Sarma are stuffed cabbage rolls that never fail to give us the sweet pang of nostalgia every time we try them. They are a much loved dish in balkan countries and are an all-time crowd pleaser in our Macedonian family. Our Baba has always made these with plant-based ingredients so we thought what better dish to share with you guys! And to top it off, this is a super SUPER simple dish with only a handful of ingredients.
(Keep in mind this is our grandma's recipe which often varies between villages and countries)
Serves: 5-7
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups arborio rice (short-grain works too)
Sunflower oil (olive works too)
1 medium cabbage
1 carrot
3 tsp paprika
1 tbsp vegetable stock powder
1 tsp salt
3 garlic cloves minced
Handful chopped parsley
Water
Method
Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage and core it by taking a knife and carefully cutting around the hard stem. This should create a small, hollow, bowl shape at the bottom of the cabbage
Boil a large pot of water and place the whole cabbage inside. When the leaves start to soften and seperate, carefully pull apart using tongs, ensuring the leaves remain whole. Set aside the leaves on a tray as you seperate them. They should be floppy and bendable, but not completely cooked or soggy
Now, in a seperate pan, heat 1/4 cup of oil
Grate the carrot finely and add it to the pan along with the garlic. fry for 3 minutes
Now add the rice, paprika, salt and stock powder. Fry for 5 minutes, then switch off the heat
Now its time to roll up the sarma. Place the tray of cabbage leaves on a table, along with a bowl containing the rice, a plate to roll the sarma, a bowl for the juices, and an empty tray for the completed rolls
Take a leaf. Locate the tough stem going straight down the leaf. You'll cut this out by folding the leaf in half with the stem along the fold. Carefully cut along the fold, separating the stem from the leaf. This will leave you with two leaf halves
Take one leaf and lay it on a plate. Take 1/2 tbsp of the rice mixture (keep in mind the rice will expand once cooked) and place it in the middle of the leaf. Like a burrito, fold the top and bottom of the leaf inwards, and then roll from one and to the other
Now this is the interesting bit. You're going to take the roll and squeeze it as tight as you can over a bowl to remove any excess juice. Do this until most of the juice has come out and the roll is tight and compact. This seals the roll. Watch the video below for further help
Repeat this process, placing the rolls in the empty tray
Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a saucepan. Add 1 tsp of paprika, parsley and 1/3 cup of water
Take a toothpick and gently poke the sarma rolls a few times. Now place them, one at a time, into the saucepan. Keep stacking them on top of one another (tightly)
Quickly chop the left over cabbage pieces (the stems you removed before rolling) and place on top of the stacked sarma
Now place a plate that is a similar width of your saucepan over the cabbage. This will keep everything tight and compact
Fill the saucepan with water until it is level with the plate. Cook on a medium heat for 1 1/2 hours
Ready to eat!
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