Step into Ana’s Kitchen

A Heritage of Taste, Shared from My Family to Yours

Come on in and make yourself at home. This little page is where I keep the recipes I love, the ones I’ve fussed over in my own kitchen until they felt just right.

Everything here is cooked, tasted, and adjusted with a lot of care — and I try to explain things the way I would if you were standing next to me at the stove. This is just the first of many dishes I’ll be adding as I keep cooking and learning.

To start things off, I’m sharing Sarmale — a Romanian classic that means a lot to me, especially around Christmas. They’re slow-cooked, cosy, and full of those deep, comforting flavours that make a house feel like home. Honestly, it just felt like the perfect recipe to begin with.

What Are Sarmale?

Sarmale are one of those dishes every Romanian grows up knowing — the kind of food you can smell from down the hall before you even open the door. They’re simple at heart: soft, tangy fermented cabbage leaves wrapped snugly around a mixture of minced meat, a bit of rice, and some herbs and spices. Once they’re all rolled up, you tuck them into a pot with smoked meat, tomatoes, and whatever good aromatics you have on hand, then let them cook low and slow until everything melts together and becomes unbelievably tender.

But really, Sarmale are more than just something you put on the table. They’re a piece of family history. Every household makes them a little differently — a pinch more spice here, a different meat there — but the soul of the dish stays the same, passed down from one generation to the next.

Sarmale recipe:

Ingredients:

For the rolls

  • 500 g pork mince (preferably with a bit of fat)
  • 200g smoked pancetta, chopped
  • 2 onions, small chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves sliced
  • 50 g arborio rice
  • 1 tbsp sunflower oil or vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1  tsp salt
  • 1 ½ Black pepper

For assembling

  • 1 large sour (pickled) cabbage, leaves separated
  • 200 g chopped sour cabbage (from the trimmings)
  • 150–200 g smoked bacon or small pieces of smoked pork (optional but traditional)
  • 4 juniper berries 

For cooking

  • 300 ml tomato passata or thin tomato purée
  • 5 bay leaves
  • Thyme, leave picked
  • 1 large onion
  • 300ml beef stock (enough to cover the rolls)

To serve

  • Sour cream
  • Mămăligă (Romanian polenta)
  • Fresh dill or parsley

Method

Prepare the cabbage

  • Separate the cabbage leaves and rinse them briefly to remove excess brine.
  • If a leaf is thick in the centre, trim the rib so it rolls easily.
  • Reserve the smaller, torn, or inner leaves for layering.

Prepare the aromatic filling

  • Heat the oil in a pan over low heat and soften the chopped onion until translucent.
  • Add the garlic, rice and pancetta and cook for 7-8 minutes until looks golden and set aside.
  • Mix together with the remaining ingredients.

Shape the rolls

  • Lay a cabbage leaf flat and cut the hard bit so it can be rolled easier, place a small spoonful of filling at one end, roll tightly, and tuck the sides in neatly.
  • Continue until all the mixture is used — the rolls should be small and compact.

Layer the pot

  • Line the bottom of a heavy pot with chopped sour cabbage and some slices of onion.
  • Arrange a layer of rolls snugly, seam-side down.
  • Scatter a few pieces of smoked bacon or smoked pork(optional).
  • Add another layer of chopped cabbage and onion, then continue layering rolls, chopped cabbage and onion sliced until everything is used.
  • When finished, cover with a layer of chopped cabbage, any remaining onion slice and the crushed juniper berries.
  • Add the liquid
  • Combine the tomato passata with enough beef stock to make a thin sauce.
  • Pour this gently over the pot until the rolls are just covered.
  • Tuck in the bay leaves.

Slow cooking

  • Bring to a light simmer on the hob, then reduce the heat to very low.
  • Cook for about 2½–3 hours, topping up with water if needed.
  • Alternatively, once simmering, transfer the pot to an oven at 150 °C (fan 130 °C) and bake gently.
  • The rolls are ready when the cabbage is silky, and the flavours have fully mellowed together.

To serve

  • Serve with mămăligă (polenta) and a spoonful of sour cream, and sprinkle over fresh herbs.

"Ana's Kitchen brings the warmth and authenticity of Romanian home cooking to your table. A truly unforgettable culinary experience!"