Originally Posted by coastienest

I grew up with the liquid mixture being that of vinegar, sugar and water. Have you ever tried them like that? Everyone I know always used the tomato mixture until they tried them this way. It's the way my baba used to make them.

Originally Posted by Carol's Quilts

This is the way our family makes them, too. I thought we were the only ones who made them with sauerkraut! When I was a kid, mom used a whole head of sour cabbage which you can't get any more. Maybe it's still available in Europe. We use a beef and pork combination, onions, garlic, rice, etc. Anyway, we layer the rolls with sauerkraut and the extra cabbage just like you described. We also add kielbasa pieces between each layer, and we don't use tomatoes. After the pot is filled with the cabbage rolls, kraut and kielbasa, we pour in a little water or beef broth and just let the whole thing cook as you described. When it's done, we thicken whatever juice is in the bottom of the pot with a little fat/flour roux (bacon drippings make it delicious) and mix it with the kraut. It's so good - my mouth is watering!

Originally Posted by Feather3

I just made 106 of them! I make a years worth at a time. I buy large heads of cabbage. Make sure they are not split. I make up my filling before I start the cabbage. Remove outter leaves. Using a heavy blade knife, I cut around the core & remove it. I then place it in a large pot of boiling water, core end up. The head needs to be completely under the water. It takes a few to several minutes for the leaves to get soft enough to remove. I use tongs to pull the leaves off as they soften. I lay them on a large platter to cool a few minutes. As the leaves soften & start to turn translucent I keep pulling them off. If I need to cut more core out I remove the head from the water(I use a 2 prong meat fork in the core), let the water drain out, set it on cutting board, cut it & put it back in. I use as many leaves as I can, even down to the tiny ones. I make baby sized rolls :). Hate waste. While I wait for leaves to soften in the water I stuff the ones I already took off. Place leaf with stem end towards you. Place your filling in. Fold the sides in (right, then left), then fold the leaf end, then the stem end. Your filling should not squish out. They don't need toothpicks to hold them shut if you fold this way. After I have them all made I divide them up into portions for meals, place them in a plastic bag & freeze them. After 24 hours in the freezer I then put the packages in a paper bag. Paper bags help keep things from getting freezer burn. They'll keep for a full year this way. When you remove them from the freezer let them set at room temp for abut 30 minutes. They'll break apart easy, with no damage. Been doing them this way for over 40 years now.