Sărmăluțe a la Dana, Romanian chicken rolls

Name: Sărmăluțe a la Dana, Romanian chicken rolls
Ingredients: 200 g rice; 2 medium carrots (200 g); 2 medium onions (300 g); 1 chicken breast (250 g); 200 g canned mushrooms drained; 1 small leek (150 g); 60 g tomato paste; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper; 60 ml oil; 12 cabbage leaves; 8 horseradish leaves; 1500 ml water

Diverse - Sărmăluțe a la Dana, Romanian chicken rolls by Camelia K. - Recipia

Sărmăluțe a la Dana are Romanian stuffed leaf rolls filled with chicken breast, rice and chopped vegetables, then baked covered for two hours. Rice and mushrooms sit inside cabbage and horseradish leaves, and the rolls come out soft, with the filling holding together and broth in the pot. I set them beside little meatballs and start with the ones wrapped in horseradish leaves. Prep: 30 minutes. Cook: 120 minutes. Total: 150 minutes. Serves: 4. About 450 kcal and 21 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

200 g rice
2 medium carrots (200 g)
2 medium onions (300 g)
1 chicken breast (250 g)
200 g canned mushrooms drained
1 small leek (150 g)
60 g tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
60 ml oil
12 cabbage leaves
8 horseradish leaves
1500 ml water

Preparation

1. Rinse 200 g of rice and leave it to drain. Pat the chicken breast dry with paper towels and mince it in a food processor. 2. Peel the onion, carrots and leek, then chop them one at a time in the food processor. Drain the canned mushrooms and chop them. 3. Mix the chicken with the rice, vegetables and mushrooms. Stir in 60 g of tomato paste, 60 ml of oil, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Put some filling on the cabbage and horseradish leaves, then roll up the Sărmăluțe a la Dana. 4. Arrange them in an ovenproof pot and pour in 1500 ml of water, enough to cover them. Cover the pot with aluminum foil and bake at 180°C for 120 minutes, until the rice is soft and the leaves have softened.

Notes

You can serve them with polenta and a spoonful of sour cream, which gets stirred into the broth on the plate. You can replace the breast with 250 g of boneless turkey thigh, minced the same way. Horseradish leaves have a greener heat than cabbage leaves and stand out more in the small rolls. Choose pliable cabbage leaves without a very thick central rib, since stiff ones crack when rolled. Short-grain rice binds the filling better than long-grain rice and stays compact in each serving. As with a vegetable pilaf, rice is the starting point, except each serving is wrapped tightly in a leaf. I time the two hours in the oven to coincide with mealtime, so I don't have to rush while rolling. Keep leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge and eat within 3 days.