Monday, April 14, 2014

Finnish Cabbage Casserole

One of my favorite foods ever is Finnish Cabbage Casserole.

Normally children in Finland hate eating cabbage.

Well, I think children everywhere hate eating cabbage.

But the cabbage casserole changes everything.

The cabbage is there but it is mixed with rice and hamburger meat, and made in oven and it just doesn't taste exactly like cabbage anymore.

It is not a very hard dish to do, and since it is the only way my son will eat cabbage, I thought I would share this Finnish secret with everyone.

First of all you need a good pot or a casserole, I would even say a cauldron.

I personally use an iron pot and it is the best thing ever.

It must weight more than six pounds but I brought it from Finland in my luggage, because you just can't find a real iron pot like that here in Ecuador.

If you do not have an iron pot then you need a good casserole with thick sides and bottom, so that the cabbage will stew in the oven.

Depending on how big your pot or casserole (and family) is, you'll need a small, medium or big cabbage.

Since we are just four here, I use a medium size, or smallish, cabbage (about four pounds).

While the rice is cooking (about two pounds with this amount of cabbage), fry the hamburger meat until it's ready (not too ready because it goes to the oven afterwards) and add some salt and pepper.

No other condiments are necessary for the traditional casserole but you can go experimenting if you want to.

Then cut the cabbage in thin strips and cook it quickly, just a little bit to get it a bit softer.

The rice needs to be al dente, not completely cooked.

Mix the cabbage with the hamburger meat and rice in the pot.

Put the pot in the oven for an hour.

This is the easy part because you can do anything else you want to meanwhile you wait till the casserole is ready.

Take the casserole out and enjoy!

24 comments:

  1. This looks good! I actually love cabbage! One of our favorite ways to eat it is to cut it into wedges, put olive oil on it and salt and pepper then roast it in the oven till its soft. Yum!

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    1. Sounds like something I would love, too. I need to try it out. Thank you!

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  2. Definitely pinning this for future reference! I love cabbage and would love to get my kids to eat some as well!

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  3. This sounds like the way I make stuffed cabbage-somewhat. I know I would love this dish!!

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  4. I love cabbage, I will have to give this a try.

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    1. Oh, I want to see photos, Sandra. I'm sure you'll make something really special out of this :)

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  5. We love cabbage. This reminds me of deconstructed cabbage rolls :)

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    1. It is similar, Lydia. We do cabbage rolls in Finland, too. Never liked them when I was small but now I think they are really delicious :)

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  6. drool, I will e making this very soon, we had creole cabbage last night

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  7. It looks hearty! I love your stretched out kitty! Too cute!

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    1. He knows how to relax, Heather. And he just chilling out with my dad when the casserole was in the oven. It was too good to miss :)

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  8. I guess my daughter is special as she looooves cabbage. Fair enough we use pickled cabbage and m mom cooks heavenly. We've got to try this recipe, it sounds very interesting.

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    1. Sometimes children are like that, Petro. My son used to love broccoli. I don't know how that happened but it was one of his favorite foods. He used to call them little trees. He's not that big of a fan anymore but it did startle people, lol

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  9. So cool.. I've never tried with cabbage, usually just with macaroni... this looks like a very healthy alternative and I absolutely love the cat picture - adorable!

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  10. This looks very good. I think it would go over well with my son. I'll try it soon. Pinning! :)

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  11. It looks yummy! I saved to try it!

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  12. sounds delicious, very healthy and hearty!

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  13. Wow, looks delicious. I always love trying different dishes and I have never had anything like this before.

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    1. Hope you try it out, Felicia. Let me know how it turned out if you do.

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  14. Not really big on cabbage and neither is my husband but it looks good! And your cat, so precious, looks just like my tuxedo cat! :)

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    1. He is a beautiful cat, Jenny. And he sure knows how to relax. It always amazes me how he can stretch himself and how he can be comfortable with his sleeping positions, lol

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