to re-create recipes that involve rolled contents. But these do look delicious, I will give them a try and even if I don’t get them rolled as nice as yours i’m sure they will taste great.
Hi Gabi,
I will take your suggestions and use them. However, I find that patrunjel has a much richer flavor than American parsley though they look almost alike. I have a nice new hand made ceaun for my mamaliga, and it’s easy to make a perfect one in it. My heart goes out to you for not being able to get this most amazing food…Romanian cheese. I will be heading out to the local peasant market tomorrow to pick up some telemea, and some delectable urdu, as you know a rich buttery tasting sort of ricotta, and of course, fresh cultured sour cream…smantana. It’s a feast!
Amanda – I hear you. And this one won’t be easier either, unfortunately. But it really all boils down (literally) to having a soft enough cabbage leaf to work with.
Carolyn: EVERYTHING has a richer taste out there compared to the versions I find here! Unless one grows it in its own garden like I and so many others are doing. Produce LOOKS amazing here but unfortunately tastes far less than in places where people are growing it themselves with no pesticides or hormones added. A very unfortunate thing and it opens up a whole different can of worms.
You lucky duck! A peasant market!!!? I am months away from that (planning a trip to RO in April).
Hello Gabi, How nice to find this site. I was born in Romania and transplanted to the states at a young age. I am now the “eldest” of what remains of my family here in US. I will be making Sarmale this Christmas! One question, I remember my grandmother and mother putting some dried branchy type herb in their Sarmale. They were from Moldova. Do you know what that could be? I am sure they did not use parsley and surprisingly this was the only dish they did not use garlic in! The did use sour kraut and they also used crushed tomatoes. Could the herb have been thyme??? Any other ideas on what it could have been? It imparted a destinct flavor. They would layer the branches in the layers and then remove them when the cooking was complete. La Multi Ani!
Hi Irina,
Thanks for the comment and compliments! I suspect that was marjoram or thyme. Not sure though since each region has their own twist on sarmale. And YES!! You are right! In Moldova garlic wasn’t used in sarmale! How crazy is that! In fact that’s how I made it once and it was fabulous!
I will ask my Dad who was born in Moldova – he might give us a clue…
Where are you in the US?
Craciun Fericit si La multi ani!!!
Gabi.
Hi Gabi, After some more research…whatever did we do before the internet…the branchy herb was cimbru which is thyme. Thank you for your recipe, I will be making with some “Moldovian” tweaks. I am in the Philadelphia area. Craciun Fericit. Irina
By the way, I laughed out loud, my grandmother and mother had the curante fear. To this day my (American) husband jokes with my that the curantes are going to get me because I can’t stand to have all the windows open in the house…could it be genetic?!?
Irina: YES!!! It is cimbru! I also asked my Dad – he approved so I think cimbru it is. I am working on having a pot with fresh cimbru all year long. It should be very easy to grow.
Oh, the curent demon. It will definitely get you if you have at least 2 windows open in the house. So, beware! hehehe
cheers!
Gabi.
Hi all.
So refreshing to find this blog. I actually came across it as I was searching for pickled cabbage leaves on the internet.
For those of you living in Chicago, you should know that you can (albeit rarely) find jarred pickled cabbage leaves at Bobak’s (5725 S. Archer). It is a big jar with about 30 rolled up leaves that are comparable to the pickled cabbage you find in Romania. The ones I get are made by a company called Gradina, although it is not a Romania company. All efforts to find this brand online have failed, but I did find a similar product at parthenonfoods.com.
So, whenever I get my hands on this product, I stock up.
In lieu of the picked cabbage leaves, blanching a fresh cored cabbage in a vinegary brine water yields similar results.
One more thing. From what I recall, cimbru is not thyme. It is a close cousin of it, but cimbru is actually “summer savory.” I am sure that sarmales with thyme are just as good, but there is a slight difference.
Hope this information helps!
Magda
Hello ,
I’m from Romania and my familylove my sarmale ! : ) .
Few secretes to make excellent sarmale :
use cimbru or branches of thyme .
use few branches of basil
use few bay leaf ( foi de dafin ) . All of these are added only in water and when the sarmale are boiled you have to take them out .
When I prepare the mixed meat and rice and the rest I add in meat dried dill and dried parsley ,so fine , like a powder .
My grandmother added few spoons of nuts ( like a powder ) in meat . I made myself sarmale adding nuts and the taste is incredible .
Sorry for my English !
Merry Christmas to all of you , sarmale lovers !
Merry Christmas and congratz Gabi!!So great you make the sarmale known to all good people who love good food.I am Romanian and like the cabbage variety as much as vine leaves variety.Also the vegetarian ones with rice and mushroom are great!!
Good luck with your sauerkraut!I just made the sarmale with my own self made sauerkraut,just left the cabbage a little while in warm water coz it was just a bit too salty.After this they were perfect.
Magda:
Thanks much for the comment! And yes, your info helps a LOT! I will actually plan for a trip to Bobak’s to get a jar of those. Are these your favorites or the ones by Gradina?
It is quite a revelation to discover that “cimbru” is summer savory! I went over to Wikipedia, and indeed THAT’S IT! Thanks so much for the correction! This is valuable to “translate” Romanian recipes into English.
Thanks a TON!
Emma:
Thanks for commenting! Your English is great! Very intriguing to hear of your grandmother’s addition to the Sarmale – nuts. I am suspecting they must have been wall nuts as they are prevalent in Romania. Do you know the percentage added?
Merry Christmas to you as well!
Ylva:
Thanks for the comment and Merry Christmas to you as well! I never tried the vegetarian Sarmale with rice and mushroom. Do you have any tips on those (recipe)? I will be doing a lot of Sarmale if I get the big jar of cabbage leaves that Magda mentioned in her comment so I am curious of variety.
I tried to brine cabbage (Sauerkraut) and I failed miserably. The leaves were too tough, they didn’t tasted AT ALL like the ones I had in Romania. I am not sure if this was a mistake on my side, or this is because of the kind of cabbage I got here in the U.S.?
Merry Christmas, all!
Hi all,
This American transplant got to have traditional sarmale at my new friend Tatiana’s house Christmas night. She made her brined cabbage back in August, and wow! The difference in the taste is dramatic. She also put duck in with the chicken..piept de pui, and the were delectible. She promises to give me some brined leaves soon and I want to know how to make those vegetarian sarmale with rice and mushrooms. Please, somebody?
Carolyn, living in Romania and loving it!
Well for the vegetarian sarmale the difference is in stuffing..you need onion,carrot,rice,mushroom,salt,pepper,you can also put dill,paprika or whatever else you like.
You must sautee the onion a bit, then add finely chopped (or scraped)carrot,the rice,tomato pasta and the sliced mushrooms (in this order).Add some hot water and continue on low heat while stirring until the rice is al dente.Add salt,pepper,spices.
Fill the cabbage rolls with this stuffing just like it were the meat stuffing and proceed the same way,putting some chopped cabbage on the bottom of the cooking pot,some pepper,bay leaves,put the sarmale and some tomato juice/chopped tomatoes in juice(from can)/tomato paste mixed with water.
For an extra flavour and depending on taste,in the composition you can add grounded nut and/or sultanas.
I’m sure there are more varieties of that,but hope you can try this and like it.It’s very good also in vine leaves.
Oh and I forgot you can also put thyme in the mixture if you like it,it gives a very nice taste and flavor.
Carolyn:
Now, that’s one fancy Sarmale with duck! Never had that before. It only can do good since duck fat is like gold.
Can you pull out the brine cabbage recipe and send it to us, please?
Ylva:
Many thanks for the veg Sarmale recipe! Sultanas (dates) in Sarmale?!? Now we are talking! I wonder if I should try these lovely variants and post the impressions. Keep them coming! Thanks again!
Well by sultanas I meant those raisins without seeds.^^And Gabi,maybe the cabbage was tough because of the kind of cabbage I think, lately you find even here in Romania some new kinds that are not Romanian genuine and they are lot tougher than our cabbage.
Regarding cabbage, I just had to give up on a gargantuan head that was like leather all the way through…good for nothing, not even salat de varza. It went sadly into the garbage. I noticed the leaves were very smooth and the head was dense and compact. So I have now started avoiding those and looking for those that are lighter to the heft, not dense, and the leaves are wrinkled up together. Those are always good.
Carolyn
Ylva – the new cabbage kinds are for sure “mutated”, some sort of hybrids, weather-resistant or resistant to whatever tougher soils but taste like plastic and feel like leather. Maybe good for a car seat but not four our sarmale.
So, my plan is to put my hands on some genuine cabbage seeds from Romania in April when I’ll visit and grow them myself in my garden here.
Carolyn:
Good tip on picking out cabbage! But that is just the same kind, isn’t it?
Some try Sarmale with savory cabbage – which has a bit more taste but I found that the leaves break easily.
Woo hoo!! I am rich! My dear Romanian friend Tatiana just sent me about 2 kilos of her homemade varza murata. I will be making sarmale soon! And as a special treat, from her relatives’s farm in the country, about a half kilo of fresh homemade brinza de oaie…sheep’s milk cheese. It is divine. I just sent my kid to the shop to get smantana (sour cream) and I am going to make a mamaliga shortly for the sheep’s cheese. Feast tonight! I remember I have been asked for the recipe for the varza murata, and she is going to give it to me. I will post it as soon as I get it. I love Romania and I am blessed to be here.
You lucky duck!
Now, can you please introduce me to Tatiana? I can also send my address to her! 🙂
You are in for a REAL feast, Carolyn! Please let us know how it went, and YES send the varza murata recipe!!!!
Dear Mamaliga, I was reading your recipe for cabbage rolls which by the way sound good. I make cabbage rolls also and love them. My recipe is similar to yours. I just wanted to let you know that in your article where you stated that you “hope you don’t stunk up the basement”, the correct word is stink. Just wanted to let you know since you are from Romainia and are probably still learning the english language. Please don’t be offended. It’s a habit for me. I married a man from Holland who didn’t read much and spoke a lot of broken english (that was 35 years ago) and I usually corrected him in order to help him. I still do sometimes but not to embarrass him or make him feel stupid but to help him, that is when I am not laughing at how he says something. Sometimes he says something and I have to figure out what he is really trying to say. I like it though because I like a good laugh! It’s cute and refreshing sometimes. He’s used to me and I him. He’s come a long way with his english though and surprises me sometimes with his eloquence and understanding. Hope you’re glad to be in America. Make us proud and appreciate your good fortune. God bless, Grandma Vicky (That’s what my grandkids call me)
Hi Grandma!
Thanks for writing!! No offense at all! I WANT to be corrected in my English. Yes, it is not my first language as you discovered. Moved here 10 years ago but still working at it. hehehe
Anyway – I’d be in fact delighted if you have the time of course to read through some of my other posts and see if you catch any mistakes.
Again – this is MUCH appreciated! and thanks for the comment!!
Hi all, I am still going to send in the varza murata recipe, but I have not seen Tatiana for awhile. I did make a huge pot of sarmale with the brined cabbage leaves she gave me (varza murata) and it lasted one meal! No comparison with fresh cabbage. I am from Duluth MN and we found whole brined cabbage heads in the produce department, which were imported from Canada. Maybe you can get your grocer to get some? That was before I came to RO and I didn’t know the gold I was passing up!
Thanks Carolyn!
Yes! Please let us know of Tatiana’s brined cabbage recipe! And yep – no comparison for the brined cabbage leaves for sarmale.
I am curious to know if those imported cabbage heads had tender leaves that makes the sarmale easy to roll…
Hi Gabi, yes it would. I cut it up for sauerkraut..didn’t know what I had, and it would make sarmale wrappers just fine. It was soft and flexible. I will put on my thinking cap and see if I can remember the brand.
Hello all, I wrote to my local grocer where I bought the whole sour cabbage heads in Duluth, MN. I got this today, and perhaps this may be of use to some of you. I found these to be excellent, in hindsight, as when I first found them I knew nothing of sarmale, and did not know the gold I had! Now I know they would make excellent wrappers.
Carolyn
Hello Carolyn,
My name is Liza Butkiewicz-Hartley and I am the produce manager at Cub Foods in Duluth, Minnesota. I received an email that you are interested in contacting Fraboni’s, the company that we receive our sour cabbage heads from. Their phone number is 1-218-263-8991. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me. Thank you for shopping at Cub Foods.
Sincerely, Liza