These tasty little packages have many aliases across the Midwest. Whether you call them a krautburger, runza, bierock, krautrunz, or kraut pirok, these delicious yeast-bread envelopes are most commonly filled with a combination of sautéed onions, cabbage and/or sauerkraut, ground beef, and simple seasonings of salt and pepper.
The Volga Germans are credited with this 18th century creation. After being invited by Catherine the Great to settle in the Volga River valley of Russia, the German immigrants were inspired by the sweet and savory versions of the Russian pirozhok, which led to their own interpretations of this popular cultural snack food. These treasured family recipes carried on as the Volga Germans resettled in the Great Plains of the United States after the diaspora of the Russian revolution.
According to Runza’s Wikipedia page, “The runza is a regional cuisine of Nebraska, with some commentators calling it “as Nebraskan as Cornhusker football.”[8] It is served by the Nebraska Society of Washington, D.C.[9] and the Nebraska Society of New York[10] at their Taste of Nebraska events and was chosen to represent the state at Flavored Nation, an event serving iconic dishes from all fifty states.[11]” In other words, the runza is kind of of big deal to Nebraskans!
Over the years I’ve experimented with our family’s recipe, but always keep it very simple. Some of my friends like to add cheese, jalapeños, pickles, mustard, or ketchup while consuming their krautburgers. Feel free to be creative. Lastly, if you don’t have time to make the bread dough, the filling is very good inside your favorite hamburger bun or dinner roll, making this a quick solution for dinner or an appetizer to share.
Krautburgers/Cabbage Burgers
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 1/2 Cup Water
- 1 Small Potato a 2” square piece, or 2 Tbsp (optional)
- 1 Package Active Dry Yeast
- 2 Tbsp Sugar
- 2 Tbsp Melted Butter
- 2 Tbsp Milk
- 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
Filling
- 3/4 Lbs Ground Beef
- 1/2 Head Green Cabbage, finely chopped or shredded w/a food processor attachment. or you can use 2 packages of pre-shredded green cabbage (without any red cabbage)
- 1/2 Onion, finely chopped
- 6 Ounces Beer, White Wine, or Water a Riesling-style or Dry White Wine can also be used. Water can also be used.
- 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/8 Teaspoon Pepper
Dough Rising, Assembly, and Finishing
- Olive Oil, or your favorite neutral flavor cooking oil. to brush in the bowl for the dough to rise, and on the parchment for baking.
Instructions
Dough
- Place Potato and Water in a saucepan and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer for 5 minutes. Strain out the potato and keep the water. Let cool to 105°-110°.
- Mix together: Strained Water, Yeast, Sugar, and Butter. Let stand for 10 minutes.
- Add the Milk, Salt, and 1 Cup of Flour. Beat together until smooth.
- Gradually, 1 Cup at a time, add the rest of the Flour. Use one hand to mix/knead the dough in between each cup. *(If you feel the dough getting stiff before all the flour is added, stop adding flour. ) Turn the dough out on a floured board or counter and knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth.
- Oil the inside of a large bowl and place in the dough. Let rise until double, approximately 1 1/2 hours. Punch down and repeat.
Filling
- In a large sauté skillet, place in the Ground Beef. Turn the burner on medium and gently start to cook.
- As the juices release from the beef, (about 1-2 minutes), place in the Shredded Cabbage and Onion, and stir. Let that mixture cook for 1-2 minutes until the cabbage begins to break down.
- Add the Beer and Salt and Pepper. Cover and let cook until cabbage is softened. (About 10-15 minutes). Remove the lid and let any additional liquid evaporate. (About 3-5 minutes). Taste the mixture and adjust Salt and Pepper to your taste.
- Place the mixture in a strainer, gently press, and let any excess liquid drain out of the filling. Let the mixture strain for about 5 minutes.
Assembly
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Place a piece of parchment on a sheet pan and brush with olive oil. *(If you do not have parchment, make sure the pan is well-greased with shortening or butter, or prepared with non-stick baking spray.)
- Work with half of the dough at a time. Roll the dough out on a floured surface in the shape of a rectangle, 6” x 18”, keeping the thickness to approx. 1/4”. *(the burgers are 3” squares, so you should get approximately 12 from each half of dough).
- Measure out 3” x 3” squares and cut.
- To each square add 2 Tbsp of filling in the middle. With one hand take the bottom left corner of the square, with the other hand grab the top right corner and meet them in the center above the filling. Pinch the corners together. Repeat with the lower right corner and upper left corner. Then, pinch the seams together to securely close the bundle.
- Turn over and place on the parchment covered sheet pan, leaving about 2” between each burger. Fill the sheet pan and place in the oven. While the first batch is baking, repeat the process with the other half of the dough for the second batch.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned on the bottom and top. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter.
- Enjoy on its own, or serve with dill pickles, pickled veggies, crudités, and your favorite mustard for a lunch, or as part of a buffet.
Notes
- Add a slice of bacon or prosciutto (chopped), to the ground hamburger when cooking.
- I’ve added dried herbs while cooking the ground meat, such as a teaspoon of Thyme or Dill.
- Add a Tablespoon or two of your favorite cheese on top of the filling during assembly, so that it melts as the burgers are baking.
- Traditionally these are made to be 6”x6” squares. If you need something more substantial, feel free to make them larger. I make mine 3”x3” to be a light snack or appetizer size.
- If you want to skip the bread dough process, you can place the filling in a hamburger bun or small dinner roll. This will allow for a meal or appetizer within 15-20 minutes.
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