(Almost) My Grandma’s Rouladen

  4.4 – 39 reviews  • Bacon Recipes
Level: Intermediate
Total: 2 hr 15 min
Prep: 45 min
Cook: 1 hr 30 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

  1. 6 slices bacon, cut into lardons
  2. 1 (1 1/2-pound) piece of flatiron steak, butterflied open (by you or your butcher), cut into 4 equal pieces and pounded 1/4-inch thin
  3. Salt and freshly ground pepper
  4. 2 tablespoons country-style or Dijon mustard
  5. 1 1/2 large yellow onions, diced
  6. 2 tablespoons pickle relish
  7. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  8. 1 large carrot, chopped
  9. 1 celery stalk, chopped
  10. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  11. 1/4 cup red wine
  12. 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can of diced tomatoes
  13. Special equipment: kitchen twine

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. In a small saute pan over medium-low heat, cook the bacon just enough to render the fat, and set aside. Salt and pepper the steaks and lay flat on a large cutting board. Brush the top side of the slices with enough mustard just to coat.
  3. In a small bowl, toss together half the onion with the pickle relish and the reserved bacon. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread the onion mixture over the meat. Starting at the short end, roll the meat up jellyroll style, and secure with kitchen twine.
  4. Heat the oil in a medium heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and brown all sides of the meat. Remove the meat from the pan, and add the remaining onion, carrot and celery and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Deglaze the pan with the wine and then add in the canned tomatoes (with their juice).
  5. Nestle the meat back into the pan, bring to a simmer, cover and then bake until the meat is tender, about 90 minutes. Turn the meat once halfway through cooking.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 of 4 servings
Calories 945
Total Fat 25 g
Saturated Fat 6 g
Carbohydrates 168 g
Dietary Fiber 4 g
Sugar 146 g
Protein 11 g
Cholesterol 29 mg
Sodium 1024 mg

Reviews

John Hinton
A variation of my oma’s but I prefer to spread Dijon because the traditional dueseldorf mustard can’t be found place one or two slices if raw bacon diced onion a a dill spear. Roll tie or toothpick brown do not crowd the pan and remove. Add beef broth the the drippings and diced parsnips and celery . Add a few dashes I’d Maggi return to the pan cover tightly and braise at 300 for 2 – 2 1/2 hours. Add more broth if it gets too dry. Remove and serve with potato dumplings or mashed and sautéed green beans
Cory Ellis Jr.
Shane Hunt
I know it might not sound like these flavors go together, but they really do! This is a delicious rouladen recipe and definitely worth the time it takes to assemble. Easy on the garlic if you are going to use it and be sure you use dill relish or dill spears. Don’t forget the red cabbage and mashed potatoes to go with it! Yum!
Daniel Black
I’ve been making this recipe for a few years, and it’s a family favorite.  I lived in Germany for a couple of years back in the 90’s and had fallen in love with rouladen.  I never made it, until I craved it, went on the hunt and came across this recipe.  Reading other comments, I can’t remember what it should or shouldn’t have, but this recipe satisfies the memory that I have for this dish just fine. 🙂

I was true to the recipe ingredients, but changed a few things based on preference.  Here are my tips for making this dish:

– It’s definitely not something that you whip up on a Monday night – this recipe takes planning and time to put it together. 
– I remember the pickles being thin slices and wrapped inside, so I buy stackers, cut them in half and roll the meat around that.  Also because I’m not a big pickle fan and prefer that I can pull it out if I don’t want it.
– For the meat, I always buy milanesas – beef tip or round steaks that are cut real thin.  They come 4 to a pack at my grocery store and I buy two, then cut the steaks in half lengthwise.   
– I never have kitchen twine around, so I make a tight roll and use a toothpick or two to hold it together – works like a charm.
– I double the sauce because we love it and it’s the best on mashed potatoes… 
That’s it!  We serve it with mashed potatoes and the braised cabbage from the same episode – also delicious.
Shannon Flores
do u use sweet or dill pickle relish?
David Peterson
I’ve been making beef roulades for 30 years and learned it from my mother who was a marvelous cook. Most of the ingredients are okay, but one never uses garlic and never, never tomatoes. Keep those for the meatloaf and I can’t imagine that her German grandmother would use them. After I spread the mustard on the meat, I sprinkle marjoram on the meat. Pickle relish is much too sweet. I always julienne regular pickles and wrap them on top of the filling.
Dorothy Hernandez
Absolutely loved this recipe. Surprisingly simple. Didn’t make many substitutions. I added more canned tomatoes and garlic but other than that, I stuck to the recipe. This is will be the main attraction for my next dinner party. I served it over buttery polenta which was the perfect pairing.
Amber Glass
I used to make a rouladen recipe that used the traditional round steak. Sometimes it was very good and other times the beef had an ‘off’ flavor. Using flat iron steak in this recipe is a great choice. I followed the recipe and used dill pickle relish to replace the tradional dill pickle slices. I did add about 1/4 cup of beef broth because I increased the vegetables a bit. I turned the rouladen half way through and decreased the cooking time to 80 minutes. Delicious!
Diane Wright
I love to try new flavor combinations, so thought I’d give this a try since Melissa’s recipes rarely disappoint me. Due to where I live and the laws of supply and demand, the recipes are never under $10, but that’s not her fault.

I made the rouladen, the braised cabbage and my own mashed potatoes and everything was delicious. The meat did dry out just a touch, so (like someone else suggested) I will probably add some beef broth next time too. I also threw the extra onion/relish/bacon mixture in with my cabbage onions and incorporated them into the cabbage because I hate waste.

My husband wasn’t sure what he would think the various flavors, but he loved it, as did our teenage daughter. The next day, I sent leftovers with my husband for lunch and he had everyone drooling! I will definitely make this again!

Natalie Jones
I was really excited to make this, but the end result was just not great. My husband pushed it around his plate like a toddler. It tasted like braised beef in tomato sauce. Unimpressive

 

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