This easy recipe for Sauerkraut and Rice originated in Bulgaria. The dish is created with an interesting twist based on another famous traditional recipe in the region, the sarma. While the sarma is more complicated as the rice is cooked wrapped inside sauerkraut leaves, my One-Pot Sauerkraut and Rice is much easy to prepare. It has beautiful flavours from the sauerkraut and the same spices as the sarma dish. This recipe makes an excellent vegan-friendly and gluten-free meal.

HISTORY OF SAUERKRAUT & RICE.

Fermented cabbage is believed to have originated in China as food for the workers building the Great Wall of China. There are theories that the Greeks and the Romas also fermented cabbage, however, they used it for making wine rather than for cooking. Cooking with fermented cabbage in Europe was introduced in the 16th century and became deeply rooted in some of the Central and Eastern European cuisines. It is very popular in the Balkans.

The word sauerkraut comes from the German language and translates as sour cabbage.

In the Balkan, locals have been making homemade sauerkraut for centuries. They use it in many traditional dishes and similar to kimchi, in a winter salad.

All Balkan countries have their local names for fermented cabbage:

In Bulgaria, sauerkraut is pronounced kiselo zele and in Greece – ksinolahano. In Romania, the name for sauerkraut is varză murată. They all translate as sour cabbage.

Rice is another staple ingredient in the Balkans. Developed as a crop in the region of the Yangtze River valley in nowadays China around 10,000, rice is believed to have been introduced in the Balkans during the time of Alexander the Great around 320 BC. To Western Europe, rice was introduced much later, in the 8th century, by the Moors.

There are many varieties of rice. The most popular ones are everyday rice, arborio, jasmine, basmati, easy-cooking rice, etc.

Some rice varieties are based on the colour of the rice grain which comes from the pigment in the bran layer of the rice grain. There are brown, red, black and purple varieties of rice.

Brown and white rice are the same grain, only milled differently. The top bran layer of brown rice has been removed to produce white rice. And, although white rice has the benefit of cooking quicker, the presence of the extra bran layer in the brown rice makes it more nutritious.

HOW TO PREPARE THE BALKAN SAUERKRAUT & RICE?

📋 INGREDIENTS IN THE SAUERKRAUT & RICE DISH

This recipe can be prepared with fresh cabbage, but I prefer the version with the sauerkraut because it has more flavour. If you are up for it, you can even make sauerkraut at home with my instructions for Easy homemade sauerkraut.

I remember only one type of rice available in Bulgaria when I was a child. We called it everyday rice. It had a large grain and creamy colour. I was surprised to find it in the UK. The other day I bought a large 5kg bag from Sainsbury’s. It is sold in the Asian food section. The benefit of everyday rice is that it cooks much slower than other types of white rice and that is what we need when making rice dishes, like this one, in the oven.

If everyday rice is not available, use large-grain rice that does not cook quickly. Basmati, paella and arborio rice are not suitable for this recipe.

The Sauerkraut and Rice recipe has several regional versions. Some include carrots, tomatoes and peppers which bring their flavours to the dish. However, I prefer the basic version of the recipe. In my recipe, I only use onion, sauerkraut and rice and a few traditional Balkan spices, sweet paprika, black pepper and bay leaf.

📖 STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

Preparing this dish is very easy, you need only three ingredients. But make sure you have the spices because they make the dish!

Step 1: PREHEAT THE OVEN

Preheat the oven to 175°C/347°F.

STEP 2: GATHER ALL INGREDIENTS

Soak the rice in cold water for at least 15 minutes. Rub the grains between your fingers under running water to remove dirt and rinse the rice well. Wash the sauerkraut well to remove access salt, then slice it thinly. Peel and dice the onion.

Step 3: COOK THE DISH IN THE OVEN

Heat olive oil in your oven dish and add the chopped onion. Saute the onion for a couple of minutes in the oven to release flavour, then add the rice. Saute the rice for 5 minutes until it’s translucent and stir the rice once or twice.

Sprinkle the sweet paprika and drop the bay leaf in the dish and saute for 30-40 seconds. If you see the paprika changing colour, pour a small splash of sauerkraut juice into the dish to prevent it from burning. If the paprika burns, it has a bitter taste and will ruin the dish.

Add the sauerkraut to the oven dish and saute with the rest of the ingredients for 5 minutes. Then take the dish out of the oven and stir the rice with the sauerkraut. Add some of the sauerkraut juice.

Do not add salt to the dish at that step.

Return the dish to the oven and cook the sauerkraut and the rice for 15 minutes, until the dish has a beautiful caramelised colour.

When you take the cooked dish out of the oven, taste it to see if it needs extra seasoning.

Cooking the sauerkraut & rice in one pot is great because you will only have one dish to wash. However, if you find it easier, you can saute the ingredients in the same order in a pan on the hob and then transfer the par-cooked meal to an oven dish and bake it for the last 15 minutes.

🍲 SERVE THIS DELICIOUS SAUERKRAUT DISH

Sauerkraut and rice is a simple food with wonderful flavours. If you enjoy eating sauerkraut, you will love this recipe. You can serve the dish as a vegan or vegetarian main meal or as a side to roasted meats.

Garnish your plate with thinly sliced leek, cracked black pepper or/and fresh parsley or coriander. If you like spicy food, slice a chilli thinly and sprinkle it over the food.

Enjoy! 👨‍🍳👨‍🍳👨‍🍳