Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

Assembly, originally uploaded by elkit.

It's Rouladenfest at my house today! "Roulade" is really just the French word for "roll", and that's exactly what they are: beef rolls. In today's parlance, you might call them wraps. Beef wraps.

This is a traditional German dish, and I am lucky enough to live near a German butcher store. (If you live in the South Bay or Peninsula, I recommend them highly: Dittmer's in Mountain View.)

So I don't have to worry about the cut or quality of the meat - I just waltz into Dittmer's and tell them how many rouladen I want. (I usually go for 2 per person, because my friends all tend to be good little eaters, like myself. And if you have leftovers - score! These taste even better the next day.)

Go home, set up like in the picture, and start prepping:

- unroll the slices of beef
- salt and pepper them
- spread mustard on them (I used Dijon; pick whatever you like that will go well with beef
- add a slice of bacon on top
- then sliced onion
- then sliced pickles

As you add stuff on top, keep in mind how you will roll them back up. I rolled them from the bottom to the top, so I placed the filling lower, and left room at the top. I also made sure not to overstuff them - they'll fall apart or jettison bits out the sides if you do that. 

Anyway, now you roll the beef back up, and secure each roulade with a toothpick, so it'll look like this. 

Heat your favorite oil or butter in a heavy saucepan (I like my Dutch oven for this task), and brown the rouladen from all sides. Put the lid on and cook on medium heat for about two hours. 

I serve these with dumplings (bread dumplings and/or potato dumplings), red cabbage and/or sauerkraut, and gravy. (I can buy all of these at Dittmer's, but isn't it great that amazon.com also has all of these? I do love my interwebs!)

Comments

[Jen]

I think when we finally meet in person at some point, there are worse places for it than Dittmer's (I've only been there once).

[Elkit]

I agree wholeheartedly. Esther's, just across El Camino, would also be a good option - nice German bakery/cafe, and they serve dishes with Dittmer's meat: http://esthersbakery.com/

So when are we meeting? I really would love to meet your whole person, after reading you for so long.

[finnyknits]

RouladenFest was fantastic and *furp* I might still be a little full. Lord knows I'm a good eater ;) Thanks again, fabulous hostess :)