# Golabki



## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 8, 2006)

I'm waiting for Chile's to come in that I've ordered for chili, so this weekend I'm going to try and update my old Golabki recipe.

The first new filing I plan to try is based on the CIA's with a few modifications...

1-lb Finely Ground Beef
1-lb Finely Ground Pork
8-oz Minced Onion - Sauteed
1/2-C Cooked Rice
4-oz Bread Crumbs
6-fl.oz Heavy Cream
2 Eggs
Kosher Salt & Black Pepper

(Basically mix everything together)
Stuff raw of course so it can form properly and steam rather than brown.

I grew up with these smothered in jarred tomato sauce and baked in a foil covered pan.  However, I see a bunch of recipes (including the CIA's) that recommend cooking in stock, and _then_ serving them on a bed of tomato sauce.  I think I'll be sticking to the ole' simmer in tomato sauce - but with my own, rather than that jarred stuff I grew up with.

Whats the verdict on bacon... Yes?  No?  Wrap the rolls?  Use as part of the stuffing or sauce?  I never had bacon with my Golabki, but so many recipes recommend it.

I reviewed the threads on the site, and found a couple neat tips like freezing the cabbage the night beofore and then thawing it rather than blanching.  I imagine this ruptures the cells and produces pliant leaves without the boiling hassle.  I plan to test run this technique.

I also plan to try using savoy cabbage.  Picked up a few heads today.

The above stuffing apparently results in a smooth and tender texture when simmered slowly until they reach 160ºF (165º with carry-over).

My night mechanic at work is retiring, and I promised I'd work on Golabki's which are one of his favorite dishes.  He brings in the giant hunks of cabbage stuffed with scrambled burger/rice and covered with a thin tomatoey broth.  I can tell they aren't 100% to his liking because he's always dousing them with hot sauce/ketchup, and tossing some of it away after.

Anyhoo, looking for any of your secret tips and recipes.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 9, 2006)

Any opinions on the bacon?  I've never had it in Golabki before.  Some say to wrap the rolls with it, some say to fry it first and break up into the sauce, and countless other renditions.

I may just leave it out the first batch.  I dunno.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 10, 2006)

Ok, have my first batch in the oven.

First off, I tried freezing/dethawing a head vs blanching the leaves.  As far as texture is concerned, the freezing method works very well.  But I did find the leaves to discolor, where as the blanched leaves were bright green/white.  I'll be sticking to blanching the leaves in the future.

(I used Savoy cabbage by the way)

For the filling I used the above recipe, and found it to be the perfect volume for the outer leaves of four small heads of Savoy.  Unfortunately I only bought three, so about 1/4 of my mix was leftover.

I used the CIA's method of stuffing which involves laying a sheet of cheesecloth over an 8fl.oz cup, overlapping two leaves, and then pressing them down into the cup with filling and using the cloth to shape the leaves.  Turned out a bunch of even-sized Golabkis for even cooking and a nice presentation.

I have them braising in the oven with some homemade tomato sauce.

I did save four of them to try with bacon, but I ran out of sauce, so they will have to wait until tomorrow.

I'll let you guys know how they turned out...


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## QSis (Dec 10, 2006)

Hi Nick!

My mother's side of the family is Polish and has made golumpki (I never know how to spell it) every year for Christmas.  They didn't use the tomato sauce technique (although some of their neighbors did and I liked it!), but placed the stuffed rolls on a bed of coarsely chopped cooked cabbage and chicken broth.  Then baked them with strips of blanched salt pork laid over them until cooked through.  When done, they went under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the tops.

I look forward to golumpki, and pierogi and mushroom borscht in a couple of weeks!

Lee


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 11, 2006)

Qsis - Interesting, so I guess the tomato sauce isn't traditional.  I'll have to try using my bacon on top of the golabki's too, and then broiling them briefly to crisp it up.

Thanks!
-----
Well, I found some things I liked and some I didn't with the first batch.  My future batches will not be including any breadcrumbs.  The final product was similar to a cabbage incased rice-spiked meatball...   It tasted good (everyone finished the pot), but they didn't have the texture I was imagining.  I'm going to try the same stuffing mixture as above minus the crumbs and doubling the rice to 1-C cooked.  I may cut back on the egg to a single unit as well.

It was also the first time I have ever used Savoy cabbage with Golabki's.  I blanched the leaves long enough to make them pliable (for stuffing), but after braising I still think they could have cooked a bit more (minor nit-pick).  I'm going to blanch them for a longer period of time next batch.

I think the best finding so far is the stuffing technique using an 8fl.oz coffee cup and some cheesecloth.  I love uniformity and symmetry...


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## ronjohn55 (Dec 11, 2006)

Hi Nick!

Well coming from a family name ending in "ski", it's safe to say golabki were fairly common on the dinner table while I was growing up.

A few thoughts on your recipes above...

Breadcrubs - probably not, we always stick with just rice.
Bacon - I love bacon! But I leave it out of the golabki. 
For the pork, we use pork sausage, gives a nice flavor to it
We never did the broth thing, only simmering in sauce (Which also helps hide the color issue from balnching vs freezing!)

Guess we'll need to fire up a batch here soon!

John


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 11, 2006)

ronjohn - Yeah, I've pretty much ruled out the breadcrumbs now.  Don't get me wrong, those Golabki's were more than edible, but they weren't what I was looking for texture wise.  Next batch will see the breadcrumbs cut out, the rice volume doubled, and the eggs cut back to one.

Interesting idea on the sausage.  Is there a special polish sausage you use?

I've seen a massive number of recipes using bacon/salt pork laid in strips over the golabkis now, so next batch is going to have one pot with "plain" and one pot with bacon.  I want to see what all the fuss is about... 
-----
I picked up four more medium heads of Savoy today.  Next batch will see a longer blanching time for them to see if I can't tenderize 'em a bit more.

Stopped by Barnes & Noble today and spent an hour in one of their nice comfy chairs with a stack of Polish cookbooks.  Many of them contained a variant for a "Spicy Polish Tomato Sauce".  Basically it starts off like marinara with oil, onions (julienne here), garlic, and alcohol... but then in addition you also toss in julienne of bell peppers, hot pepper flakes, and a 50/50 ratio of tomatoes/stock (either white beef or chicken).  The only herbs are thyme, so no Basil.  I'm going to give this sauce a run next batch as well.  Suprisingly, many of the recipes have approximate ratios for the filling that I will be trying next.  2lbs meat/1-C cooked rice.

One would think that the cream I add would make the filling heavier, but it actually works to lighten the stuffing almost a bit like pate.  It's recommended by the CIA, and in one of the cookbooks I read today.  It also serves to keep the mixture moist with it's water/fat content, kind of like adding milk/cream to meatballs.  I'll see how it works next round with no breadcrumbs.

Hopefully either Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning I'll fire off the next batch.


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## Reanie525i (Dec 11, 2006)

ronjohn55 said:
			
		

> Hi Nick!
> 
> Well coming from a family name ending in "ski", it's safe to say golabki were fairly common on the dinner table while I was growing up.
> 
> ...


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 14, 2006)

Man, haven't had time for anything the past couple days getting stuff arranged for school this spring.  I bought those heads of savoy on Monday and have 'em in the back of my fridge.  They should keep until tomorrow morning.

Waiting for UPS to get here with my spice order too.

Going to do a batch of Golabkis tomorrow morning sans breadcrumbs, double the rice, half the egg, and a nice quantity of that "spicy" polish tomato sauce.  Also going to blanch the cabbage leaves a bit longer.  I may try a batch with a regular 'ole head of cabbage this weekend too just for texture and flavor comparison to the Savoy.  I'm not sure the "cup-method" for shaping will be applicable to the non-savoy cabbage varietals unfortunately.  Hopefully, as I love the uniformity that method brings.


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## Harborwitch (Dec 14, 2006)

I'm not sure where the family recipe for "cabbage bundles" came from.  I made them last week 1/2 lamb and 1/2 beef, diced onion that's been lightly sweated and cooled, cooked rice, salt & pepper and lots of dill weed, sometimes I add oregano.  

I way prefer the freezing method - after blanching for many years we found the freezing method far superior.  We also put them on a bed of sliced cabbage then we cover them with kraut and then pour the best tomato juice we can  find over the top.  This time I started the pot on top of the stove and then we put it in the oven until they were done.  Yummmmy

My Penzey's box is down at the office - I'm waiting for my "cohort" to bring it down when she takes a break!


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 15, 2006)

Gonna' do some cooking here in a minute, just have to answer some eMails.

My order from Penzey's came in, and I am _very_ much pleased with the quality.  The sichuan peppercorns are fresh enough to have that numbing effect on the palate.  The saffron is downright intoxicating, and the chile's are also of high quality (slightly "chewy" rather than brittle/dry).

The packaging was superb as well, with real glass jars and heavy-duty ziploc-type bagging for the larger volume items.

I believe I'll be switching over from my other eShops now to this place.  I've got their catalog with a few things circled... 

Anyone subscribe to their magazine?  I may have to buy a year to try it out.

Anyhoo, off to make Golabkis.


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## Harborwitch (Dec 15, 2006)

I'm a charter subscriber to their magazine - love it to death!


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 16, 2006)

Well, I just put a batch in.  I was so busy yesterday I didn't get the chance.  Here is what I went with (Wrapping/Filling/Sauce)...

1 Head Green Cabbage

1lb Ground Beef
1lb Ground Pork
1-C Cooked Rice
8-oz Minced Onions - Sweated Out
6fl.oz Heavy Cream
1 Large Egg
1-t Minced Parsley
Kosher Salt & Black Pepper

2-T Flour
2-T Canola Oil
3-C Tomato Puree
2-C Chicken Stock
1/4-C Dry White Wine
Small Pinch Chile Flakes
4 Large Cloves Garlic - Crushed
1 Sprig Thyme
Kosher Salt & Black Pepper

The green cabbage worked perfect with the CIA's coffee-cup method of stuffing the leaves.  I though they would tear, but was pleasently suprised when they didn't.

Waiting for them to finish braising in the oven...


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 16, 2006)

Ok a few things...

1.  I prefer the traditional green cabbage over the savoy.
2.  I want to double the amount of roux next batch, or at least an incease of 50%.
3.  Maybe more rice, I dunno, need to eat a few more before I can tell...  
4.  Cut the garlic to 2-cloves, 4 is just a bit unbalanced.

Going to do another batch in the morning to pawn off at a Christmas party.
I'll post how the minor changes above affect the final outcome.

Saved a couple raw ones to run a mini batch with bacon too...

*EDIT:* Perhaps a pinch of sugar to balance the acidity of the tomaters...

Gonna' up the rice to 1.5-C from 1-C.
Needs a bit more chile flakes.

I want to try using julienne peppers and onions in the sauce.


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## Little Miss J (Dec 16, 2006)

looks edible from here.  I think I may have to go and get myself some lunch.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 17, 2006)

Thanks Little Miss J!
-----
Had one for breakfast.  More proof that braises get even better with time spent resting.

I noticed that I might not have enough salt in the filling.  I put in about a teaspoon of Kosher salt last batch.  I may up that to 1.5-2t.

So today I will be making the following modifications to the last recipe...

1. 50% more roux.
2. Increase rice to 1.5-C.
3. Decrease garlic from four cloves to two.
4. A bit more salt in the filling.
5. A bit of sugar to balance the tomatoes' acidity.
6. A bit more chile flakes.


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## Harborwitch (Dec 17, 2006)

Nicholas that is beautiful.   You're keeping me hungry for more - may have to whip up another batch.  I just got some wonderful Turkish Oregano in my Penzey's order that would be wonderful in a batch - very lemony.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 17, 2006)

Harborwitch - Thanks!  Oregano sounds great!  
-----
I got brave and did something different.

Have to be at a Christmas party for 3pm, and was running out of time.  I used my modifications above, but made a layered casserole kinda like a lasagna with the cabbage leaves as the "noodles", the meat pressed into layers (separated by more cabbage leaves), and used a few layers of sauce throughout.  I got so busy this morning and lost track of time that I didn't have time to stuff every leaf.

I rarely do things like this for public gatherings, as I like to use only tested recipes for others.  Hopefully it will come out ok... 

I was in a rush to get it in the oven... hope I didn't forget anything... 

I'll have more time this week to try some proper batches.  I also plan on working with my chili recipe now that I have all these new chile's in from Penzey's, and new ideas from a couple new cookbooks I grabbed.

Whole young chickens were $0.59/lb this week too, so I grabbed a couple 3lb jobbers.  I need to make stock too, so I might pick up a few more.  Lot's of cooking to do this week.


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## ronjohn55 (Dec 18, 2006)

Ok!!

Finally got this dug out, and lo and behold, there are breadcrumbs in it!!!  

2LB ground Beef
1LB pork sausage
1 egg
1/2 cup uncooked Rice
1 med onion - minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 milk
1 cup bread crumbs
1 Large Head Cabbage

Sauce
2 Can Tomato soup or Tomato Sauce (if using Tomato soup you may need to
add water to thin sauce)
1/4 cup ketchup
Pepper to taste

Mix these ingredients well and form into balls. Wrap with boiled cabbage leaves.

Place left over leaves and a a little bit of sauce (1/4 cup) in the bottom of the roaster and place cabbage rolls on top.

Add sauce over each layer of cabbage rolls. Cook at 325 degrees for 1.5
hours.

That's the recipe I have. I'm sure the sausage comes from a relative that was here in the states at some point, but I don't know who it would have been. 

John


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 19, 2006)

ronjohn - Sounds good!  I've been thinking about the uncooked rice bit.  I really think this is a great idea, as the rice would then soak up the meat/cabbage/ juices, and probably some of the liquid from the sauce as well.  My next batch is going to experiment with this for sure.  Unless of course the cabbage seals _too_ well.  I'm a bit worried that I might have a problem with undercooked rice and overly-dry filling.  Some recipes suggest adding some of the sauce to the meat mixture before stuffing when using uncooked rice.  I'm taking a spin down to my local Barnes & Noble in a minute to buy a couple of the Polish cookbooks I was looking at the other day.

I think my sauce needs work too.  Just isn't hitting 100% with me.
-----
The "Lazy" Golabki's were a hit by the way.  I made three giant lasagna pans worth, 12lbs of meat, 9-C of cooked rice... they ate it all...   I even got recipe requests, so I guess it wasn't _too_ bad.  I'm a lot more pickey unfortunately.  To me it was good, but not something that I would chalk up on my amazing list.  To me it still needs work.

I bought stuff to run another batch of the stuffed version.  Hopefully this afternoon or tomorrow morning.


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## ronjohn55 (Dec 19, 2006)

We've never had any trouble with the uncooked rice. Of course, they're usually left to simmer for quite a while before eating them. (No concerns here with cabbage being sealed too tight, either)

And of course, on the odd occasion that there are any leftovers - they're even better the next day. 

I have a roaster full of them simmering away right now here at work for the office potluck. Made them last night, and they've been going since 7am. It's 9:30 now, figure I might be able to hold out for another 30 minutes or so....


John


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## Shunka (Dec 19, 2006)

Thanks to this thread, this is what I'll be fixing for Christmas dinner for the hubby and I!! Hope I can hold out that long!!


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 19, 2006)

ronjohn - Cool.  Now that you mention cooking time, I felt I needed to add something else I forgot to mention.

My previous cooking time recommended by a few of my trusted books was 45-75minutes which brought the filling to 165ºF.  This provided for a tender filling, but the flavors didn't develop enough and the cabbage still had too much tooth for my liking.  I let another batch go about 3hrs, and felt they came out perfect.  The ground meat went from the tender, to the overcooked, to the "braised" stage.  So the final product was still tender, but also had an incredible amount of flavor passed around.  I did find that this process generated extra juices though.  My first thought was that the rice could have cooked in the amount that was released.  I'm worried about the rice in the top of the rolls though that is above the level of the liquid.  I suppose in a covered steaming environment it should cook.  I guess I'll find out next batch... 

Still have those two extra raw ones to cook up using bacon to try how that extra flavor component pans out.


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## Shunka (Dec 19, 2006)

Nicholas, I do mix in a bit of the sauce with the meat/rice mixture before rolling in the cabbage. Just the way I was taught and it does add more flavor. If you are worried about the rice not cooking all the way, you can use the instant rice; in fact that was the secret to an old neighbor's recipe that taught me to make these. I use regular long grain as I do cook these for a long time in the oven. Will have to try them in the crockpot but I always forget I have them.


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## ronjohn55 (Dec 19, 2006)

Shunka said:
			
		

> Thanks to this thread, this is what I'll be fixing for Christmas dinner for the hubby and I!! *Hope I can hold out that long!!*


 
Here... Let me help! 

John


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 19, 2006)

Looks good ronjohn!

One thing I'm trying to prevent though, is the separation and/or thinning of the sauce.  See how on yours there are tomato solids on the tops of the rolls, and a thin broth around the edges?  Thats the way my first couple batches were.  Building a sauce with roux helps some, but the sauce still ends up a bit thin such as in my photo.  I'm hoping that using uncooked rice will help absorb some of the liquids given off by the breakdown of the cabbage and meat tissues (combined with the Roux).

Some recipes recommend building a sauce separately, and then serving the rolls on it after simmering in broth and tomato juice.

I'm also considering the use of a technique used in many other braised dishes.  Remove the rolls, and reduce the sauce/add more roux, then re-introduce the rolls to the thickened/concentrated sauce.  Running the tomaters through a food mill first helps too, as it prevents the tomato solids from weeping later on.

Hit Barnes & Noble again today and picked up some new recipes to try out from their Polish cookbook collection.  Some of the books looked like they hadn't been updated in 50yrs, but the recipes were incredibly elegant through their simplicity.  I noticed in a few of those old recipes the use of old bread soaked in milk as a component for the stuffing.  Many of the old recipes didn't seem to include rice either.  I like rice in mine though.

Oh well, tomorrow I'm going to fire off another couple batches.
You guys are making me hungry with the talk and photos!


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## ronjohn55 (Dec 19, 2006)

LOL!

See, now the sauce has never been an issue with us! Half the family loves the top golabki like that, and the other half always digs for the ones on the bottom, dropping the top ones back in where the sauce reabsorbs the tomato. 

But yes, using a roux to make a tomato "gravy" would help with that.  


John


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## Shunka (Dec 19, 2006)

Yup, you got me drooling all over my keyboard now ronjohn!!!!!! Your's looks just the same as mine do and I think I am moving up the making of these by a couple of days. If I keep looking at your picture, it will have to be as soon as tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 20, 2006)

I'm putting off the next batch until tomorrow.
I forgot I have a chicken I bought that needs cooking.

Back to Golabkis tomorrow...


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## romanticf16 (Dec 20, 2006)

My heritage is Ukranian. My mother used to spread undiluted Campbells Tomato Soup between layers of Cabbage rolls-OR Campbells Cream of Mushroom Soup. The Cabbage rolls had a rice/onion/ground beef filling. I also remember we'd core the cabbage head, blanch it in boiling water, then thinly pare the spine of each leaf to make rolling easier.The old, damaged leaves lined the bottom of the roaster. Ah, 50 year old memories are fun. Happy Hollidays. Paul


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## angelbear9114 (Dec 20, 2006)

romanticf16...I am Ukranian as well and that sounds very similar to the way I do it with the coring, blanching, paring (some wonderful scars and burns from that process), but instead of the Campbells' what I do is just line a turkey roaster with the garbage leaves that you can't use, fill it to the top with goblackis, cover the top with another row of throw away leaves and then a heavy layer of ketchup...However instead of the usual tomato sauce I like mine with a nice onion-mushroom gravy or just melted butter...thats just how my family always ate them.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 21, 2006)

Using undiluted tomato soup is something I have been thinking a great deal about.  Actually, it's what inspired my use of tomatoes, chicken stock, and roux with my last batch (essentially what a traditional tomato soup is based on along with a few extras).  But the "sauce" that I cooked my golabkis in had the consistency of soup, rather than a condensed version.  I'm going to make a sort-of "Tomato Demi" to cook my rolls in next batch.

One of the things I'm trying to do is finish with a sauce rather than a broth.  I think using uncooked rice will soak up the released fluids from the meats/vegetables (also increasing flavor), and the simmering "Tomato Demi" will provide the viscosity I'm after.

Still need to try that bacon in a batch too... 

EDIT:  The thickened "Tomato Demi" would be similar to the highly thickened bechamels that some people use for Lasagna.  I have high hopes for my next batch...


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## Shunka (Dec 21, 2006)

Nicholas, the sauce I make is tomato sauce with a touch of sugar and a touch of lemon juice. After the cabbage rolls are done, I thicken the juices with a cold water/corn starch slurry. Then pour this back over the rolls. I make extra sauce to put over the potatoes I always serve with this. Otherwise, my recipe is just like Ronjohn's.  I did throw together a salmon mixture years ago for one daughter that would not eat red meat and did not care much for tomato based sauces. I made a mushroom-white sauce to cover those.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 21, 2006)

Thickening after is something I've also considered (and need to try!).  I would probably use a roux though, so that it won't weep on me after a night in the 'fridge.

Thanks Shunka!


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## Shunka (Dec 21, 2006)

I never had any "weeping" problems with any leftover. I make a huge batch so that I can freeze some of the rolls with the sauce (these do freeze very well!). Hubby loves to take some with him on the road and it makes it easy if I want just a few at the last minute.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 21, 2006)

Shunka - Interesting.  Usually corn starch only holds for a few hours when I cook, and then I begin to see small pools of water/juices forming again on the surface.

I love braises like Golabki too!  They freeze excellent, and usually get better the longer they have to sit in their sauce!  A good braise/stew is my favorite type of dish to cook and eat.  It's like magic...


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## Nicholas Mosher (Dec 31, 2006)

Finally back to doing some cookin' today.  Trying a a few new things for my Golabki's...


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## Shunka (Dec 31, 2006)

Enjoy eating them!! I am glad I had frozen most of the batch I made last week; the oldest daughter took half of them home when she surprised us with a visit on Christmas Day!! She was happy to see the extra sauce they were frozen in.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Jan 1, 2007)

Playing around with some sauces.  I feel that the golabkis themselves are great, but my sauce still needs work.  Off to the kitchen...


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## Nicholas Mosher (Jan 2, 2007)

I dunno.  Throwing in the towel on these for awhile.  The recipes I have are good, but I'm looking for something more than good.

I'll have to start scanning the papers for church fairs in the polish neighborhoods.  There _always_ seem to be good golabki's at those things.  Perhaps I can pick some ideas up there.

It's my sauce that I can't seem to get 100% to my liking.

I have one more experiment to try this weekend... maybe that one will do it.


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## Nicholas Mosher (Jan 7, 2007)

Oh man... hit the jackpot recipe for the sauce!

Have to go to work now, but I'll be back in the morning to post the recipe.
Made 7 mini-batches of Golabkis today...


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## Shunka (Jan 7, 2007)

I'll be looking for it tomorrow!!!


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## Nicholas Mosher (Jan 8, 2007)

_(Man am I glad I can finally set this recipe aside with peace of mind.  I don't wanna' see another golabki for at least a year...)_

I based the sauce on a recipe I found in an old Polish cookbook.  I made a veal stock with backbones - which have an absolutely incredible amount of connective tissue which melts out into gelatin.  It's crucial to have a full-bodied stock to get the viscosity and flavor in the final sauce.  The flavors are then pushed forward with some distilled white vinegar, sugar, and of course kosher salt.  I also preferred the texture of finely ground meats rather than the chunky ground sometimes found in supermarkets.

*Golabkis* _(Finally...haha... )_











_For The Rolls..._
1 Head Green Cabbage

1-lb Ground Beef (Finely Ground)
1-lb Ground Pork (Finely Ground)
3/4-C Uncooked Long Grain Rice
6-fl.oz Heavy Cream
1 Large Egg
8-oz Finely Diced Onion (Sweated Out)
1-t Minced Parsley
Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground White Pepper

_For The Sauce..._
4-oz Minced Bacon
4-oz Minced Yellow Onion
12-oz Tomato Paste
6-C Beef/Veal Stock
2-T White Vinegar
2 Cloves Garlic - Crushed
Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground White Pepper
Sugar - As Needed

Render the bacon and sweat the onions.  Add the tomato paste and cook until it smells sweet and takes on golden hues.  Whisk in the stock, and the vinegar and garlic and simmer uncovered for 30min (sauce should reduce by 1/2-3/4-C).  Strain the sauce and return to a medium burner.  Adjust the seasoning with salt, finely ground white pepper, and sugar.  Remove from the heat.

Core and blanch the cabbage in a large pot of hot water.  Remove the thick stems from the leaves, and set aside.  Preheat the oven to 325ºF.

Combine the remaining stuffing ingredients along with a 1/2-C of the sauce.  Season with salt and freshly ground white pepper.

Stuff the leaves like a burrito, or using an 8oz coffee cup lined with cheesecloth (produces the best results, but I was short on time in the above photos).

Pour a cup of sauce into the bottom of a large dutch oven, and then add the rolls (preferably in a single layer).  Pour the remaining sauce on top, cover, and place in the oven.  Braise for 2.5-3Hrs, stopping each hour to turn the rolls and ladle sauce over them.

Remove the pot from the oven, chill in a water bath, and refrigerate overnight.  The next day degrease the sauce and remove the rolls to a separate plate.  Return the sauce to a simmer and reduce some if necessary.  Reseason with salt/sugar/pepper.  Return the rolls to the sauce, cover, and return to the oven to reheat them.

*The refrigeration step isn't necessary, but makes a big difference in flavor development (similar to 2nd day meatballs or stews).  You can also remove the rolls after they are finished cooking, spoon off any surface fat from the sauce, reduce/reseason, and then return the rolls for service.

**Be sure to season properly with salt and sugar.  Combined with the vinegar they elevate the natural mellow flavors of the cabbage and meats.

_(Now it's back to working on the chili recipe... )_


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