Kielbasa, Cabbage, & Rice Dinner

I love this dish on a cold winter afternoon or evening. It's easy to make, fast to prepare, and if you want to, you can up the ingredients and feed a crowd. Great for football parties. If you make ahead of time, undercook the cabbage so it's not completely wilted later.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 1  kielbasa (1 to 1-1/2 lbs.)
• 1  medium onion, diced
• 2  tablespoons olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup  orange juice
• 1  head green cabbage, chopped
• 1  teaspoon kosher salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  ground black pepper
• 1  dash cayenne pepper
• 1  teaspoon caraway seed
• 1  cup white rice
• 1  medium onion, chopped fine
• 2  tablespoons butter
• 1  teaspoon garlic powder
• 2  cups water
• 3  green tea bags
• 1  teaspoon dried thyme

Directions

1. Start the rice first. Boil 2 cups water and let 3 green tea bags steep in water. (You can skip the tea bags if you wish). In pot, saute the finely chopped onion with the butter until golden. Add the tea, garlic powder, and thyme and whisk together. Add rice; bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pot, and let cook 20-25 minutes.
2. While rice is cooking on low, cut up the kielbasa. I like to cut slices into quarters, but halves or complete slices are good too. In a large skillet saute the chopped onion in olive oil until golden. Add the kielbasa and cook about 8 minutes, stirring to evenly brown.
3. Add orange juice to the kielbasa and onion, then add salt, black pepper, cayenne, and caraway seeds. Stir to mix all together, then add the chopped cabbage.
4. Simmer the kielbasa and cabbage about 15 minutes. I cover the skillet for the first 7 minutes, then when the cabbage has softened a bit, I stir everything so the juice and kielbasa is evenly distributed and simmer the last four 8 minutes uncovered.
5. Your rice should be done when the cabbage is just getting tender but still a bit crisp. Either plate the dish with a scoop of rice topped with the kielbasa and cabbage, or do what we do and mix it all together to serve.