Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Polish Stuffed Cabbage

My Polish Grandmother used to make these for us all the time while I was growing up and then my Dad continued to make them after she was gone. They always make me feel at home wherever I have them and I definitely consider them a comfort food. While I was living in Greenpoint, Brooklyn for a year there was a huge Polish population and we had a great deli nearby where you could get these for $1.25/ea. and they tasted just like my Dad and Grandma used to make. Jenn didn't used to like them too much but they have grown on her and she said this time around were the best she's had (I've only made them twice). They are a lot of work but they can feed a lot of people for very little money and re-heat very well.

Traditionally, they are made with rice and ground pork as the primary ingredients for the stuffing but at some point my Dad switched to orzo pasta instead of rice and we've never looked back. The orzo is never as dry or rigid as the rice can get. The secret to the sauce seems to be condensed tomato soup and chicken broth. We've tried all sorts of other combinations but they never taste as good. I did try and get the low sodium chicken broth as I know both those ingredients can be very high in sodium. You can probably use low sodium tomato soup as well.

Ingredients: (feeds a lot of people)
1 large cabbage
2 lb. ground pork
1 lb. orzo pasta (instead of rice)
1/2 lb. of bacon
1 32 oz. box of low sodium low fat College Inn chicken broth
1 family size can of campbell's tomato soup
1 bunch of scallions, chopped
2 tbsp of minced garlic
1 cup of bread crumbs
a generous amount of cracked black pepper

You start off by cooking your orzo very al dente (since it will continue to cook later in the crock pot). Then you rinse it with cold water to until it's completely cool to the touch and then you can start to mix it in a large bowl with your ground pork, garlic, scallions and bread crumbs. I also cooked half of my bacon ahead of time and crumbled it into the mixture as well. My Dad always used to lay it over the stuffed cabbage while it was cooking (to flavor the sauce) but I thought it might be nice as part of the filling and it was!

The next step is to steam your cabbage. I don't have a great method for doing this or removing the leaves once they are done. I basically soaked my oven mitts while doing it... Maybe a dish towel instead? The best advice I can give is to cut the outside of the veins of the cabbage leaves and to core it initially too to help the leaves fall off more easily when they are done steaming. They should basically be soft and pliable. Then you simply wrap them as if you were wrapping a burrito and place them in the crock pot with the open end facing down so they stay wrapped. As you fill the pot with these, before starting a second layer, cover them all with some chicken broth and your tomato soup. You want to ensure that each one has some sauce to cook in.

Once you have either exhausted your ingredients or filled your crock pot, cover it and bring it to a boil initially. Then you can lower the heat and just let them cook for a couple of hours or so. The longer they go, the better. They are very filling and great for large groups. My brother and Dad were visiting when I made this batch and they both seemed to like them! It's certainly one of my favorite family recipes and this batch was definitely the best that I've made.

Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Polish Stuffed Cabbage

Margie’s Kitchen in Boston: Making Pierogi

photos by Lena

After writing about making crepes and recalling them from my trip to Poland last summer, I began to think about Pierogi, which are really the Pole’s form of ravioli but made in a different shape. These photos of pierogi are entrees from two different restaurants–one in a small village near the Lithuanian border and the other in Krakow.

There are various fillings but the most common are cheese, potato, or sweet cabbage. I must admit that I’ve never made pierogi from scratch; I usually buy them frozen at one of two Polish specialty stores (1, 2) in the Dorchester section of Boston. But I decided to dig out my Polish cookbook to see how difficult they are to make.

Polish Cookery is an English adaptation of what has been referred to as the bible of Polish cooking (UNIWERSALNA KSIAZKA KUCHARSKA (The Universal Cook Book) by Mme. Marja Ochorowic-Monatowa published originally in1911: “Its original purpose, stated rather primly by the author, ‘is to give brides a knowledge of how cooking is done, so that they may supervise the servants properly’” (iii). Well, I don’t have any servants, but I could supervise my husband (he’s Polish) in making Pierogi.

As I mentioned previously, the recipe (page 253 Polish Cookery) for the dough pockets is similar to ravioli, except the pierogi dough uses fewer eggs (4 instead of 2): 2 cups flour, 2 small (or 1 large) eggs, and few spoonfuls of lukewarm water. Mix together until firm and cut into 2 pieces. Keep dough covered in a towel while preparing each piece. If you have a pasta machine roll each piece until it looks like a thin sheet and cut into 13 inch pieces (x 5” or so) (otherwise use a rolling pin). Arrange stuffing by the spoonful along one edge every 2” then fold over the top of the filling dough from the other end. Cut out around the filled sections in the shapes of a half circle using a pastry cutter, then press edges of dough together on the seam side. Any remaining dough can be reshaped and rolled out to repeat the process again. Cook in hot boiled water. When they float to the surface, take out with slotted spoon and serve with butter.

As for filling recipe here is the recipe for cheese filling (253 Polish Cookery):
2 egg yolks, 1 Tablespoon butter, 1 pound of pot cheese, farmer cheese, or cottage cheese mashed, dash of salt, 1 Tablespoon sugar, and ¼ raisins (optional). Mix yolks and butter first, then add other ingredients. Sugar and raisins are added for sweet-tasting cheese filling.

Another easy filling is quite simply 3-4 pitted cherries (or equivalent amount of berries). After pierogi are boiled serve sprinkled with sugar and sour cream. Sounds yummy!

Margie’s Kitchen in Boston: Making Pierogi