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These are Romania's ultimate ceremonial sarmale, prepared for Christmas, Easter, weddings, and celebrations - larger and more elaborately layered than an everyday version, with smoked sausage nestled between the rolls and both tomato juice and sauerkraut juice providing the braising liquid for a more complex sweet-sour depth. The rolls are packed tightly into the pot in multiple layers and cooked for four full hours, by which time the pickled cabbage has turned silky and yielding, the rice has swelled into the meat filling, and every element of the dish has become inseparable from the others. No Romanian holiday meal is complete without sarmale, and no two families make them in exactly the same way.
Prep
70 min
Cook
240 min
Total
310 min
Servings
8 srv
Difficulty
Hard
Calories
360 kcal
For 8 serving(s)
Per serving
Sauté the finely chopped onion in lard or oil until golden. Combine with the ground pork, uncooked rice, egg, paprika, thyme, salt, and black pepper, mixing thoroughly by hand.
Separate and flatten the pickled cabbage leaves. Trim thick ribs. Chop remaining small leaves and spread on the bottom of a large, deep pot.
Place a generous spoonful of filling on each leaf, roll tightly, and arrange in compact layers in the pot.
Tuck slices of smoked sausage and bay leaves between the layers of rolls.
Pour the tomato juice and sauerkraut juice over the rolls. Add water as needed to just cover. Place a heavy plate on top of the rolls to keep them submerged.
Cover and braise over the lowest possible heat for 3.5-4 hours, checking occasionally and adding a little water if needed. Serve with sour cream and fresh bread.
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