On Weekends, We’re Eastern European…
October 22nd, 2006 | by Loretta |Yes, so before Mom’s potluck high was over, she made a Polish dish she had at the potluck mentioned in the previous entry.
I couldn’t hide my excitement, so I ran to tell Eugene about it. And then Viktor.
Lo and behold, they knew exactly what I was talking about and were just as excited as I were. (Or so it seemed…it’s hard to tell in online conversations, you know?)
As it turns out, golubtsy is a dish eaten in Poland, Russia and probably in Eastern Europe in general. It’s a concoction of ground pork mixed with rice, then cooked after wrapping in steamed cabbage leaves.
Mom was super hesitant about pulling out the food processor to chop up the pork. Because it’s a bulky, onerous antique, yellowed with age. She hated the idea of having to bring out the machine of burden so much that she talked about chopping it by knife and cutting board.
So I did it for her.
And.
I put it back too.
Despite its bulky size and err-err-err noises when chopping, I am quite fond of the food processor. I remember how often my mom used to use it (compared to presently) and how short I was when I’d stand on a small step stool to watch her chop meats with it. It’s one of those items that brings up old memories of spending a lot of time with Mom at the counter. (Seriously, this is the only reason why I actually know how to cook– watching her cook every night until I was maybe 12-13?)
We steamed these and Mom added tomato sauce, courtesy of jarred wonders that are loaded with sodium.
- Lean, ground pork
- Cooked rice
- Seasonings (Italian seasonings work well)
- Tomato sauce
- Cabbage leaves
To serve, these were sliced neatly, as if they were protein-packed sushi rolls of cooked meat, rather than raw fish. This would make a good entree, though that would be a lot of protein in one serving. We ate it as a side dish along with all the othe Chinese dishes we had going on at the dinner table.
Someday, I’ll make Hamantashen. However it’s spelled.
And if you’re thinking, Loretta– that’s not how golubtsy is supposed to be made. Well, okay. And it’s okay, really. I’m not really Eastern European…I just play one on weekends.