Growing up in the Anthracite coal region of eastern Pennsylvania, I was raised on traditional Slovak home cooking. Born of poverty and necessity, those recipes sustained my ancestors who emigrated in the 1910's to work in the mines. Today, they represent the ultimate comfort food to me.
Tonight's entree, Halupki (or Holubky), are simply cabbage rolls stuffed with meat and rice, then covered with a tomato-based sauce and baked. Pronounced "ha-LUP-key," the "u" rhymes with the OO in cook. In the United States, they're more commonly known by their Polish name, Gołąbki or Golumpki.
When I went vegetarian almost 15 years ago, I knew going through life without halupki wouldn't do. Tonight I'll share the basic recipe, my vegetarian version, and show you how to roll your own!
Cabbage rolls are far from unique to Eastern European cuisine:
A cabbage roll (also known as pigs in a blanket) is a dish consisting of cooked cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of fillings. It is common to the ethnic cuisines of the Balkans, Central, Northern, and Eastern Europe, as well as the Middle East.
In Europe, the filling is traditionally based around meat, often beef, lamb, or pork and is seasoned with garlic, onion, and spices. Grains such as rice and barley, eggs, mushrooms, and vegetables are often included. Pickled cabbage leaves are often used for wrapping, particularly in Southeastern Europe. In Asia, seafoods, tofu, and shiitake mushroom may also be used. Chinese cabbage is often used as a wrapping.
Cabbage leaves are stuffed with the filling which are then baked, simmered, or steamed in a covered pot and generally eaten warm, often accompanied with a sauce. The sauce varies widely by cuisine. Always in Sweden and sometimes in Finland, stuffed cabbage is served with lingonberry jam, which is both sweet and tart. In Eastern Europe, tomato-based sauces or plain sour cream are typical. In Lebanon, it is a popular plate, where the cabbage is stuffed with rice and minced meat and only rolled to the size of cigar. It is usually served with a side of yogurt and a type of lemon and olive oil vinaigrette seasoned with garlic and dried mint.
A Google search yields a number of variations on this recipe. Notably, most contain sauerkraut. My Grandma didn't use it, and I can't bear to mess with her recipe any more than I already have! If you want to include it, add 1 cup drained to the filling. From coalregion.com,
this is the basic version.
Halupkies - Stuffed cabbage rolls
1 head of cabbage (about 3 lbs)
1 lb ground pork
1 lb ground beef
1 Tbsp salt
1/2 tspn pepper
1 can stewed tomatoes (or substitute Campbell's tomato soup)
3/4 cup uncooked rice
1 cup onion, chopped
1 Tbsp shortening
Cut cabbage deeply around core to loosen leaves. Boil the cabbage leaves about 5 minutes and set aside to drain. In a skillet, add ground meats, onions, shortening, salt and pepper, and fry slowly for about 15 minutes. Wash rice, drain, add to meat and mix well.
Place a tablespoon of the meat mixture in the center of a cabbage leaf and roll. Place rolls side by side in pot. Pour tomatoes over top and add enough water to cover. Add another tbsp salt and pepper. Cook 1 and 1/2 hours.
Also called "galumpkies". An Americanized name is "blind pigeons".
Here's my version. Key differences from the original: steam the cabbage longer, parboil the rice, and use oil instead of shortening. Don't let the multiple steps intimidate you -- if you fry up the onions and protein while the cabbage and rice are steaming, it all comes together pretty easily.
Healthier Halupki
1 head of cabbage (about 2 lbs)
3/4 cup rice (brown or white, NOT instant)
2 15-oz cans black beans, drained*
1 med. onion, chopped
1 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
1 11-oz can tomato soup
1 15-oz can diced or stewed tomatoes, including liquid
*Other protein options are veggie burger crumbles, tempeh, or tofu.
Steam the cabbage:
Cut out the core at the center of the cabbage with a sharp knife, Loosen the leaves around the core and rinse the whole head under running water. The light on this picture is weird but you get the idea.
Cored cabbage
Gently shake dry and place cabbage cut side down in pot with a tight-fitting lid. Fan out the outer leaves a little, add a pinch of salt and about 3-4 inches of water.
Cabbage ready to steam
Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and steam the cabbage 20-30 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside until cool enough to handle.
Make the filling:
Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan with a cover. Add rice, and return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until al dente (about 20 minutes for brown rice or 15 minutes for white.) Drain the rice and turn into a large mixing bowl.
If using meat follow the directions in the original version to make your filling. For meatless halupki, crush the beans roughly with a fork or pastry blender. Finely chop the onion and saute in oil until soft, 3-4 minutes. Add the crushed beans and continue cooking until the onions just start to brown, stirring frequently. Crumbled tofu, tempeh, or veggie burgers can be substituted for the beans.
Add the beans and onions to the rice and stir until thoroughly combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Make the rolls
Preheat oven to 350F. Make sure the cabbage is cool enough to handle. Carefully peel the outermost leaves from the head, one at a time, and place in a bowl. Reserve any leaves that tear or are too small to stuff, we will use them too.
To roll your halupki, place a steamed cabbage leaf on a plate and spoon about 1/3 cup of filling in the bottom center of the leaf.
Place filling in center
Next, fold the sides of the leaf over, overlapping as shown:
Starting from the bottom of the filling end, roll the leaf up tightly. The filling should all stay encased in the side folds. Place the finished rolls seam side down as you make the rest. They should look like this:
Finished roll
Assemble and bake
Slice the torn and small cabbage leaves into bite-size strips. Place about a cup in the bottom of an oven-safe casserole. Spoon 1/2 can of tomato soup over the cabbage.
Arrange rolls on top of cabbage in a single layer.
Spoon the other half of the tomato soup over the first layer of rolls, then pour 1 can water over the top. Arrange a second layer of rolls on top of the first. Spread the remaining leftover cabbage on top and pour 1 can stewed or diced tomatoes over everything.
Bake, covered, at 350F for 1 1/2 hours. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes before serving. These babies are done!
Served up Grandma-style, topped with ketchup.
Makes about 15 rolls per head of cabbage, 2-3 rolls per serving. Add a salad and some crusty bread, and you've got healthy and inexpensive Slovak comfort food!
What's for dinner at your house tonight?