This slightly “off the beaten track” recipe is absolutely wonderful but, since it contains sauerkraut, which could have quite a penetrating cooking smell, I do appreciate this dish might not be to everybody's liking.

It's definitely not food for dainty appetites, nor for those who dislike sauerkraut. It is one of those that you either love or hate...

If, on the other hand, sauerkraut is your thing, I need little persuasion to tell you how delicious and unique this comforting casserole is.It is a great make-ahead dish, very rustic, perfect if you want to invite your family and friends and create a very relaxed and informal atmosphere. Put the casserole in the middle of the table with a big serving spoon and let everyone help themselves. The combination of pork meat with smoked sausage, rice and sauerkraut, spiced up with Hungarian sweet paprika, makes this layered oven baked casserole a complete meal in one plate. It is very cosy, rich, filling and warming food for colder months.

Until quite recently, I honestly thought that this dish was a bit of an invention by my maternal grandmother Ivanka, known as Iva, using leftovers.

I had almost forgotten about this dish, as nobody in the family has made it since she passed away many years ago.

It reappeared in my gastronomic memory the moment I decided to collect and make a list of all the dishes I grew up with, some very popular and some less. I had no name for it. There was no recipe in the family for it, but somehow I remembered very well the smell and aroma it had. I remembered very well the ingredients. I also had vivid memories of how the end result should look and taste.

I sat down with my mum and tried to recreate the recipe with her. Luckily, she remembered it very well, and on this occasion, I made sure it got written down.

Later research revealed that the dish is of Hungarian origin, called rakott káposzta.

The fact that my grandmother cooked this dish made complete sense as Iva was born and raised in inland Slovenia, not too far away from the Hungarian border, where many recipes were of Hungarian origin and influenced the local cuisine.

Soon after the Second World War, she moved, like many others, in search of opportunities and a better life along the Slovenian coast, and brought along with her many recipes that were not so typical for the region.

I am sharing here my grandmother's recipe. She made it with the meat and the rice in separate layer. I, however, mixed the two, only for practical reasons.

If, by any chance, you end up with some leftovers, I can reassure you, this casserole improves with reheating.

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

200ml (roughly) sour cream

For the Sauerkraut Layer

1 jar of sauerkraut (drained weight roughly 640g)
2 Tbsp oil, butter or lard
1 onion (about 100g), peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and pressed
¼ Tsp, or to taste, caraway seeds, whole or crushed in pestle and mortar, optional
1 Tsp, or to taste, Hungarian sweet paprika (unsmoked)
sea salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
For the meat layer
200g long grain rice
500g minced pork
1 Tbsp oil, butter or lard
1 onion, about 100g, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic peeled and pressed
100g smoked or unsmoked bacon or lardons or pancetta, diced (you can use Hungarian smoked sausage or other types of smoked sausage like chorizo, cut into discs and then into smaller pieces)
1 Tbsp, or to taste, Hungarian sweet paprika (unsmoked)
1 Tbsp concentrated tomato paste
sea salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste

Method

Prepare the sauerkraut

Remove the sauerkraut from the jar and transfer it to a colander to drain.

Quickly rinse once under running cold water, drain well and set aside until needed.

Put the lard (butter or oil) in a saucepan, large enough to accommodate the sauerkraut, and heat it up a bit.

Add finely chopped onions, a pinch of sea salt, and cook on a gentle heat until soft, then add pressed garlic and cook for another a minute or so (try not to burn the garlic).

Stir in sweet paprika, then add drained sauerkraut.

Season with sea salt and ground black pepper to taste and add caraway seeds, if using.

Add water, just enough to cover the sauerkraut, and bring to boil.

Lower the heat and gently cook the sauerkraut with the lid partially covering the saucepan for about 45 minutes or until all the water has completely evaporated and the sauerkraut appears translucent and glossy.

When cooked, remove from heat and set aside until needed. Remove the lid for the sauerkraut to cool.

Prepare the rice and meat

Cook rice as instructed on the package.

Drain and set aside until needed.

Put the lard (butter or oil) in a saucepan. Heat it up a bit, then add finely chopped onions, a pinch of sea salt, and pieces of bacon, sausage or lardons.

Fry the onions until they become soft, then add pressed garlic and cook for another minute or so, making sure to avoid burning the garlic.

Add minced pork and cook on medium heat until lightly brown in colour.

Add sweet paprika and stir in concentrated tomato paste. Mix well.

Season with sea salt and ground black pepper and add enough water just to cover the meat.

Stir well and cook the meat for about 20 minutes or until all the evaporates and the pork is nice and tender.

When the meat mixture is cooked, remove from heat.

Add cooked and drained rice to meat mixture and stir well.