Mulgikapsad

Mulgikapsad

Category: Culinary recipes

Kitchen: estonian

Ingredients
sauerkraut	5 Kg
salted bacon (or pork)	1.2kg (3-3.5kg)
pearl barley (barley)	0.75 kg
sugar	2 tbsp. l.
salt	1 tbsp. l.
black peppercorns	1 tsp
Bay leaf	3 pcs.
hot boiled water	of necessity

Cooking method

Rinse the cabbage under running water, put it on a sieve and squeeze well. Rinse the pearl barley and cover with cold water several hours before cooking.

Cut the meat into small pieces and fry in a well-heated pan.

When frying, add a little salt and black pepper (or caraway seeds).

At the same time, pour hot boiled water about 1/4 of the way into a large saucepan. Add salt and sugar, stir. In the photo there is a baking dish, since I cooked the dish in the oven, and not on the stove, since both options are possible and I chose the option that is convenient for myself.

Further, all the ingredients must be laid out in layers. In the first layer, in a pan filled with water, put the cabbage, about 1/3 of the total. Add bay leaves and black peppercorns.

A layer of fried meat, about 1/2 part.

On top is a small layer of cabbage, then a layer of meat and another layer of cabbage. Next, a layer of prepared cereals, which must be leveled. When preparing the dish, I reduced the amount of ingredients. Accordingly, there were fewer layers: the first layer was most of the cabbage, then the seasoning, meat, the rest of the cabbage and cereals.

In the pan left after frying the meat, pour about 1-1.5 tbsp. hot boiled water and a spatula, remove the remnants of meat juices, mixing them with water. Switch off the hotplate. Gently add the water from the skillet to the pan with the rest of the ingredients. Next, add hot boiled water from the kettle through a slotted spoon (keep it at a low height from the top layer of ingredients), carefully, over the entire surface of the cereal. The skimmer will not allow the layers to break down when water is added. The amount of water added should be just below the cereal level so that the grains are slightly on the surface.

Cover the pan with a lid and place on the stove, cook the dish at minimum heat for 2-3 hours. If you are preparing a dish in the oven, then cover the form with a lid and place it in the oven preheated to 180 C.

After a while, check the dish and use a spatula to stir the upper layers, since there should still be enough water, the lower cabbage layer does not need to be disturbed. Depending on the cooking method you have chosen and the amount of ingredients, this time is at your discretion, it is important not to allow the water to boil off prematurely, which will lead to the food burning. When cooking in the oven, I mixed the ingredients after about an hour and a half.

Then smooth the surface a little, cover with a lid and continue cooking.

Keep an eye on the dish, add hot water if necessary and be sure to stir all the layers already, to the very bottom of the pan. If you see black peppercorns, remove them closer to the end of cooking. When cooking in the oven, an hour later I mixed all the ingredients again and added about 0.5 tbsp. water. Bring the dish to readiness and serve as a separate dish or with boiled potatoes.

Note

Arvo Kassin recipe. Thanks to the author!
If you wish, you can prepare the dish without meat, according to the author, this is how mulgikapsad is prepared in Viljandi County.
When cooking, I slightly changed the amount and proportions of the ingredients to my taste, since I used meat, not salted bacon, and for a taste sample, 5 kg of cabbage would be too much.

sauerkraut - 1.5 kg
meat - 750 g
pearl barley - 150 g
sugar - 1 tsp.
salt - 1 tsp.
black peppercorns - 1/4 tsp.
bay leaf - 1 pc.

ABOUT! Estonian cuisine! Translated as cabbage in Mulg, if they say so. Mulgi are a nationality living in Estonia.

[Rita]

Rita, thanks for stopping by! Maybe you can tell, if this dish is cooked without meat, then, probably, oil is still added? Unfortunately, I could not find detailed information.

[Corsica]

Corsica, read the Estonian recipe. It says "take fatty pork" and there is no oil in the ingredients. That is, this is not salty bacon, but simply fatty pork.

Koostisained:
Tangu - 1 klaas groats 1 glass
Rasvane sealiha - 600-700 g fatty pork
Hapukapsas - 1 kg sauerkraut
Sool ja pipar salt and pepper
Suhkur sugar
Loorberilehed - 2 tk bay leaf
Valmistamine:
Lõika sealiha väikesteks tükkideks, maitsesta soola ja pipraga. Pane kapsad, sealihatükid ja pestud tangud hautamisnõusse. Lisa nii palju vett, et toiduained oleks kaetud.
Hauta madalal kuumusel umbes 2-2.5 tundi, kuni kapsad, sealiha ja tangud peavad saama pehmeks.
Jälgi, et potis kogu aeg oleks vähemalt 2-3 cm jagu vett.
Maitsesta valmis mulgikapsas soola, pipra ja suhkruga, sega läbi.
Cut the pork into small pieces, season with salt and pepper. Place cabbage, pork and rinsed cereals in a stewing dish. Add enough water to cover the food.
Simmer on low heat for 2-2.5 hours until the cabbage, pork and cereals are tender.
Make sure there is always 2-2.5 cm of water in the pot.

Your recipe is possibly a holiday option. But they cook more often according to what I brought. The husband loves this beer dish.

[Rita]

Rita, and groats means any groats ??? Or do Estonians immediately understand WHAT kind of cereal is meant in this dish?

[Nagira]

Nagira, I mean barley.

[Ilona]

Ilona, thanks for the recipe reminder! I love this dish, it reminds me of our summer practices, when we went to the forest and cooked on our own at the stake. Tasty and satisfying, especially when you run through the forest.

[Rita]

It says "take fatty pork" and there is no oil in the ingredients.

Rita, I asked about butter in the context of the question about cooking a dish without meat, typical for Viljandi County, as I did not find detailed information and it is difficult for me to imagine this dish without adding fat.

That is, this is not salty bacon, but simply fatty pork.

Here are the ingredients listed in the Estonian source:
"Hapukapsast-5 kg,
soolapeekonit-1,2 kg,
odrakruupi-0,75 kg,
suhkrut- 2 sl,
soola-1 sl,
musta terapipart-1 tl,
loorberilehte -3 tk.
Hautada 2-3 tundi "(c).
As far as I understand, there is no mistake and this is definitely salty bacon.

But they cook more often according to what I brought.

Thank you! Made additions to the recipe for cooking by choice.

I love this dish, it reminds me of our summer practices, when we went to the forest and cooked on our own at the stake.

Natalia, thanks for your interest in the recipe and for the delicious memories! I can imagine how good and aromatic this dish is prepared in nature.