Help I'm making stuffed cabbage and after rolling all the cabbages I realized I forgot to include onion in the meat mixture

Julie
  • Posted by: Julie
  • February 24, 2016
  • 4161 views
  • 13 Comments

13 Comments

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Patricia February 24, 2016
Caramelize some onions and drop them on top of the cabbage rolls when you serve them. They'll be heavenly!
 
Smaug February 24, 2016
Possibly you'll like it better. My mother, a first rate cook, wouldn't be in the same room with an onion.
 
702551 February 24, 2016
Maybe, maybe not, it depends whether or not she likes onions. I happen to love them myself especially with beef.

After all, if she really loathed onions she probably would have sought out a recipe that didn't include them or would have deliberately omitted them.
 
Smaug February 24, 2016
Well, I'm an onion person myself- I sometimes find myself chopping an onion before I'm sure what I'm making. However, the way to find out how necessary something is to you is usually to try without- especially something that tends to be added more as a habit than a reasoned decision.
 
702551 February 24, 2016
Yes, that's one way to look at it.

Another way to look at it is to remember if you've had a similar dish before, whether it had the ingredient in question and whether or not it would work for your palate.

I've had other similar stuffed items: like I said, I like the combination of beef and onions. It's not something that's a complete mystery. If this was some obscure ingredient combination, a little prudence might be called for but ground beef and onions?!?

I probably don't even remember the first time I had that combo, it was before I was old enough to remember, probably 2-3 years old.
 
Smaug February 25, 2016
Some might see that as a reason to revisit the combination, but whatever. Possibly because I'm an inveterate improviser, I tend to strongly believe in mistakes as learning opportunities.
 
702551 February 25, 2016
I don't usually cook from a recipe, so I rely on wisdom and solid judgment to create dishes that I will find enjoyable to eat.

I'm old and I've had a lot of meat both with and without onion over my life.

I think that seeing mistakes as learning opportunities is a good approach, but sometimes mistakes are simply that and nothing more can be learned apart from "don't be so careless next time."

And unfortunately, human beings don't always learn from mistake. History is full of those examples, for sure.
 
Smaug February 25, 2016
Sure, I've been cooking seriously for over forty years and I know what I like. I don't see that as any reason why this particular person couldn't prefer these cabbage rolls without onion. Not awfully likely, maybe, but quite possible possible.
 
702551 February 25, 2016
Yes, it's good to have enough self-awareness to know what you like but also to have an open mind about new experiences.

As I get older, I find myself revert to comfortable things that I know I like rather than going crazy over new things. That seems to be a very typical path for many folks as they age.

Also, I noticed that I have developed a greater appreciation of balance and harmony. So many dishes and recipes these days lack those qualities.

Anyhow, it's her food that she's putting on her table, her taste buds she needs to satisfy not ours. It's her call.
 
Julie February 24, 2016
Thanks everyone!!!
 
702551 February 24, 2016
They'll simply have a less complex flavor profile, but still should be tasty. Just chalk it up as a minor error, not a major kitchen disaster.

Incorporating onion in the sauce should be an adequate workaround.
 
Liz D. February 24, 2016
You could put a thin slice of onion below and on top of each roll to get some onion flavor in the sauce...
 
HalfPint February 24, 2016
I think the rolls will be fine without the onion. Unless you have your heart set on onions and want to unroll all to add them in.
 
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