In the heart of Nebraska, a culinary gem known as the "wowlers runzas" has captured the taste buds of locals and travelers alike. These delectable stuffed buns are a testament to the rich cultural heritage of the region, boasting a delectable combination of flavors and textures. With their unique crescent shape and savory fillings, wowlers runzas have become an iconic dish that embodies the essence of Nebraska's culinary scene. Discover the secrets behind this beloved dish and embark on a delightful journey to recreate the perfect wowlers runzas in your own kitchen.
Here are our top 7 tried and tested recipes!
RUNZAS
A white roll stuffed with cabbage, beef and onions.
Provided by klinnea
Categories Appetizers and Snacks Pastries
Time 1h50m
Yield 16
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat; cook and stir ground beef and onion until beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Stir in cabbage and season with 1 teaspoon salt. Continue to cook and stir until cabbage is tender, about 20 more minutes. Set mixture aside to cool.
- Mix warm water and butter in a large bowl. Combine dry milk powder, sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and yeast in another bowl; stir into butter mixture. Add egg and gradually stir in flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough is smooth.
- Roll dough out to 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured surface; cut into 4-inch squares. Scoop beef mixture into each dough square. Bring corners of a dough square together at the top and pinch corners together to seal. Place on a baking sheet, seam side down. Repeat with remaining beef mixture and dough. Cover rolls with a damp cloth and allow to rise for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 243.3 calories, Carbohydrate 31.3 g, Cholesterol 41 mg, Fat 8 g, Fiber 1.5 g, Protein 10.9 g, SaturatedFat 4 g, Sodium 444 mg, Sugar 6.7 g
RUNZAS
It's not difficult to make a decent batch of runzas, but it's dang tricky to make a FANTASTIC batch of runzas. This recipe includes several secrets to superlative runzas, those iconic cabbage and hamburger baked sandwiches that you can find in Nebraska and hardly anyplace else.
Provided by dramamamafive
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- First, make the filling: Chop onions and garlic and sauté in a large frying pan with a little butter or olive oil until tender.
- Add ground beef along with generous amounts of salt and pepper and cook through, then drain well, if needed. (This will depend on how fatty the beef is.)
- Put browned ground beef into a large pot (I like to use my Crock pot). Stir in cabbage and kraut and simmer 3-4 hours, stirring often, and seasoning and tasting. (If using a Crock pot, cook on "low" for 5 to 6 hours.)
- Now to make dough: Stir the yeast into the warm water.
- In a large bowl, mix together sugar, salt, and eggs. Beat in eggs, then stir in yeast mixture.
- Add flours quickly one cup at a time, stirring well after each cup. (I use my Bosch mixer for this step.)
- When the dough begins to pull away from the side of the mixing bowl, turn out onto a lightly-floured countertop and incorporate remaining flour by kneading. Knead 100 strokes until the dough is elastic and smooth. (Kneading can be omitted but this will make the dough nicer to handle, and with an improved texture.)
- Let rest in a covered bowl one hour or until doubled in size.
- Cut off golf ball sized pieces. Lightly flour countertop and roll out each piece.
- Fill each circle of dough with approximately 1/2 cup of filling, and optional cheese if desired. Pull edges of dough around the filling and pinch tightly. Place on a sheet of parchment on a sheet pan, or a 9x13" pan. Or any pan that you like, actually.
- Preheat oven to 375 while allowing runzas to rest for 30 minutes. Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until approaching golden.
- Swash with melted butter and bake for 10 more minutes or until golden. Serve while hot. Urge caution! The filling will be very hot.
NEBRASKAN RUNZAS
Steps:
- Make the dough: Combine 3/4 cup warm water (approximately 110 degrees F),the yeast and a pinch of sugar in a large mixing bowl and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
- Add 3 eggs and whisk to combine. Add half of the bread flour and beat with a wooden spoon until good and thready, about 3 minutes. Add the butter, the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, the remaining flour and the salt and mix well. The dough will be a little sticky. Let rest 15 minutes.
- Knead the dough to develop the gluten until it feels tight and smooth, about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to a lightly buttered bowl, cover and let it rise for 1 hour at room temperature. Then chill in the refrigerator,1 to 2 hours or overnight.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide it into 8 even portions. Roll each one into a ball and leave on the counter, covered loosely, to warm up, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the filling: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef, season with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook, breaking up the beef, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer it to a bowl.
- Drain and discard all but a film of the fat from the skillet. Add the butter; when it has melted, add the onion. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until light golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and rosemary and cook 3 minutes. Add the mixture to the bowl containing the beef.
- Without cleaning the skillet, add 1 tablespoon canola oil. Saute the spinach over high heat until wilted and the excess liquid has evaporated, about 1 minute. Chop the spinach, then add it to the beef mixture and set aside to cool.
- Roll out the dough: Flatten a dough ball on a heavily floured surface and roll out into a 3-by-5-inch rectangle. Then make wrapping flaps from the four corners of the rectangle by rolling out each corner thinly so you have a thick rectangle with four thinner triangular wings at the corners.
- Fill the runzas: Spoon 1/2 cup of the beef filling into the center of the dough rectangle and wrap the flaps over it, pinching to close. Flip the bundle over in your hands, gently forming the runza into a fat football shape. Set the runza seam-side down on an oiled baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining filling and dough balls, arranging them on 2 oiled baking sheets. Let the runzas rise about an inch, uncovered, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Whisk the remaining egg and 2 tablespoons water to make an egg wash and brush it thinly over the tops of the runzas. Bake until golden brown, 25 minutes. Serve hot.
NEBRASKA'S STUFFED BEEF SANDWICHES
When I moved to Nebraska, I discovered many ethnic foods that I had never heard of before. A friend introduced me to this runza recipe, a German-Russian beef sandwich, and it quickly became a family favorite. -Dolly Croghan, Mead, Nebraska
Provided by Taste of Home
Time 55m
Yield 12 servings.
Number Of Ingredients 15
Steps:
- Place 1-3/4 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Heat the milk, water and shortening to 120°-130°. Pour over flour mixture; add the eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until blended. Beat 3 additional minutes on high. Stir in the remaining flour; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes., Place dough in a greased bowl; cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef and onions over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the cabbage, seasoned salt, garlic powder and pepper; cook until cabbage is wilted., Punch dough down; divide into 12 portions and cover. Working with 1 piece at a time, roll into a 6-in. square. Place 3/4 cup meat mixture in the center of each square. Fold dough over filling, forming a rectangle. Pinch edges tightly to seal and place on greased baking sheets., Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 433 calories, Fat 16g fat (5g saturated fat), Cholesterol 84mg cholesterol, Sodium 524mg sodium, Carbohydrate 48g carbohydrate (10g sugars, Fiber 4g fiber), Protein 23g protein.
RUNZAS (BIEROCKS)
My mother-in-law introduced me to this and it kinda stuck. I am from Iowa, now in Kentucky, and the only way I can get this is by making it at home.
Provided by Krista Tank
Categories Main Dish Recipes Savory Pie Recipes Beef Pie Recipes
Time 1h20m
Yield 9
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Thaw out frozen bread dough; cut each roll into 3 pieces and set aside. Brown beef and cabbage in a large skillet, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Roll out bread dough and cut into squares. Place a spoonful of the beef/cabbage mixture onto the center of each dough square. Sprinkle cheese on top, fold over and pinch sides to seal. Rub a bit of oil on the outside of each pastry.
- Place in a 9x13 inch baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes, or until golden brown.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 750.2 calories, Carbohydrate 79.9 g, Cholesterol 78.8 mg, Fat 27.5 g, Fiber 8.6 g, Protein 41.2 g, SaturatedFat 10 g, Sodium 1221.7 mg, Sugar 9.9 g
WOWLERS! (RUNZAS)
This is your basic cabbage roll filling, but instead of wrapping in a cabbage leaf, you wrap it up in homemade bread dough. They're great warm or cold. Makes a great substitute for ho-hum sandwiches! We like 'em with spicy mustard spread on top. The recipe was given to me by a neighbor, years ago. I double the recipe so I usually get about 2 dozen filled rolls. Note: if you don't want to fool with homemade dough, hot roll mix works great.
Provided by Laudee
Categories Yeast Breads
Time 1h
Yield 24 rolls
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Pour hot water in large bowl.
- Add milk, yeast, and stir to dissolve.
- Add oil, sugar, salt, and eggs.
- Beat well.
- Add 2 cups, or enough flour to make a soft dough.
- Blend thoroughly.
- Add rest of flour, in 1/2 cup increments, kneading well after each addition, until dough is elastic and easy to work with.
- Place dough on floured surface, cover, and let rest 10 minutes.
- Roll out, cut in 4 inch squares, and place a couple of tablespoons of filling in center of each square.
- Fold and seal tightly around all edges.
- (Filling recipe follows).
- Place each filled square on greased cookie sheets, and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes, or till a nice golden brown.
- Remove from cookie sheet and set on cooling rack.
- Filling: In large skillet, melt oleo some, then add meat, and brown and drain.
- Shred cabbage, and add to meat.
- Chop onions; add to cabbage/meat mixture.
- Add salt and pepper, or seasonings of your choice.
- Stir well.
- Cover, and steam mixture about 20-30 minutes.
- Cool down to where it's comfortable to handle and then spoon onto dough squares.
HOMEMADE RUNZAS
Make Nebraska's famous Runza Sandwich at home! A bread dough pocket, filled with cabbage, onion, and seasoned ground beef, baked until golden brown. This recipe makes one dozen sandwiches but is easily cut in half. OR you can make them and freeze them!
Provided by Michaela Kenkel
Categories Sandwiches
Time 4h
Number Of Ingredients 6
Steps:
- Place frozen dinner roll dough on a sheet pan and rise according to package instructions. It will use 2 rolls for each sandwich.
- While dough rises, begin browning your ground beef and onion in a large skillet. When the meat is about halfway done, add in the shredded cabbage and cover with a lid. Cook until meat and cabbage are done. Drain off any excess grease or liquid. Set aside.
- When rolls have risen completely, lightly flour your surface. Remove two rolls and form a ball. Roll the ball out into a rectangle approximately 5"x7".
- Place approximately 1/3 cup of the filling in the center of the dough and spread out from top to bottom.
- Fold the bottom up and the top of the dough down and press to seal. Fold the left side over, pinching to seal. Then do the right side, gently stretching to cover the left. Pinch closed.
- Place each sandwich on a greased cookie sheet, seam side down.
- Let rise again for another 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Brush the tops with melted butter.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until bread dough is golden brown.
- Serve hot.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 530 calories, Carbohydrate 67g grams carbohydrates, Cholesterol 40g milligrams cholesterol, Fat 20 g grams fat, Fiber 4g grams fiber, Protein 20g grams protein, SaturatedFat 6g grams saturated fat, ServingSize 1 sandwich, Sodium 1370g milligrams sodium, Sugar 10g grams sugar, TransFat 3g grams trans fat, UnsaturatedFat 0 grams unsaturated fat
Tips:
- Prep your ingredients in advance: To save time during the assembly process, measure and chop all the ingredients before you start cooking. This will make the process much smoother and less stressful.
- Use a sharp knife: A sharp knife will make it easier to cut the dough and ingredients, resulting in a cleaner and more precise final product.
- Don't overwork the dough: Overworking the dough can make it tough, so be careful not to knead it for too long. Just knead it until it comes together and forms a smooth ball.
- Let the dough rise in a warm place: This will help the dough to rise properly and produce a light and fluffy bun.
- Don't overcrowd the baking sheet: When baking the buns, make sure to leave enough space between them so that they have room to rise and bake evenly.
- Bake the buns until they are golden brown: This is the best way to ensure that they are cooked through.
Conclusion:
Wowlers Runzas are a delicious and versatile dish that can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. With a variety of fillings to choose from, there is sure to be a Runza that everyone will enjoy. Whether you are making them from scratch or using pre-made dough, following these tips will help you create perfect Runzas every time. So next time you are looking for a hearty and satisfying meal, give Wowlers Runzas a try!
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