Although we tend to think only about how much things cost when we do the big Christmas shopping, experience shows that stuffed cabbage is not something to skimp on. Folklore has it that it will bring money into the house when it's on the festive table. The explanation is simple: the stuffing has pork in it and the pig is in the front, which means that there is a big improvement in store for the coming year. But what about vegans and vegetarians?
We'll get to that in a moment, but first a brief history of the dish. As Hungarian as it may seem, the sad reality is that the Turks left us the original recipe. True, in their version, they wrap the meat, rice and spices in grape leaves, but this good idea was worth rethinking, and so somewhere in Transylvania, in the 1700s, the first stuffed cabbage.
A century later, Ágnes Zilahy published two recipes in her Real Hungarian Cookbook. The „real Kolozsvár way” version requires one medium sized cabbage leaf per filling. If you are using six people, use half a kilo of lean cabbage. beefsteak and half a kilo fat pork. These are „pounded well on a board, add a good teaspoonful of crushed pepper, salt and 12 grams of rice gruel; knead, mix well and divide on the board into as many lumps as you want to make the filling...”
“Lay the cabbage leaves in the palm of your left hand and place the stuffing knot in the middle, then roll the cabbage leaves up and press the two empty ends of the leaves into the meat with your fingertips..., when the stuffing is all done, place a large handful of sliced sauerkraut in the bottom of a round earthenware pot no larger than 3 litres. Put the fillings in a neat row in the pot and in half again put enough small cabbage to cover the fillings; on top again put a quarter of a kilo of pork shoulder, a quarter of a kilo of beef dumplings and a couple of pieces of goose or turkey leg. Cover these again with small cabbage, until the pot is full, then pour hot water over it... Then cook on a quiet fire for two hours, filling it with water every quarter of an hour and shaking it, by the ears of the pot..., because you must not stir with a spoon... It will keep for a week in a cold place and will be better after each reheating; to serve, place the small cabbage underneath the bowl, the stuffing in a neat wreath around the edge of the bowl, and the meat piled up in the middle of the bowl. Whisk the cream into the soup and pour it over the meat when serving”, suggests Ágnes Zilahy in her cookery book of 1892.
The other recipe helps you to prepare „ordinary” stuffed cabbage. According to this recipe, „a round earthenware pot should be half filled with sauerkraut cut into pieces; for 6 persons take half a kilo of pork, with a fat part; chop it up, put in 12 grams of rice groats, crushed pepper and salt; make... stuffings. When done, put it with the small cabbage in the pot, but tender, or it will swell very much when cooked. Pour in water ... add salt ... cook over a quiet fire for 2 hours, but shake the pot every quarter of an hour, without stirring, keep pouring in the juice, until the cabbage is tender, then make a good fat stock; pour it in, and when it boils up with the food, take it off the fire and keep it cold for up to 4 days. Serve it always warmed before serving, with its own juice mixed with sour cream. You can also put a sudden roast pork sausage on top of the dish, neatly arranged between the stuffing.”
It would be difficult to list how many different kinds of stuffed cabbage are made at this time of year, but the organisers of the Hungarian Street of Tastes at Christmas have tried to collect and present as many as possible from the huge selection. So there are
▪ Stuffed cabbage from Szatmari,
▪ Transylvanian stuffed cabbage with buttons,
▪ Stuffed cabbage from Bogyislo from and fingernails,
▪ Chángó grape leaf stuffing,
▪ Kecskemét sauerkraut stuffing with smoked hocks,
▪ stuffed cabbage with duck meat and gersli,
▪ vegetarian stuffed cabbage,
▪ vegan stuffed cabbage,
▪ Baška sarma,
▪ sausage bacon stuffed cabbage from Tura,
▪ Gypsy cabbage with wild boar meat, finally
▪ cabbage meat from pork.
As promised, vegans are not without stuffed cabbage. They need the following ingredients: aubergines, courgettes, red beans, walnuts and rice. In all cases, the important rule is to be careful with the cabbage juice, as it is only recommended for those who really like the pickle. On the other hand, less salt should be added.
And as for the „ruins” of the festive table, the Christmas crumbs should not be swept away, and if possible left on the table until the Epiphany and then tied up in the tablecloth. Our ancestors also used this parcel for healing, but we do not recommend it to our readers. It is worth giving some to poultry to boost fertility, and you can also sprinkle the leftovers at the base of fruit trees. If there is anything left over from the festive menu, leave it on the table because, at least according to the ancients, it is a way of welcoming the returning spirit of the ancients.
