Cabbage stew with tender meat bites
Another delicious traditionally Hungarian one-dish meal, in Hungarian: “székelykáposzta” [SAY-kay-kap-oh-stah]. This meaty cabbage stew is so easy to prepare, and it just gets better and better every time it is reheated.
Back in Budapest, if I needed some fresh pickled cabbage, I just went to the closest market, and I got the cabbage straight from the barrel. It was packed in a plastic bag, with a small amount of the pickling juice poured over it to keep the cabbage moist. If you ever have the chance to taste fresh pickled cabbage, I suggest you try it, and you will understand the difference between the fresh and the jarred one. You can read about the health benefits of sauerkraut here.
In North America it is a little bit different. You can find jars of pickled cabbage in the supermarket (check the European section), or if you’re lucky, you can find freshly pickled cabbage in a European store. Luckily I found a Hungarian butcher in Montreal a few years ago selling their own pickled cabbage from the barrel! No worries, if you do not have any special store around you selling the fresh one, get the jarred one, it works great with this recipe.
The recipe starts with preparing the pork stew, so it is actually two recipes in one. By learning how to make a divine meat stew using pork shoulders, you will also get the basics of making any Hungarian stew.
Cabbage stew with tender meat bites
Ingredients
1 kg pickled cabbage
500 g pork shoulder, cut into cubes
2 medium onions
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp canola oil, vegetable oil or fat
2 bay leaves
2 tbs red sweet Hungarian paprika
1 tomato
½ bell pepper
salt, pepper
Method
Prepare the meat. Trim off most of the excess fat, and cut the meat into about 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes. Dice the onions, mince the garlic cloves, dice the tomato and the pepper.
Prepare the sauerkraut. If you have fresh sauerkraut from the market or from your favourite butcher, and you find it too salty, simply wash it out under cold tap water. Put a handful of cabbage under the water for a few seconds, and then squeeze the excess water out with your hands. You can do it in small batches.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large pot, add the onions, and sauté until they are golden and tender. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so. Be careful, don’t let the garlic burn. Remove the pot from the heat, and add the Hungarian sweet paprika. Stir and place the pot back to the heat.
Add the meat, and sear the cubes for a couple of minutes while stirring frequently
Add some salt, pepper, the bayleaves, the tomatoes, peppers, and 100 ml (1/3 cup) water. Be careful with the salt. You don’t want to use too much at the beginning, as the sauerkraut will add salt to the dish as well.
Bring the mixture to a boil, and reduce the heat. Cover and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Check and stir it occasionally. Add a bit of water if necessary.
Once the meat is tender, add the sauerkraut, and stir it together with the stew. Add 500 ml (2 cups) water, and let it cook for another 30 minutes. If you prefer more tender sauerkraut, simmer a bit longer.
Serve it with sour cream and fresh bread.
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Cabbage stew with tender meat bites
Ingredients
- 1 kg pickled cabbage avoid added sugar in store-bought cabbage, it should contain only cabbage and salt. Preferably no preservatives either
- 500 g pork shoulder, cut into cubes
- 2 medium onions
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp canola, vegetable oil or fat
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tbs red sweet Hungarian paprika
- 1 tomato
- ½ bell pepper
- salt, pepper
Instructions
- Prepare the meat. Trim off most of the excess fat, and cut the meat into about 2.5cm (1 inch) cubes. Chop the onions, mince the garlic cloves, the dice the tomato and the pepper.
- Prepare the sauerkraut. If you have fresh sauerkraut from the market or from your favourite butcher, and you find it too salty, simply wash it out under cold tap water. Put a handful of cabbage under the water for a few seconds, and then squeeze the excess water out with your hands. You can do it in small batches.
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a large pot, add the onions, and saute until they are golden and tender. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so. Be careful, don't let the garlic burn. Remove the pot from the heat, and add the Hungarian sweet paprika. Stir and place the pot back to the heat.
- Add the meat, and sear the cubes for a couple of minutes while stirring frequently
- Add some salt, pepper, the bayleaves, the tomatoes, peppers, and 100 ml (⅓ cup) water. Be careful with the salt. You don't want to use too much at the beginning, as the sauerkraut will add salt to the dish as well.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, and reduce the heat. Cover and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Check and stir it occasionally. Add a bit of water if necessary.
- Once the meat is tender, add the sauerkraut, and stir it together with the stew. Add 500 ml (2 cups) water, and let it cook for another 30 minutes. If you prefer more tender sauerkraut, simmer a bit longer.
- Serve it with sour cream and fresh bread.
Notes
- Sauerkraut – it could be freshly bought at the market, or a store-bought jarred one.
- If you find the sauerkraut too salty, just wash it out batch by batch under cold water. Squeeze out the excess water with your hands, and the cabbage is ready to go
- Tomatoes and peppers – for me they are quite important to make a great stew. You can always skip one or both, or
- substitute tomatoes with: adding 1-2 tbs tomato paste (but add a bit more water to the stew), or use some leftover tomato passata
- substituting peppers: you can use jarred grilled bell peppers. I always keep one or two bottles in the pantry in case I need a bit of peppers to the perfect stew. Remember to clean the pepper piece before you cut it up. Remove the seeds and the blackened skin.
- The Hungarian paprika could burn quickly on high heat. Avoiding this, I suggest to remove the pot a bit while you add the spice.
- I use Bell peppers mostly in stews as I cannot get the Hungarian peppers in Canada except a few weeks in September. I use the green one as it is not as sweet as the red and the yellow. I also like using Cubanelle peppers, but they are more hard to find as well.
- When reheated, add a bit of water to the stew, and boil it up.
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