Ingredients: serves 6
14 oz/40 dkg raw smoked ribs, 3.3 lb/1.5 kg sauerkraut, 3.3 lb/1.5 kg lean boiled slab bacon, 2-3 cloves garlic (garlic cream), 1 tablespoon quality paprika, 1 teaspoon marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon hot Red Gold or “Strong Steven” hot cherry pepper paste
Stuffing: 5 1/4 oz/15 dkg rice, salt, 24 1/2 oz/70 dkg pork shank or shoulder, 1/2 onion (1 teaspoon onion cream), 2 cloves garlic (garlic cream), 2 tablespoon oil, 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper or 1/2 teaspoon hot Red Gold or “Strong Steven” hot cherry pepper paste, 1/2 tablespoon quality paprika, 1 teaspoon marjoram, 1 egg, 1 single smoked pepperoni style sausage (about 9 oz/25 dkg), 4-5 thin slices of lean bacon (preferably mangalica), 4 large or 8 smaller sour cabbage leaves, sour cream to serve

Soak the smoked ribs in cold water a few hours. For the filling bring 9 1/2 oz/2 3/4 dl water to a boil in a small pot with a pinch of salt, pour in therinsed rice and steam on low heat, covered. It doesn’t matter if it hasn’t cooked thoroughly. Grind the meat. Mince the onions and garlic, and wilt them in oil in a skillet on medium heat in 2-3 minutes – the onion cream does not need to be sautéed in oil. Let it cool a bit and combine with the meat and cooled rice. Salt it (about 1 teaspoon is reuired), add the pepper, or fire it up with Red Gold, sprinkle some paprika over it, possibly add a bit of marjoram. Add the egg and knead well. Remove the casing from the
sausage and wrap the bacon slices around it. Pare down the thick vein in the center of the cabbage leaves. Place the leaves side by side, overlapping a little. (If the leaves are small, place the remaining four leaves underneath such that they overlap about a third.) Spread half the meat mixture over the
bottom leaves and place the sausage wrapped in the bacon in the center lengthwise. Cover with the remaining meat mixture. Fold the cabbage on both sides over the filling so they do not open as you roll them up. Tie with cooking twine. Should any filling remain, make them into meatballs and add them to the cabbage later. If the small cabbage is too sour, rinse it, and with a few cuts chop into smaller strands. Place a few thin slices of bacon on the bottom of a pan to protect the cabbage from scorching. Layer the first third of the sauerkraut on top. Season with crushed garlic, paprika, marjoram
and hot paprika cream. Arrange the smoked ribs over it, rinsed and dripped dry after soaking. Spread
another third of the sauerkraut over this, season as before, and place the giant stuffed cabbage on top. Cover with the remaining sauerkraut, season, and sneak in the leftover lean bacon. Pour about 1 qt./lt
water on the bottom, cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours. To serve, place the giant stuffing on a cutting board, slice it up to about a finger’s width, and top the sauerkraut piled on the plates. Serve with sour cream and soft bread, accompanied by properly chilled white wine.

Preparation time: 3 hours
Calories per serving: 975
Skill: Easy to prepare