Niçoise Cabbage Rolls - Les Petits Choux Farcis
Try this traditional Niçoise recipe for les Petits Choux Farcis that uses fresh savoy cabbage and ground meat for the stuffing.
Equipment
- 1 stockpot with lid (6-quart) for the rice
Ingredients
- 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.
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.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!