Asian Inspired Stuffed Napa Cabbage Rolls

My family loves Asian food, and one of our favorites is Chinese-inspired egg rolls. Pork, chicken, or shrimp, yes please! More times than I can count, I’d come home and my mom and I would spend a whole night rolling egg rolls. Looking back, we’d end up eating almost as many as we’d roll, but hey, memories right? Hehe!

One day we ran out of wrappers, and while trying to figure out something to do with the leftover cabbage and filling, it hit me! Let’s make cabbage rolls, inspired by Eastern European traditions, but with an Asian twist! Best idea ever! The Napa cabbage makes the dish feel lighter, and it’s perfect for those that aren’t the biggest fans of the sulfur-ish flavor of standard green cabbage.

BTW, this recipe freezes very well, and you can also reheat it in an air fryer if you store it in smaller batches.

Asian Inspired Stuffed Napa Cabbage Rolls

Serves: 2

Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

Ingredients

For the cabbage:

1. 1 medium Napa cabbage (Go slightly larger than you think to make sure to have enough leaves to wrap your filling.)

2. Water and 2 tablespoons salt, for boiling

For the sauce:

1. 1/2 teaspoon flavorless cooking oil

2. 1/4 tablespoon grated ginger

3. 1/4 tablespoon grated garlic

4. 1 cup diced canned tomatoes with juice

5. 1/2 - 3/4 teaspoon salt, to your personal taste

For the filling:

1. 1/2 lb ground pork, beef, chicken and/or turkey ("not meat" meat works too, for a vegan option.)

2. 1 1/4 tablespoon grated ginger (this makes a total of 1 1/2 tablespoons for the whole recipe.)

3. 1 1/4 tablespoon grated garlic (this makes a total of 1 1/2 tablespoons for the whole recipe.)

4. 1/2 cup diced onion (white, red and/or yellow would be fine.)

5. 1/4 cup diced carrot

6. 1 tablespoon toasted rice powder (Available at an Asian market, or, to make yourself, toast uncooked rice in dry pan until golden brown, then grind to a powder in a mortar and pestle.)

7. 1 tablespoon toasted bread crumbs

8. 1 tablespoon fish sauce (Swap with sake or Shaoxing wine if you wish to make vegan.)

9. 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (Low sodium light soy sauce works too.)

10. 1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice powder (or 13 spice powder.)

11. 1 large egg, beaten well (reserve until ready to assemble the cabbage rolls.)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 F (190.5 C.)

To prepare the cabbage:

1. Carefully cut off about a 1/4 inch off the bottom of the cabbage, and separate the leaves.

2. Place the cabbage leaves into the water and blanch until the stem is bendable, but still firm and not mushy. (About 5-7 minutes should do it, depending on heat.)

3. Once pliable, place cabbage leaves on a clean dry kitchen towel or sheet pan with a rack, to remove the excess water.
   

To prepare the sauce:

1. Heat a medium sauce pan to medium high.

2. Add 1/2 teaspoon of cooking oil, and then add 1/4 tablespoon of the grated ginger, along with 1/4 tablespoon of the grated garlic.

3. Set aside the remainder of the ginger and garlic for the filling.

4. Sauté until the garlic begins to brown slightly.

5. Add the 5 spice powder and stir for 30 seconds.

6. Add the diced tomatoes with the desired amount of salt, and bring to a light simmer.

7. Turn off the heat, and allow the sauce to come to room temperature.

To prepare the filling:

1. Add all the filling ingredients to a large bowl, except the beaten egg. Note: please do not add the egg until you are ready to assemble the rolls, and until the sauce has cooled to room temperature. (The heat from the sauce could make your egg start to scramble and increases the chance for bacteria growth.)

2. Mix the filling ingredients completely using your impeccably clean hands.

To assemble and bake the cabbage rolls:

1. In a small/medium baking dish, add 2 tablespoons of the cooled sauce and spread evenly over the bottom of the dish.

2. On a flat surface, place one of the cabbage leaves in front of you with the stem end pointing towards you. Place about 1/4 cup, or 2 oz, of the filling into your palm and roll into a ball. Place the ball of filling onto the base of the cabbage stem closest to you. Place your thumb under the stem and roll towards the top of the leaf. Place each cabbage roll into your baking dish.

3. Once your baking dish is filled, press down gently on the top of each roll to give them a consistent thickness.

4. Cover with the remaining sauce, and bake on 375 F (190.5 C) until the internal temperature of the largest rolls reach 160 F (71 C) for chicken/turkey based fillings or 145 F (62.8 C) for pork/beef based fillings.

5. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15-20 minutes to make serving slightly easier. (Or completely cool to room temperature if you plan to package them for freezing.)

Notes

While this dish can freeze very well either cooked or uncooked, I typically advise that it be frozen after it has been cooked to reduce the chance of bacteria growth during the defrost process.

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#glutenfree #pork #freezerfriendly #napaCabbage #stuffedcabbage

Dehydrated Lemon – A Secret Flavor Weapon

Growing up, we didn’t eat a lot of fresh lemons in our day-to-day lives. I don’t mean that we never had lemons. We had loads of lemon-flavored things like candy, cakes, cookies and lemonade, but whole fresh lemons were something we’d have at restaurants or special events. Our mom wouldn’t buy them because she had a crowd to feed, and spending $3.00 for a garnish just wasn’t in the budget. This is slightly funny when you realize Florida (my home state) produces about 70% of the citrus sold in the United States!

So it should come as no surprise that I didn’t start using fresh lemons until later in my adult life, but boy, oh boy, have I made up for lost time! From fresh sliced lemon over fish, to dried in a sautée with pork and olives, to giving a tangy pop to a sauce, to adding flavor to a sweet and tart dessert, it has easily become one of the most used ingredients in my kitchen. This recipe is a great way to extend the life of your lemons (and other citrus!) and give you a consistent product through the off-season. Throw them into a tomato sauce with some olives, add to your poaching liquid for fish or chicken, or toss a slice into a cup of tea! You can also use a clean coffee grinder or a mortar and pestle to grind the lemon slices for adding to any kind of marinade that needs a bright dash of summer! You can even grind them into a fine power and make your own lemon pepper!

Dehydrated Lemon

Serves: 50

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cooking Time: 15 Hours

Ingredients

1. 4 medium whole lemons

2. 1 food dehydrator

Instructions

1. Wash your lemons and dry with a clean kitchen towel.

2. Using a sharp knife, slice the lemons into 1/8 inch (3.18 mm) circles starting at the stem end, and working down to the flower end. (You can go flower end to stem as well if you prefer.)

3. Place the lemon slices side by side in one layer on your dehydrator trays. You can line your trays with BPA-free plastic wrap if you're concerned about sticking.

4. Dehydrate at 122 F (50 C) for 15 hours, or until the lemon slices are completely dry. If you do not remove as much water as possible, you run the risk of the product growing mold and ruining your whole batch. You can store the lemon slices in a glass or plastic container with a tight fitting lid for up to 6-8 months. If you place them in a vacuum sealed container, they can be kept 12 months or longer.

5. If you don't have a dehydrator, or you'd like to do this the old fashioned way, set a tray of lemon slices out on your window ledge or your back patio, and let the sun do its job for a few days! This should be done in a dry climate, in the fall or winter. Spring might be too wet, and summer brings too many bugs!

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#citrus #DehydratedLemon #dehydrator #lemon

Thai Inspired Chicken Sausage

Being from the south, sausage is a main stay in most homes. When I was growing up the majority of sausage was pork (or deer) based and contains a good bit of sage, fennel and often comes in both spicy and non-spicy. I don’t mean this was the only type of sausages sold in the south. It was just the most widely made, and used, in our circles. It wasn’t until I moved to Los Angeles, Ca in the late 1990s that I discovered the many wonderful types of sausages available from around the world. (I still have a fondness for Mexican chorizo tacos from the taco carts in LA!)

Over the years I dabbled in making various types of sausages, but for the most part I stayed mostly in pork based realm. Even the store bought sausages I ate were mainly pork based. When I started getting a bit older the store bought sausages I loved started giving me heartburn. So began my search into making my own sausages at home that would let me still enjoy sausage without the dreaded heartburn.

After many tests (and more failures than I care to admit) I discovered a recipe that is both easy to make and has the robust flavor we expect from a sausage. Complex flavor, moist and with a slight tang you get form properly aged sausage! I hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as I did creating it! 🙂

Thai Inspired Chicken Sausage Print

Serves: 20 Prep Time: 120 Minutes Cooking Time: 36 Hours 36 Hours

Rating: 5.0/5 ( 1 voted )

Ingredients

1. 11 Lbs Skin on chicken thighs

2. 10 Fresh, or Frozen, Kaffir Lime Leaves

3. 5 Fresh, or Frozen, 2 Inch Lemongrass Stalks

4. 1/8 Cup Fish Sauce

5. 10 Red Thai Bird Chilies, Ground into paste (Optional)

6. 3% Salt By Weight Of ALL Ingredients

7. 1 Packet Of Sausage Casing (Optional)

Instructions

1. Cut the chicken thighs into 3 equal size pieces and place in a freezer safe container. Allow to sit for 20-30 minutes, or until the chicken pieces are frozen, but still bendable. (Meat grinds easier when half frozen.)
   

2. Setup your meat grinder and place the parts that will touch your meat mixture into the freezer. Place a large, clean container under the exit point of your meat grinder that is at least large enough to hold your ingredients and have room for you to mix once the grinding is complete.

3. While your chicken is freezing, remove the stems from your Kaffir lime leaves and grind into a paste. You do not need to make it a fine paste, but make sure to get the pieces as small as you can because the leaves are fibrous.

4. Using a sharp knife, slice your lemongrass stalks into thin circles. Then grind them into a paste. Like with the lime leaves, you do not need to make a completely smooth paste, but make sure to get the pieces as small as you can because lemongrass  is fibrous.

5. If you are adding chilies to your mix you can de-seed them if you like, but I normally don't for this amount. (If you are making a large quantity you may want to consider de-seeding because they can add a slight bitter taste.)

6. Remove your chicken from the freezer and [place the container in a location that is easy for you to grab with one hand. When I grind whole pieces of meat I always use the largest grind plate that came with my attachment(s) and then change to a smaller plate on the 2nd grind if the recipe needs it. Turn on your meat grinder and start adding meat to your grinder's chute. Push the meat down the chute using the plunger that came with your meat grinder. DO NOT USE A PLASTIC OR WOODEN SPOON unless you are VERY experienced with meat grinding. It is very easy to insert them to far and you may end up with ground wood/plastic in your sausages.

7. Once you've completed the first grind remove the currently attached grind plate and replace it with one with smaller holes. You ideally want to grind sausages to a medium/fine texture, but without turning it into a puree like you'd expect from something like a hot dog.

8. Rotate your bowls, add the remaining ingredients (except for the fish sauce and salt) to the bowl with the meat and mix with your clean hand(s) until the mixture if ruffly mixed. Turn on your meat grinder again and re-grind your meat mixture and spices.

9. Add the salt and fish sauce to the meat mixture and thoroughly mix by hand.

10. Place the meat mixture in a food safe zipper top bag and a place in the refrigerator for 1-3 days to allow the flavors to fully develop. (Once per day takeout the meat mixture and massage the meat mixture through the zipper top bag.)

11. From this point on you can either make sausage patties or sausage links. Both are wonderfully yummy, but it really depends on how you prefer to enjoy your sausage. If you decide to go with patties I would start with about 1 ounce of meat mixture. If you are planning to go with a link sausages I would suggest using natural casings because they are safe if eaten. (I normally use a hog casing.) It would be perfectly fine to use one of the many other casings options if you prefer. (I will cover the stuffing process in the future when I re-shoot this recipe.)

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Thai Inspired Chicken Sausage