Cabbage Rolls - Holubtsi

Spend an afternoon with a friend making a large batch of these holubtsi. For the filling, a mix of beef and pork mince works well, but I sometimes make these with just beef – I use a really hearty beef mince mixture from one of my butchers that includes liver, heart and other parts. I love to add cayenne pepper, fresh herbs and lots of smetana (see page 15) or soured cream, which helps balance the acidity of the tomato sauce. These cabbage rolls can also be cooked on the stovetop in a large pot or Dutch oven.

Serves 6-8

1 large cabbage, extra-thick, large outer leaves trimmed

1 small onion, finely diced

1kg minced meat (50:50 beef and pork)

100gjasmine rice

1 large carrot, coarsely grated 

500ml passata 

salt and pepper

To serve

1 tbsp soured cream, plus extra (or crème fraîche)

golden unrefined sunflower oil or other oil

cayenne pepper or chilli flakes (or adjika if you have any, see page 17) 

½ bunch of fresh dill, fronds chopped

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C and line a large tray with paper towels. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add a generous amount of salt. Carefully cut in and around the stem of the cabbage to release the leaves. Using your hands, remove each leaf carefully one by one (don’t worry too much if some tear). Continue to cut the leaves at the stem as you work through the layers. Once I get about two-thirds through the cabbage, I set the rest of it aside as the central part has quite small leaves – I save it to cook at a later time. 

Rinse and blanch the leaves, in batches, in the simmering salted water. To do this, use tongs to drop around three leaves into the pan, then gently press to submerge. Blanch for around 3–4 minutes. Once blanched, transfer to the lined tray. Reserve the water in the pan. 

Once slightly cooled, take each leaf and cut a triangular wedge (about 2cm) out of the thick stalk – removing this makes it easier to roll the leaves.

To make the filling, put the onion, minced meat and rice in a bowl. Add 4 tablespoons of water and season with salt and pepper. Give it a really good mix. 

For the sauce, put the carrot and passata in a large mixing jug. Add 2 large pinches of salt and 750ml of water. Spoon about 4 tablespoons of this onto the base of a large ovenproof tray or casserole dish. 

Place one cabbage leaf on a board. Put about 2 tablespoons of the filling in the centre close to the stem end. Fold that end over the filling, then bring the two sides to the centre and continue to roll it up to form a log shape. Continue with the rest.  

(If any leaves are really big, cut them in half before filling.)

Place enough rolls side by side in the tray to form a single layer. Cover with a generous amount of the sauce, then repeat with more layers of cabbage rolls and pour more of the sauce over. Once you’ve used all the rolls and sauce, pour in enough of the reserved blanching water to cover the cabbage rolls. Cover the tray with foil (or the lid if you’re using a dish). Bake in the oven for 1½ hours, checking after 1 hour that there’s enough water – add a bit more if needed. When nearly ready, check that the rice is cooked through by cutting into one cabbage roll. Cook for a little longer if you find it needs it. 

Serve 2–3 cabbage rolls per person along with a few spoonfuls of the sauce. Top with a good dollop of soured cream, a drizzle of oil, a sprinkle of cayenne pepper or chilli, fresh dill, and cracked black pepper.

This is an edited extract from Sour Cherries & Sun Flowers by Anastasia Zolotarev, Published by Quadrille. 📷 Karen Fisher and Anastasia Zolotarev.