Stuffed Peppers a la Hartsoi ( Raki)

Ingredients:

20 big peppers
½ cup of rice
½ cup of groats
1 leek
2 cups of sauerkraut juice
4-5 pickled cabbage leaves

Method:

Cut the leek into small pieces and stir-fry until it gets tender. Add rice, groats and finely chopped cabbage leaves. Pour in a cup of sauerkraut juice and 2 cups of water. When the rice and groats are almost cooked, remove from heat.
Seed and wash the peppers with hot water. Put in boiling water for 2-3 min., drain and stuff with the mixture. Arrange the stuffed peppers in a pot and pour in the rest of the sauerkraut and a cup of water. Boil for 20 min. You can make cabbage sarmi with the same mixture.

Bon appetite !

Curious Facts:

According to prof. Ivan Koev the Hartsoi are descendants of the Slavs who inhabited the banks of the Middle Dnieper and the region. The name includes the root ‘hir’, which means ‘a field’ in the Chuvash language and the Prabulgarian and Turki word ‘soy’ meaning ‘descent, origin’. According to prof. Koev the word ‘hartsoi’ has the same meaning as the Slavic word ‘meadows’ and means ‘people of the field’.