It is customary to serve stuffed vegetables for Simchat Torah, the day of celebration of the Torah, marked at the end of Sukkot. There’s a simple, straight-forward reason behind this tradition. The stuffed vegetables are just like a torah scroll, wrapping the real essence inside. In the Ashkenazi cuisine, stuffed cabbage is the most popular dish, but there’s always room for innovation, like in this very Israeli stuffed Swiss chard leaves.
Swiss chard is also one of the symbolic foods of the Rosh Hashanah seder, and this recipe can be incorporated into your holiday table. But feel free to make it throughout the chard season, as it is simple yet impressive, and very tasty.
Green Swiss chard is easier to stuff than the red ones, since the stem is flatter.
There are two options for stuffing in the recipe below, one with beef, the other vegan. Each stuffing is enough for the whole recipe.
Stuffed Swiss chard
Course: MainCuisine: Israeli, ArabDifficulty: Difficult4
servings30
minutes40
minutesStuffed Swiss chard is not only delicious addition to any repertoire, it also happens to have symbolic meaning both for Rosh Hashanah and Simchat Torah (see above.) That makes any dish tastier!
INGREDIENTS
2 bunches white Swiss chard, preferably with small, whole leaves, rinsed well (about 20 leaves)
- For the beef stuffing
2 thick slices day old Italian bread (ciabatta)
2 lb. ground beef
¼ cup mint, finely chopped
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- For the vegan rice stuffing (optional)
1½ cups Jasmine rice, soaked in water for 1 hour and drained
½ lb. vegan ground beef substitute
¼ cup mint, finely chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1½ teaspoon kosher salt
- For the sauce
¼ cup olive oil
Swiss chard stems, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon sugar
1¼ cups chicken (or vegetable) broth
⅓ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
DIRECTIONS
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. One by one, hold each bunch of chard upside down by the stems and plunge the leaves into the water for 5 seconds. Transfer to a colander. When cool enough to handle, cut off the stems below the leaves and coarsely chop to yield 1 cup; reserve them for the sauce. (If the stem that’s still attached to the leaf is very thick, use a knife to flatten it).
- For the beef stuffing place bread in a small bowl and cover with cold water. Let stand for one minute, then squeeze all the water out and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the beef, mint, salt and pepper to the bowl; use your clean hands to mix well and form the stuffing.
- If you’re making the vegan stuffing, put all ingredients in a mixing bowl, mix well and set aside.
- For the sauce: Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped chard stems, onion and garlic; cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the stems have softened. Add the sugar and cook for 1 minute, stirring to dissolve, then add the broth, lemon juice and salt. Bring to boil and remove from heat.
- Use a little oil to grease the bottom of a medium Dutch oven or 10-inch skillet; it should be large enough to hold the stuffed leaves in a single layer.
- To assemble the rolls, work with 1 leaf at a time. Lay it flat on a cutting board with the veined side up and tapered ends pointing away from you. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of the stuffing (depending on the size of the leaf) at the leaf end that’s closest to you. Roll over once, then fold in the sides and roll to complete the package (without making the roll too tight). Repeat to use all of the leaves; you might have a little stuffing left over, which could be placed in the pot (if you’re making the beef stuffing, make small meatballs with the leftovers) or reserved for another use.
- Arrange the rolls in the Dutch oven or skillet. Pour the sauce evenly over the top. Place over medium-high heat and bring just to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes. Serve warm.
