Stuffed cabbage is an excellent side or main meal to offer your family and guests over the holiday season. There are so many different ways to prepare this traditional Eastern-European dish – from filling the cabbage with meats, other vegetables, – or even a beer can.
We think of stuffed cabbage as an essential wintertime meal. It’s a filling and comforting food whether you’re cooking it as a side for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner or a hearty cold-weather meal at any time of the season.
Our top chefs put together this guide of 15 secrets for making the best-stuffed cabbage – regardless, of the fillings you decide to use in the meal. The secret is in the selection and preparation – if you start your recipe with the finest ingredients, then you’re halfway there already.
Read on and discover tips and tricks for your next delicious stuffed cabbage recipe.
1. Always Choose Organic Cabbage
Any gourmet chef will tell you that it’s the quality of the ingredients that make the meal. This rule applies to the perfect stuffed cabbage recipe as well. We recommend that you start your recipe by shopping for organic cabbage.
Commercial agriculture uses pesticides and herbicides to dust their crops and protect them from insect destruction. Unfortunately, this practice isn’t good for your health. The chemicals end up running off of the leaves after spraying, where they absorb into the groundwater.
The cabbage feeds off of the contaminated water, and as a result, these toxins end up in the cabbage we eat. Organic farmers use no harmful pesticides and rely on biomass fertilizer to feed their crops.
Going organic may cost a few cents extra, but it’s well worth the money when you consider the health benefits of eating organic foods in your diet. Buy your cabbage from an organic greengrocer, or visit a farmer’s market for fresh produce.