It's all in the game: Wirsingkohlrouladen-krautwickel, Savoy cabbage stuffed parcels with a twist

This is a smashing autumn/winter dish; it takes a bit of time, but well worth the effort.

This is an addapted old German recipe using an Eastern twist. Here in Germany Lamb mince will only be available from Turkish or speciality butchers and this is the first time that I have ever come across lamm-mett. The use of cumin makes a nice change, some use bread crumb to make the filling go a bit further (they say it makes it a bit looser, ahem).

You shall need:

A large head of Savoy cabbage, remove the large outer dark green leaves and shred, when you get to the lighter ones, remove carefully and blanch in boiling water for a couple of minutes until pliable. Run under cold water and then place on a board and cut out the centre vein.

Blanching the leaves in plenty of salted boiling water

Stopping the cooking process

Cut out the hard centre vein

Filling

500g of beef mince
200g of lamb mince or if in Germany try to get lamm mett (this is a ready spiced mince that is normally eaten raw on bread)
1/2 a large sweet onion diced
1 small leek sliced and diced
1 carrot diced
shredded cabbage
1 clove of garlic crushed and diced
1 dessert spoon of tomato puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
1 teaspoon of herb de Provence
1knife point of mustard powder
1 teaspoon of fresh chopped rosemary and thyme
Salt and pepper

Mix the two minces together.

left the beef mince, right the Lamb mett

soften the onion, leek, etc.

add to the mince and mix

adding the mustard powder along with the rest of the ingredients

Sauté the onion, leek, garlic, cabbage and carrot, add this to the mince, add the tomato puree, the egg, mustard and cumin and the herbs, get your hands in and give it a good mix, taste and adjust seasoning. Set to one side while you do the rest of the prep, (in the fridge in warm weather) to allow the herbs and spices to permeate the mixture)

Poaching sauce

500ml of vegetable stock (marigold or other good quality)
1 teaspoon of tomato puree
1 red pepper (capsicum), de-seeded and diced
1 large mushroom diced
Shredded outer leaves of the Savoy
¼ of the large onion
1 garlic clove crushed
25g diced speck (bacon)
1 sprig each of thyme and rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil for frying

Fry the speck in the oil and then soften the onion and garlic, when translucent add the mushroom, and red pepper, soften and add the sprig of thyme and rosemary.

Put Savoy leaf on a board place another on top but with the slit where the centre vein had been at 90 degrees to the first.

Place a good patty of mince in the middle and fold one side over the top, now fold the ends into the centre, finally wrap the remaining side over all. Now tie it together with kitchen string.

a bit like a spring roll

Heat some oil(or butter) in a frying pan and fry each of the parcels until golden brown all round.

Put the sautéed onions etc. in base of a large pan, place the parcels on top, dissolve the tomato puree in the stock, deglaze the pan with this and pour over the parcels. Bring to the boil reduce to a low heat, cover and poach for about about 45 minutes.

deglaze the frying pan with stock

The finished "Rouladen"

Don't forget to remove the string before serving!!!!!, it can be a bit chewy

Served with a mushroom ragu and potato, garlic and celeriac champ

The Wild Mushroom Ragu

200g of ceps (Steinpilz) picked over, cleaned and chopped
100g of Chanterelles (Pfefferling) , cleaned
100g of field mushrooms (Champions)
25g of diced speck
1/4 diced onion
1 clove of garlic crushed and chopped
1 table spoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of rosemary and thyme
100ml veg stock
25 ml of catering creme (this is called Rama Cremefine in Germany)
S&P to taste

Saute the speck, onions and garlic in the oil until the onions turn translucent, add the diced mushrooms until they start to give off their liquid, add the herbs and pour over the stock, add the creme, bring to the boil and adjust seasoning.