Just tonight, I saw someone's question about Croatian version of sarma. Before I write down the recipe, a small explanation:
Balkan sarma is quite different than Turkish sarma. While Turkish sarma is usually made of grapevine leaves with meat stuffing, with addition of yogurt or sour milk/ sour cream, in Balkan it's called "sarmica" (little sarma) and real sarma is something else. It's made of
pickled cabbage leaves. There are two essential versions of Balkan sarma - one is milder and it's usually made in north of Croatia, north-east of Bosnia and northern Serbia. The second one is really spicy and caracheristic for southern parts, especially Serbia. The difference is in stuffing and the way of cooking.
For both version you need pickled cabbage leaves (my usual measure is around 50 leaves if they are big, or 80-100 if they are small). If you can't buy or make them, you can use fresh cabbage leaves, just slightly boiled in water with some salt and vinegar, so that you can roll them, but the result will never be the same. So, pickled leaves. If they are too thick and rigid, you can make them softer by using your kitchen mallet. If you prefer milder version, you should use larger leaves. For the spicy version, small leaves are preferrable; also, you can cut large leaves in two along the main vein. If the main vain is too thick, you can also make it thinner by using a knife.
The meat for stuffing (700g-1 kg): you can use minced beef, minced pork or minced mutton, but it's best if you combine two different kinds, depending on your taste. Except meat, you will need:
- rice (one teacup - up to 100 ml)
- powdered sweet paprika (couple of teaspoons)
- finely ground black pepper (according to taste)
- onion (one bulb for the mild version, and 3-4 of bulbs for the spicy version)
- several cloves of garlic (for the spicy version only)
- 200-300 g bacon for the mild version, 400 for the spicy version (except if you use mutton - it doesn't go well with bacon)
- 3-4 carrots
- oil (I think 2 dl will be enough, I never measure it)
- 1/2 kg smoked ribs or smoked meat
- salt
- 3-4 teaspoons of flour (for the mild version)
- 2 eggs
- 4 bay (laurel) leaves
- optional: some parsley leaves
Filling for the mild version: Cut the onion and carrots into very tiny cubes. Fry them just a minute or two in 1 dl of oil (the rest of oil you will need later). Mix all that with meat in a separate bowl (without further frying); add eggs and just a pinch or two of salt, and few pinches of black pepper. Add rice and knead the mass. This version is better with less beef and more mutton or pork.
Filling for the spicy version: Cut the onion, carrots and half of the bacon into tiny cubes, and fry them in the whole amount of oil until the onion is golden and the bacon is golden-brown. Add paprika, meat (for this version, the best combination is 40 percent of minced pork and 60 percent of beef) and fry it until greyish, so that all the meat separates; add several pinches of salt, several teaspoons of black pepper, finely cut parsley leaves and garlic, add rice, and fry all that for several more minutes. When it gets cold, add two eggs.
Rolling: place the cabbage leaf onto your left palm. Put some stuffing in the middle, using a small spoon (I use one that is bigger than teaspoon, but smaller than tablespoon.) Frst fold one brim along the longer side of the leaf. Then roll it starting from the shorter side. Craddle it in your cupped hand (it mustn't depart) and tuck the last free brim inside.
Pot: you will need a big and deep pot for sarma. Oil the bottom of the pot and cover it with several leaves (you can use torn leaves or remains of too large leaves.) Start putting sarmas in circles, from outside towards center. They MUST stand upright, and the tucked brim must be down, for otherwise the filling can escape. When you cover the bottom, you repeat the process in next "storey". If you have some space left in the middle, fill it with smoked ribs/meat. If not, you will cut meat/ribs and put it on the top, as well as sliced bacon. Stuck laurel leaves between sarmas. Add water so that it just covers all that, not more. If you have chosen the spicy version, you can use the pickle that the cabbage was in, together with water. As sarma is inclined to run off the pot (I am not kidding), you should use a heat-resistant plate or lid with the hole in the middle to press the contents of the pot. Only then you can cover the pot (but leave some space so that air can go in and out); turn on your range... and cook it. Depending on cabbage, it can last from 1.5 hour to 3 hours, but it's really not demanding, you only have to add some water from time to time.
Finish:
For the milder version, you will use another half of the oil to fry some flour and powdered paprika; when sarma is nearly cooked, add it together with some water and let it simmer for 10-15 more minutes. Serve it in a big bowl together with its sauce.
For the spicy version: when sarma is cooked, wait until it's almost cold. Take a wide pan - earthenware if possible. Arrange sarmas in it (upright again), together with smoked meat, but the sliced bacon must be on the top. Put it into the oven (not preheated if you use crockery) and let it bake until the water has almost evaporated, and sarma becomes brownish on tops. The bacon will be almost like fried. Serve it in the pan it was baked in.
A small note: there are only a few Balkan dishes that need as much attention as sarma. So don't loose your spirits, please. But I am sure you won't regret if you try any of these two recipes. Enjoy!