Dolmades (Greek Stuffed Vine Leaves)
Photo: vedatzorluer / Pixabay
Tender vine leaves rolled around rice flavoured with onion, dill, mint, parsley and lemon, then gently simmered in olive oil and lemon juice. Served at room temperature with lemon slices — a meze classic.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Get the leaves ready
Rinse the vine leaves well. Put them in boiling water for 2 minutes to soften them and take out some of the salt. Drain. Cut off any stalks. Put any torn leaves to one side.
Make the filling
Cook the onions and spring onions in half the oil over medium heat until soft. Stir in the rice for 1 minute. Take it off the heat and add the herbs, half the lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Roll
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Pack the pan
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Cook
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Cool and serve
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Get the leaves ready
Rinse the vine leaves well. Put them in boiling water for 2 minutes to soften them and take out some of the salt. Drain. Cut off any stalks. Put any torn leaves to one side.
Make the filling
Cook the onions and spring onions in half the oil over medium heat until soft. Stir in the rice for 1 minute. Take it off the heat and add the herbs, half the lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Roll
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Pack the pan
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Cook
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Cool and serve
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The Story Behind the Dish
Stuffed vegetables and leaves — dolma, from the Turkish verb dolmak, 'to fill' — were refined in the palace kitchens of the Ottoman Empire and spread across Greece, Turkey, the Balkans, the Caucasus and the Middle East.
In Greece, small vine-leaf rolls are called dolmadakia. The meat-free version filled with rice and herbs is a staple of the Orthodox fasting periods and of every meze table.
⭐ Why It's Famous
They're the perfect make-ahead party food, naturally vegan and gluten-free, and even better the day after they're made.
💡 Fun Fact
In Turkey the meat-free version is called yalancı dolma — 'liar's dolma' — because it pretends to be the meat-filled original.
Greece and the former Ottoman lands
37.98°N, 23.73°E
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