AI have often encountered, both in the historical and in the present discourse, the valence of the capacitating words of yesterday's remnants. I do not believe in the theory that they arose out of such a need, rather I follow an obvious path from the use of leaves as a support (to avoid direct contact with hot food), then the use of leaves as a screen for fire directly, to which is added the gustatory appeal of heat-processed vegetables (discovered empirically) so that only later does the braininess of wrapping the food in vegetable wrappings (fire-proofed, steamed, stewed in its own juice for a tender and juicy result) intervene, respectively the consumption good leaves. To be able to call them sarmales, we must be aware of the need for a technological stage in cooking: the transition from the support to the implicit ingredient, and from the fire directly to the container. We cannot call any mincemeat in a vegetable cover as sarmale if they are not boiled/baked/steamed/fried in another container exposed to the heat source.

But once they appeared, sarmales proved the amazing property of turning unappetizing leftovers into at least an edible dish.

One of the best examples of the adaptation of sarmals to the immediate need to recycle yesterday's table scraps (this time ceremonial) is found among the American Irish, on the day after St. Patrick.

The festive meal on March 17 consists of boiled beef, cabbage and root vegetables (usually carrots, turnips, potatoes). The tradition appears to be of recent historical date, emerging only in the mid-18th and early 19th centuries, and not on Irish soil.

Back then Irish immigrants in America had a hard time finding the traditional ham and slowly replaced it with beef pastrami (Jewish, the one in America has a surprising Romanian story that you can read here ) due to the similarity of shape, taste, consistency.

However, the Irish also consumed corned beef, but, as in our case, cattle were raised for draft and milk. Thus, just like here, beef products were intended for export (About how we slaughtered hundreds of thousands of cattle for pastrami in the 17th century, you can read here )

Once upon a time beef and cabbage wasn't exactly an Irish tradition. From around 1600 until 1825 the Irish were the largest exporters of corned beef. After 1810, since Pasteur's discovery, it was sent in cans. The British army was thus supplied during the Napoleonic wars. In the middle of the 19th century, the biggest supplier of cans to the British was a company from Galati. In fact, because of them, a famous arctic tragedy occurred (see details here ).

"The method of preserving meat is ancient, when people noticed that if you put enough salt, the meat doesn't spoil anymore.

The first mention of corned beef appears in the book Anatomy of Melancholy by Richard Burton, 1621: «Beef... corned young of an ox».

Many Irish people claim that the tradition of beef and cabbage is similar to that of spaghetti and meatballs, i.e. imported. Others argue that there is a long history spanning centuries.

Arguments:

Brid Mahon's book: A land of milk and honey – the story of traditional Irish food and drink notes in the 19th century: "While Irish beef has always been noted for its flavor, corned beef has been kind of enjoyed. Boiled and served with green cabbage and mashed potatoes, it was considered an epicurean dish to be eaten at Halloween, Christmas, St. Patrick's Day, weddings and vigils, a tradition that was carried to the New World by emigrants over the centuries XVIII and XIX. To this day, beef and cabbage is served on St. Patrick's Day and Thanksgiving in parts of North America.

Bacon, corned beef, sausages, boudica are mentioned in The Vision of Mac Conlinne, a 12th-century story that also describes condiments served with meat».

According to Malachi McCormick - author of the book Irish Country Cooking (in the article The Troubles That Irish Food Has Seen, New York Times, March 14, 1990), beef and cabbage is a purely American tradition. Colcannon (boiled new potatoes mixed with boiled white cabbage, boiled leeks or boiled onions to which butter, milk and wild garlic are added) is more likely to be considered the national dish of Ireland.

Stephen McFarland, author of Just Desserts, who works with Neven McGuire, a celebrity chef in Ireland, says that Corned Beef and Cabbage is a popular dish in modern-day Ireland and often served with Champ - a specific mash.

Bacon, corned beef, sausages, boudica are mentioned in The Vision of Mac Conlinne, a 12th-century story that also describes condiments served with meat».

Since cows were used for milk rather than meat in Ireland's poor times, beef was a delicacy reserved for kings. It was more common for them to put on the festive table what they call Gammon (raw-dried ham) or bacon (unsmoked)"[1].

In another article that debates the issue of the nationalization of the preparation[2] quotes a commenter's footnote to an article about immigrants in Queens titled Curry Replaced Beef and Cabbage.

"My grandmother was puzzled that Americans associate beef with the Irish. In Ireland, most people ate pork. Lots of ham, lots of sausages.

… Corned beef became popular in New York bars as a lunch food. Bars provided a "free lunch" to Irish construction workers building NYC in the early 20th century. But there is no such thing as a free lunch. You had to buy a few beers or whiskey to get it. This is how the "Irish" story was perpetuated.

Dismayed the author of the article sent that reply to a friend in Dublin. "Every word in this post is the letter of the law," she replied. “We NEVER eat beef and cabbage. We even make fun of Americans and their bizarre love for this meat"

After the festive St. Patrick's meal, what leftovers could be left? You guessed it: beef (often canned), cabbage, root vegetables. Well, it seems that from here to sarmale was only a simple step. Let's see some recipes

Now let's get back to sarmale?

Kate and Melinda are from Maryland and use scalded savoy cabbage, beef tenderloin, parsnip puree, carrot and potato. A layer of puree is spread on the cabbage leaf and the beef strips are placed in the middle. The sarmales are baked in the tray on a layer of puree[3].

The author Lorac from food.com (I only know that he moved to Arizona for testing a decade) offers us another recipe - more to the classic - called: Irish sarmales. In the composition we have corned beef, celery and sauteed onion, pre-boiled brown rice, spicy brown mustard and an egg. Sarmales are cooked in beef soup mixed with beer (it is not specified which). Afterwards, remove one cup from the sauce, melt one in the pan, add flour for the breadcrumbs and thin it with the sauce from the pan. At the end, the new sauce is poured over the dish. Sarmales are served with additional mustard[4].

Sarah Ozimek says her passion for food is linked to her cultural heritage from her French-Canadian grandmother. It clearly states that the dish is a perfect opportunity to use up St. Patrick's leftovers. Scalded green cabbage. Pieces of corded beef, leftover mash, green parsley, mustard and an egg. They are boiled in a stew of flour and beef soup poured over it. At the end sprinkle Swiss cheese[5].

Another recipe presents us with a composition rich in vegetables. We use beef, onion, garlic, beetroot and carrots given through a blender, chopped cauliflower the size of rice, fresh parsley and dill. They are rolled and cooked in beef broth[6].

Guinness could not be missing from the equation

Amy, author on myworldsimplified.com, offers us a different recipe: beef seasoned with the packet of spices that usually accompanies it is cooked in a crockpot in water and Guinness Extra Stout. The quartered potatoes are cooked in the remaining beef liquid. The raw leaves are stuffed with raw carrot sticks, yellow onion leaves and meat. Bake until tender and serve with those boiled potatoes[7].

Tammy from Dallas – Irish scallions with Guinness Mustard Sauce.

Cut cooked beef into strips and cubes. A puree is made from red potatoes, leeks (boiled both the white part and the leaves) and chicken stock. Cabbage is peeled and stuffed with the mixture of meat, mash and sauce made from mayonnaise, hot brown mustard and Guinness beer. They are baked and eaten with what you saved from the beer-based sauce[8].

Sources:

[1] http://www.kitchenproject.com/history/CornedBeef.htm

[2] https://www.salon.com/2010/03/17/st_patricks_day_corned_beef_and_cabbage_irish/

[3] https://www.homemadeinterest.com/corned-beef-cabbage-rolls/

[4] https://www.food.com/recipe/irish-cabbage-rolls-83497

[5] https://www.curiouscuisiniere.com/corned-beef-cabbage-rolls/

[6] https://www.amymyersmd.com/recipe/irish-stuffed-cabbage-wraps/

[7] http://myworldsimplified.com/irish-cabbage-rolls/

[8] https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/main-course/beef/irish-cabbage-rolls-with-guiness-mustard-sauce.html