Kåldolmar are Swedish cabbage rolls: blanched cabbage leaves wrapped around ground beef and pork with rice, baked, and served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam. Swedish? Mostly. They got here from the Ottoman Empire.
This is a dish that in many ways symbolizes how local cuisine can start somewhere, and then become a beloved classic somewhere completely different. A dish that is as Swedish as it is foreign. According to legend—and no one’s disproven it yet—this dish was brought to Sweden in the early 1700s by King Karl XII. After his defeat at the Battle of Poltava in 1709, Karl and his remaining soldiers sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire.
He ended up ruling Sweden from exile in the town of Bender for five years, during which time he developed a taste for Turkish cuisine. When he was eventually, and rather unceremoniously, kicked out of the Ottoman Empire (a tale that has become the stuff of Swedish military lore), he began his journey back to Sweden. Along with him, he brought a newfound appreciation for Turkish dishes and flavors. Among these was the dolma—a dish that had long been a staple in the region, made by wrapping meats, rice, and vegetables in grape leaves.
From my cookbook NORTH – Scandinavianish Cooking.
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Kåldolmar: Swedish Cabbage Rolls with Lingonberries
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
Swedish cabbage rolls: blanched cabbage leaves wrapped around a beef and pork filling with rice, baked and served with mashed potatoes and lingonberry jam. The dish traces back to the Ottoman Empire by way of King Karl XII.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) short-grain rice
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) water
- 3/4 cup (180 ml) milk
- 1 large head of green cabbage (12 large leaves)
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp butter
- 5 oz (150 g) mushrooms, finely chopped
- 10 oz (300 g) ground meat (beef and pork mix)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp ground white pepper
- Butter for greasing the baking dish
- 1 tbsp melted butter (for drizzling)
- 2 tbsp light syrup
- 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) reserved cabbage cooking water
- 2 tbsp concentrated veal stock
- 2 tsp cornstarch mixed with water
For Serving
- Mashed potatoes see (see On The Side)
- Lingonberry jam (see On The Side)
- Pickled cucumbers (see On The Side)
Instructions
- Combine rice, water, and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the rice is soft and the mixture resembles a thick porridge. Let it cool.
- Cut out the core of the cabbage. Boil water in a large pot and add the whole cabbage.
- As the outer leaves soften, remove them one by one until you have 12 leaves. Save 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) of the cooking water.
- Pat the leaves dry on a clean towel. Trim the thick central rib from each leaf to make them easier to roll.
- In a large skillet, melt the butter and sauté the chopped mushrooms until browned and any liquid has evaporated. Set aside to cool.
- Sauté the onion in butter until soft, then let it cool. In a large bowl, combine the cooked rice, onion, mushrooms, ground meat, eggs, salt, and white pepper. Mix thoroughly to a relatively loose mixture.
- Place a generous tablespoon of filling in each cabbage leaf. Fold the thick end over the filling, then fold the sides and roll tightly into a packet. Place seam-side down in a greased baking dish.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Drizzle the cabbage rolls with melted butter and syrup. Bake for 20 minutes, then pour the reserved cabbage water mixed with veal stock over the rolls. Continue baking for another 25 minutes, occasionally basting with the pan juices.
- Strain the pan juices into a saucepan. Simmer for a few minutes, then thicken with cornstarch mixed with water. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Plate the cabbage rolls with the sauce, alongside mashed potatoes, lingonberry jam, and pickled cucumbers.
Notes
- Save 1 1/2 cups of the cabbage cooking water — it gets mixed with veal stock and poured over the rolls partway through baking, then strained and thickened into the sauce.
- Pull the cabbage leaves off one at a time as they soften in the boiling water, and trim out the thick central rib once each leaf is dry. That’s what keeps them from tearing when you roll.
- Mix the beef and pork filling with rice, sautéed onion and mushrooms, and two eggs to a deliberately loose consistency — it holds together fine once it bakes.
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Recipes
- Cuisine: Swedish
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 440
- Fat: 24 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Protein: 19 g
Frequently Asked Questions
Why save the cabbage cooking water?
You need 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) of it. After the rolls have baked for 20 minutes it goes over them mixed with veal stock, and at the end it is strained off and thickened into the sauce you serve them in.
My cabbage leaves keep tearing when I roll them. What am I doing wrong?
Two things fix it. Take the leaves off one at a time as they soften in the boiling water rather than pulling at a raw head, and trim the thick central rib out of each leaf once it is patted dry. That rib is what resists the fold.
What meat should I use?
10 oz (300 g) of a beef and pork mix. It is combined with cooked rice, sautéed onion and mushrooms, two eggs, salt and white pepper, and mixed to a deliberately loose consistency.
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