To make the cabbage rolls, we should boil the potatoes the day before and keep them in the fridge, so we can slice them thinly without problems; or we can boil them on the same day and then mash them to get a puree to spread on the cabbage leaves (I recommend this as it makes it much easier to close the rolls).

The cabbage leaves and the stockfish (the latter will undergo “passive” cooking to prevent it from falling apart) can be prepared on the same day, at the time of making the rolls..

Let’s prepare the cabbage. We take 8 large, intact, and beautiful cabbage leaves. We can use either the outer or slightly inner ones. I recommend the outer ones, the greener ones, as they are firmer and more compact and break less. Also, I always suggest boiling a few more cabbage leaves than the number of rolls we intend to prepare, just to have the option to replace any that break or get holes.

Put water in a large pot and bring it to a boil.

Meanwhile, wash and drain the cabbage leaves and prepare a large bowl with cold water.

When the water boils, add the cabbage leaves, all together, cover, and let boil for one, maximum two minutes (only if they are fleshy and firm; otherwise one minute will be more than enough).

Immediately drain them and plunge them into cold water for 5 minutes; let them drain in a colander.

Preparing the stockfish. As for the stockfish, I used the part called “belly”; the fillet, called “curuniello,” can also be used. In this regard, if you are interested, at this link, you will find the history of stockfish processing technique. Also, remember that stockfish, unlike cod, is completely unsalted, so adjust for salt; otherwise, you risk having a completely tasteless dish.

At the same time as the water for the cabbage leaves, bring to a boil in another pot a carrot, a quarter of an onion, and the celery stalk (all properly washed and cleaned of spoiled or inedible parts).

When the water comes to a boil, add a large handful of coarse salt, add the stockfish pieces, cover, let cook with the lid on for 60 seconds only and then turn off, without touching them for about 15-20 minutes at most. If the pieces of stockfish are very thin, about 10-12 minutes at the most will be enough for them to cook passively perfectly.

After the time has elapsed, drain the stockfish (first photo on the left) and remove skin and any bones, “peeling it” like in the second photo above.

Cut both the carrot and the celery stalk used in the stockfish cooking water into small cubes.

Take a baking pan suitable for containing the six rolls we will prepare and grease it with a little extra virgin olive oil, or line it with parchment paper..

Preparing the rolls. On a cutting board, place a leaf, with the green part facing us, spread it well and gently. If the leaf’s backbone is too thick and prevents rolling, cut it halfway as shown in the right photo.

1) Sprinkle the inside of the leaf with a pinch of fine salt and then place a first layer of very thin potatoes (or a teaspoon of potato puree.), preferably more towards the center of the leaf

2) Add some diced carrots and celery.

3) Place some “flakes” of stockfish.

4) Add some pitted black olives.

5) Finish with another pinch of fine salt.

6) Gently roll the cabbage leaf, starting from the wide and green part and ending at the backbone, bringing the two lateral ends of the leaf inward as we roll it up, finally placing it in the baking pan with the seam side down.

Continue until all the cabbage leaves are stuffed and placed in the pan.. You will most likely have leftover ingredients that you can use to prepare the seasoning for a first course.

Preheat the oven to 400°F and place the baking pan with the rolls at mid-height, over which we will sprinkle another pinch of fine salt and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Cook them for about 20-25 minutes at most. The cooking times are based on my gas oven, with heat coming only from below in static mode.

The extra idea. We can replace the stockfish with cod; in this case, no salt should be used. The procedure remains identical, but some advice on cooking is necessary; if the cod pieces are at least two fingers thick, the passive cooking times will be about 25 minutes, whereas if they are one finger thick, the passive cooking times are similar to those indicated for the stockfish.

Bon appetit