Best 5 Cold Stuffed Grape Leaves Recipes

DOLMAS (STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES) RECIPE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Gently remove the grape leaves from their jar, then rinse each thoroughly under cold water, taking care not to rip the leaves. Pat the leaves dry and place on a cutting board.
• Using a small, sharp paring knife, remove the stems from the leaves.
• Cover with a paper towel and set aside.
• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil, adding the onion, garlic, parsley, and basil once the oil is hot. Stir continuously until the onion is soft and fragrant, about 6 minutes.
• Add the rice and pine nuts (if using) and sauté, stirring often, for 3 to 4 minutes longer.
• Add 4 cups of the vegetable broth and bring to a low boil. Turn down the heat to low and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the rice is cooked, adding water if necessary.
• Add 1/3 cup of the lemon juice , stirring well to combine, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes longer or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Remove the pan from heat.
• Prepare a dry, clean workspace. Place one of the grape leaves, shiny side down, flat on your work surface. Place 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling on the lower-middle portion of the leaf, right above where the stem used to be.
• Fold in the sides of the leaves over the center.
• Then roll the bottom of the leaf over the filling and continue to roll, holding the sides in, until you've rolled the dolma completely and no filling is visible.
• Place the dolma seam-side down in a large saucepan or pot that's big enough to fit all of the dolmas in a single layer.
• Repeat until all of the grape leaves are used, placing one dolma directly next to the other and leaving no space in between.
• Drizzle another 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the dolmas, followed by the remaining lemon juice.
• Pour the remaining 4 cups of vegetable broth over the grape leaves to cover.
• Cover the pot and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 hour (do not boil). Add water as necessary to keep grape leaves covered.
• Remove the pan from the heat, uncover, and let the dolmas cool in the liquid for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, gently transfer the dolmas to a serving dish. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice and serve cold or at room temperature.

STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

Steps:

• Put the onions and oil in a skillet and cook over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. While the onions cook, peel the garlic cloves and mash them to a paste in a mortar and pestle. Add this to the pan along with the tomato, lemon juice, tomato paste, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another 5 minutes. Stir in the rice. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the dill. Set aside to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate.
• While this is cooling, drain the grape leaves and carefully pull them apart. Put them into a bowl and cover them with cold water. Let them soak until you are ready to roll.
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place a grape leaf on your work surface, shiny side down. Add 1 tablespoon of the rice mixture to the middle of the grape leaf. Fold the sides over the rice and roll the leaf into a small log shape, about the size of George's thumb. Repeat with the remaining rice, placing the stuffed leaves into a 9 by 9-inch baking dish. When the dish is full, cover the stuffed leaves with several layers of flat grape leaves and pour in 1 cup of water. Cover and bake for 1 hour. Let cool to room temperature and refrigerate. Serve cool.

DOLMATHAKIA (STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES WITH RICE AND HERBS)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Rinse the leaves well to remove brine.
• Place the leaves in boiling water and boil for 3 to 5 minutes to soften them and make them more pliable. Remove from water and set aside.
• In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat 1/2 cup olive oil. Sauté the onions until translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the rice, parsley, dill, pine nuts, mint, salt, and pepper. Taste test and adjust the seasoning as desired.
• Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice. Allow the filling to cool about 10 minutes.​
• Line the bottom of a heavy saucepan with 2 or 3 grape leaves (use the broken or torn ones for this).
• Roll the dolmathakia by placing a leaf with the stem toward you on a flat surface. The underside of the leaf should be face up. (The veins of the leaf are raised on the underside.) Using the point of a sharp paring knife, cut out the stem of the leaf. Overlap the bottom two sections of the leaf toward the center.
• Place a tablespoon of filling in the bottom center of the leaf, just above the stem.
• Fold the bottom section up to cover the filling.
• Fold the sides in toward the center.
• Continue rolling the packet up toward the top point of the leaf.
• Place the rolls in layers, seam-side down, in the saucepan.
• Pour remaining 1/2 cup olive oil over the dolmathakia and enough water to cover them by about 1 inch.
• Place an inverted heatproof plate on top of the rolls to keep them submerged in the water.
• Cover the saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the leaves are tender and the rice filling is cooked through.
• Serve and enjoy!

MY OWN FAMOUS STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, saute the rice, onion, dill, and mint for about 5 minutes, or until onion is soft. Pour in 1 quart of broth, reduce heat to low and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until rice is almost cooked. Stir in 1/2 of lemon juice and remove from heat.
• Take one leaf, shiny side down, and place 1 teaspoon of the rice mixture at the bottom (stem) end of the leaf. Fold both sides of the leaf towards the center, roll up from the broad bottom to the top, and place into a 4-quart pot. Repeat with all leaves, leaving no gaps as leaves are placed in pot (to prevent from opening while cooking). Sprinkle with remaining lemon juice and with olive oil.
• Pour chicken broth over all to cover grape leaves. Cover pot and simmer for about 1 hour (do not boil, because this will make the stuffing burst out of the leaves). Remove from heat, remove cover and let cool for 1/2 hour. Transfer to serving dish and serve.

COLD STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

Steps:

• Notes you may add more lemon juice, the cinnamon and the allspice must be a level teaspoon.
• If using vine leaves in brine, first drain them then put them in a large bowl and pour boiling water over them. Make sure the water penetrates well between the layers and let the leaves soak for 20 minutes. Drain. Soak in fresh cold water then drain again and repeat the process once more. This will remove the excess salt.
• Soak and stir the rice in boiling water, and then rinse it under cold tap. Drain thoroughly. In a bowl mix the rice with the tomatoes, onion, parsley, mint, cinnamon, allspice, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Stuff the leaves with this mixture:.
• Place 1 leaf vein side up. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling on the center near the stem edge. Fold the stem up over the filling, then fold both sides toward the middle and roll up like a small cigar. Squeeze lightly in the palm of your hand. This process will become easier after you have rolled a few. Fill the rest. Continue until the filling is used up.
• Pack them tightly in a pan lined with tomato slices or leftover grape leaves and occasionally slip in a whole clove of garlic if you choose.
• Mix the olive oil with 1/2 cup water and the saffron if used. Add the sugar and the lemon juice, pour the mix over the stuffed leaves. Put a small plate on top fot he leaves to prevent unwinding, cover the pan and simmer for at least 2 hours or until the rolls are cooked thoroughly. Add water occasionally, a cup at a time as the liquid in the pan becomes absorbed. Cool in the pan before turning out. Serve Cold.
• Persian: Add 2 tbsp chopped dill and 2/4 cup seedless raisins or currants to the filling. You may also use hummus or chickpeas: Soak about 1/2 cup in water overnight. Crush in mortar and add to filling. Reduce rice by 1/3 cup. You may also add 1/3 cup pine nuts for variation.