Sarma {Cabbage Roll} Soup
By: Nicole Johnson
Published: Saturday, June 3, 2017 - 1:05pm

Ingredients




3 tablespoons butter
2 large onion peeled and diced
3 stalks celery diced
3 large carrots peeled and diced
1 large red bell pepper cored and diced
3 pounds shredded cabbage *approx weight. I used 1 medium head. Shredded, it filled a 6 quart dutch oven to the top.
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
2 teaspoons chili flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon seasoning salt like Lawry's or Johnny's
15 ounce can diced tomatoes
28 ounce can tomato sauce
5-6 cups water
3 cups cooked rice

Preparation

1 Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or stock pot. Place the onion, carrots, celery, and bell peppers inside, and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. 2 Add in the cabbage, and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the cabbage has started to soften and become pliable. 3 In a separate pan, put the ground beef, ground pork, and the chili flakes, salt, pepper, oregano, and seasoning salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is cooked through. Drain off any excess grease, and place the meat into the dutch oven. 4 Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and water to the pot. This is going to completely fill a 6 quart pot. If you have a 7 or 8 quart, I'd recommend using it! If you need to add a little less water, feel free. 5 Reduce heat to low or medium low. Just enough to keep the soup at a simmer.

About

Sarma soup, or Cabbage Roll Soup, is a hearty, filling, and delicious meal that your whole family will enjoy. I like to make the rice on the side, so the leftovers hold up better! This can be made in a dutch oven or adapted for your slow cooker. Recipe Notes RICE Most versions that I've seen of this include rice right in the soup. I prefer to make the rice in my rice cooker, and keep it separate until you serve it. This prevents your leftovers from having soggy overcooked rice the next day. SALT The amount of salt you need will vary according to taste, and also what brand of tomato sauce you use. Some are much saltier than others! Taste the soup at this point, and add in some additional salt/seasoning salt as needed. HEAT This isn't spicy at all with the amount of red pepper flakes. I'd add in some additional if there weren't any sensitive palates eating.
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