the big cabbage roll debate....

February 21, 2006

the big cabbage roll debate....

ok, per matt (direct quote from myspace):"seriously, who in the name of fuck puts sour krout on goddamned cabbage rolls. Onions and green peppers maybe... but goddamned krout!? WHAT PLANET ARE YOU FROM!!"

now, is it a cleveland thing? i mean, are we the only ones adding saur kraut? and how is it spelled??? (mag's will know)

now matt is not a native clevelander, so i'd like to know what renny has to say. how do they make them in southern OH? and lobsterboy, do they even eat them in florida. zak's a chef, maybe he knows.....

Comments

Anonymous said…

I had never even heard of a cabage roll until I moved to Cleveland. All we ever eat in Southern Ohio is breaded deepfried meats. I do know that Cleveland is the ONLY city in the world to put coleslaw and not saur kraut on a rubin sammich.

11:15 AM

Anonymous said…

I was always informed that saurkraut was possibly a Polish variation on the theme. And I once knew a nice old polish lady who used to make "en mass" pierogi and cabbage rolls for the church functions and they were usually done in two ways so the parishoners could choose...one was strictly meat/rice stuffed cabbage leaves and a thin, sweeter tomato sauce. The other had a light almost brothy tomato sauce with saurkraut. She also made the pierogi in various forms - some with mashed potato and cheese and onion, as well as with saurkraut in them. And my Uncle, who immigrated from Transylvania in the 20's, and all of his cronies from there, they all ate the stuffed cabbage. As a matter of fact, they ate cabbage and onions on everything, it would seem. Therefore, I do not believe that cabbage rolls are merely a regional north-eastern Ohio thing.

And I saw a show on the food channel where they were in Memphis and they put shredded cabbage and/or cole slaw on ALL of their sangwiches, instead of lettuce - and I think they do that crap in Pittsburgh, too. Not so much on the cabbage sangwich. And I'm not real down with the french fries on the sangwich, either. You know, like they do at Pannini? It just seems improper.

And, BTW, it is "saurkraut."

11:57 AM

Anonymous said…

Sorry if I offended big boy with the kraut...that is the way I have always had them....mom, grandma, weddings, etc....with the kraut....and the kraut was only layered on the bottom of the pan, not mixed in with the cabbage rolls...so ask me to cook something else sometime....

1:06 PM

Anonymous said…

Exactly...kraut layered in the pan...not IN the rolls. That's exactly the way old Mary Szelest used to make them in the church basement. She used to put it on the bottom AND on the top. And she was a card-carryin' Pole...complete with an accent and a polyesther babushka.

Sticklady, you can make those cabbage rolls and I'll eat them day and night!!!

I'm thinking of either making a pot of beef stew, or a home-made chicken pot pie - unfortunately, both sans kraut. Which do you people pick?

2:05 PM

Anonymous said…

I didn't think we ate those down here, but 3 out of 4 of my co-workers told me otherwise. And as to the sauerkraut on them, one co-worker made an interesting face and said "Why?" She thinks that is redundant.

2:39 PM

Anonymous said…

It is kind of redundant, now that you think about it. Kind of like eating bread with spaghetti...bread with a side of bread. Or pierogi...pasta dough stuffed with mashed potatoes...bread with bread again. Curious.

4:27 PM

Primordial Dork said…

Sauerkraut, Sauerkraut, Sauerkraut!

My grandmother had what you call a Kraut Barrel in the basement, which means she made her own in this big ceramic crock and it smelled real bad. I asked my mom and she said it's just cabbage, salt and vinegar pressed down until the brine is drained off over a three or four week period.

Eccch.

Nobody I know of makes cabbage rolls with sauerkraut! Here it's the slightly sweet paprika tomato sauce with a pork/beef/egg/rice filling not too different fom stuffed grape leaves.

Onions? Peppers? Kraut?

Unthinkable.

5:49 PM

Anonymous said…

well, since my parents used to make kraut in the garage (don't you remember that my car used to smell like it all winter?) and they are from the old country, i feel like I can comment. My mom puts the kraut on the bottom of the pan and then on top when she is done stacking them in there so I don't think it can be just a Cleveland thing since she was almost 30 when she moved here. so you keep right on making them, glittermom, I'm sure they are wonderful!

9:48 PM

GLITTERGIRL said…

ok, i think stacy is speaking of the german version, as columbus is lousy with the germans. sladj and my mom agree on the yugoslavian version and mag's has the polish take.

matt, alas, is a german, which explains his aversion to cabbage rolls with sauerkrat. but NOTHING explains adding green pepper! that's just total madness!

9:59 PM

Anonymous said…

Thank God someone understands the reason for the kraut with the cabbage rolls....They are not made with sauerkraut....It is just a layer on the bottom of the pan to protect the rolls....Do you people get it? Thank you Sladj....and none of us are Polish......

10:03 PM

Anonymous said…

Well, it all sounds good -- with or without the sauerkraut.

Not that it means anything, but Lobstermom is from Cleveland. If I think of it, I'll ask her if cabbage rolls were ever made at her house. Her family was Irish, so knowing that side of the family like I do, they would've made it very bland, and probably with a can of tomato soup in it.

Oh, and about the potluck... Do you have enough chairs for everyone?

12:17 AM

Primordial Dork said…

Now that I think green peppers aren't so bad because stuffed green peppers have an identical filling and sauce to what I'm used to with cabbage rolls...

When I was a lousy vegetarian we often made a version with textured vegetable protein and rice. It was really really good.

7:44 AM

Anonymous said…

First of all, to offend everyone, kraut is a disgusting, smelly food. I am German, and Irish and hate the crap. (Coincidentally, I also don't drink beer, so I may need to stop claiming either race). My father's(pure Kraut) grandparents came over on 'the boat', from Germany/Luxembourg. He always said you have to bury kraut in the ground. I am not sure why dead matter would help to incubate a food (or foodlike substance), but apparently it was imperative.
We have to bring real food on Sunday? I do not cook well, or so everyone tells me. Maybe I will purchase...
BTW JenJen, I have been scaring someone new at work. She doesn't grab her chest and quite make the scene you do, but it will have to suffice.

8:36 AM

Anonymous said…

yeah, it was just totally bizarre to me. I was just like.. what?!? WHY?!? It was complete and total culture shock. Back in the windy bavarian kitchens of NW Ohio we serve saurkraut on our Bratwurst. Cabbage rolls are considered by us to be more of a pasta almost, thus the onions and green peppers.

I do apologize to GlitterMom though, I was just in complete shock.. it was like.. sherbert on primerib to me. Sometime, the three of us (GlitterGal, GlitterMom, Trollboy (notice the sans glitter there)) will have to go out to a nice german buffet house, and we'll sing songs and drink thick beers and sing "Das ist Berlin" all night long. I know you guys are all slovenian, but I won't hold it against ya, I'll teach you the German ways. After all, Duestchland uber alles!

3:35 PM

Anonymous said…

What ever you say Big Guy! I'll be waiting for the invite.

3:58 PM

vivalarobot said…

hey, what about me??!?!!? i think i should get an invite as well...

7:27 PM

Anonymous said…

Of course you're welcome to come to mein party frau Jennette. Your name tells me how you love robots as much as I. You can even bring Herr Mike and I'll stick to America PC terminology.

9:51 PM