Stuffed cabbage leaves Recipe

Stuffed cabbage leaves Recipe

  • 500g/1lb 2oz pork belly without skin
  • 2 large onions, roughly chopped
  • 1 carrot, coarsely grated
  • 1 celery stick, finely chopped
  • 160g/5½oz freekeh, cooked
  • 12 sour cabbage leaves, drained, halved (available from Polish delicatessens)
  • 500ml/18fl oz crème fraîche
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ small bunch fresh dill, finely chopped, to serve
  • sourdough bread, to serve
  1. To mince the pork belly by hand, slice it into thin strips and then slice it across into small cubes. If it still looks too chunky, go over it with a sharp knife to mince it down further.
  2. Heat a frying pan over low-medium heat. When hot, drop in the pork belly. Cook until it releases its fat. Add the onions, carrot and celery and cook until soft and translucent.
  3. Parboil the wheat berries for 5 minutes, then drain and cool under cold running water. Mix with the pork and onions and season well with salt and pepper.
  4. Place 50g/1¾oz filling into each cabbage leaf and fold the edges under to form parcels. Pack the parcels into a small lidded pan.
  5. Season the crème fraîche with salt and pepper, then pour it over the cabbage parcels. Cook on the hob over a low heat for 40 minutes, until the meat is cooked through.
  6. Serve, garnished with the dill, with sourdough.