Traditional Niçoise Cabbage Rolls – Les Petits Choux Farcis

Nice’s climate, geographic location, and terroir are suitable for growing vegetables such as tomatoes, chard, cabbage, artichokes, lentils, beans and much more. This French Riviera city is graced with over 300 days of sunshine in a typical year. The ancient populations of Greeks and Romans living in the region roughly 3000 years ago constructed stone terraces (faissas) to improve poor soil conditions and hold moisture for olives, grapes and other crops. As a result, fresh produce is always plentiful today at local markets like the Marché de la Libération and Cours Saleya Market.

The recipe for Niçoise Cabbage Rolls was translated and published below with the permission of the Office de Tourisme Métropolitain Nice Côte d’Azur. Les Petits Choux Farcis form part of a collection of traditional Niçoise cooking in a cookbook that salutes the Cuisine Nissarde –  Carnets de cuisine du Comté de Nice. Purchase the book at the tourist office in Nice or online at Amazon.

Niçoise Cabbage Rolls - Les Petits Choux Farcis

Carnets de cuisine du Comté de Nice

Try this traditional Niçoise recipe for les Petits Choux Farcis that uses fresh savoy cabbage and ground meat for the stuffing.

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Total Time 3 hours hrs

Course Main Course

Cuisine Cuisine Nissarde, French, Provencal

Servings 4 people

Equipment

• 1 stockpot with lid (8-quart)
• 1 stockpot with lid (6-quart) for the rice
• 1 baking dish, ceramic (9x13-inch rectangular)

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 1 large Savoy cabbage
• 1 sprig parsley
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 onions
• 1 carrot
• 1 leek
• 1 stick celery
• 1 bouquet garni for the stock
• 2 oz rice
• 1/4 lb ground pork
• 1/4 lb ground veal
• 3 eggs
• 2 oz Parmesan cheese or Sbrinz cheese, grated
• 2 cups veal stock or beef stock
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Instructions

 

• Put the cabbage in boiled salted water for 10 minutes and then leave it to cool.
• Detach the leaves, keep the best ones for the cabbage rolls, and lay them flat on a tea towel to dry.
• Keep a few other leaves to complete the filling of your rolls and chop.
• Fry the chopped onion in olive oil. Add the ground meat (pork and veal) to the pan, then the chopped cabbage, and finally the finely chopped garlic, some thyme and a sprig of parsley.
• Leave to cook for 15 minutes on low heat.
• During this time, boil the rice in salted water for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and mix the rice, the onion and meat mixture, the beaten eggs and the parmesan cheese. Season with plenty of pepper.
• Place a ball of stuffing inside each cabbage leaf. Close carefully to form a small cabbage roll. The stuffing must not escape. Tie up each package. Place the cabbages in a deep casserole dish, cover with a good stock and add carrot, leek, celery and bouquet garni.
• Leave to simmer, covered, for an hour and a half after you have added the stock.
• Then take your cabbage packets out of the stock, and let them dry in a hot oven for 15 minutes in an earthenware casserole. Note: The broth can be served on its own or with another meal of croutons and cheese.

Notes

Variations:
You can add a tomato sauce to the cabbage rolls before baking them or, more simply, serve them topped with a tomato coulis that has been run through the fine mesh of a food mill.
The broken cabbage rolls or the surplus stuffing is a delicious addition to the broth. Some people fry the thickly sliced rolls in olive oil. Then, in season, add a handful of peas to the stuffing.

Keyword Beef, Cabbage, Veal

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Carolyne Kauser-Abbott

With her camera and laptop close at hand, Carolyne has traded in her business suits for the world of freelance writing and blogging. Her first airplane ride at six months of age was her introduction to the exciting world of travel.

While in Provence, Carolyne can be found hiking with friends, riding the hills around the Alpilles or tackling Mont Ventoux. Her attachment to the region resonates in Perfectly Provence this digital magazine that she launched in 2014. This website is an opportunity to explore the best of the Mediterranean lifestyle (food & wine, places to stay, expat stories, books on the region, travel tips, real estate tips and more), through our contributors' articles.

Carolyne writes a food and travel blog Ginger and Nutmeg. Carolyne’s freelance articles can be found in Global Living Magazine, Avenue Magazine and City Palate (Published Travel Articles).