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Dolmas (Stuffed Grape Leaves)

Dolmas (Stuffed Grape Leaves)

Name: Dolmas (Stuffed Grape Leaves)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2 onions, minced; 1 ½ cups uncooked white rice; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 2 tablespoons dried currants; 2 tablespoons pine nuts; 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon; 1 tablespoon dried mint; 1 tablespoon dried dill weed; 1 teaspoon ground allspice; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 (8 ounce) jar grape leaves, drained and rinsed

Rating: 3.7 stars

33 Ratings
28 Reviews
9 Photos

The spices may seem like a strange combination, but this is a wonderful, delicate traditional Turkish dish with a twist. Serve chilled, as is traditional, or warm, as desired. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over dolmas before serving.

By WhirledPeas

Gallery

Recipe Summary

prep:

30 mins

cook:

45 mins

total:

1 hr 15 mins

Servings:

Yield:

8 servings

Nutrition Info

Directions

Step 1

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until tender. Stir in rice and hot water to cover. Cover and simmer until rice is half cooked, about 10 minutes.

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Step 2

Remove from heat and stir in tomato paste, currants, pine nuts, cinnamon, mint leaves, dill weed, allspice and cumin. Let mixture cool.
Step 3

Prepare a large pot by placing an inverted plate on the bottom; this protects the dolmas from direct heat when steaming.
Step 4

Rinse grape leaves in warm water; drain and cut off any stems. Place about 1 teaspoon of the cooled rice mixture in the center of a leaf. Fold in the sides and then roll into a cigar shape. Place in prepared pot. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Step 5

Pour in just enough warm water to reach the bottom of the first layer of dolmas. Cover and simmer over low heat for 30 to 45 minutes, or until rice is totally cooked. Check the water level often and add more as necessary.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:

207 calories; protein 5.3g 11% DV; carbohydrates 39.1g 13% DV; fat 3.8g 6% DV; cholesterol 0mg; sodium 846.7mg 34% DV. Full Nutrition

Reviews (28)

Most helpful positive review

NEANDERLOID

06/17/2005

Perhapes some might find this suggestion sacralicous but I use brown rice and cook if fully. Then I cook the oinion and mix it with the seasonings and add it all to the rice. Then the grapeleaves are ready for stuffing. These alterations to the recipe save A LOT of time and make it a little healthier (Brown rice has a little more body anyway.) Read More

Helpful

(120)

Most helpful critical review

Lindalou

07/19/2008

my grandpa was from the middle east and I remember these growing up I love them. Only we made them with ground lamb breast with rice and mint and lemon. yummy. I can't ever find grapeleaves with lamb in them not even in a restaurant that sells them I will try this but will add lamb and leave the currants and pinenuts out as that is not how I like them. Read More

Helpful

(20)

33 Ratings

5 star values: 13
4 star values: 8
3 star values: 6
2 star values: 1
1 star values: 5

Reviews: Most Helpful

Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest

NEANDERLOID

06/17/2005

Helpful

(120)

DIZNEYRAVER

12/13/2003

First Dinner Party in new house and SO's 30th birthday. A doubly special event. Had one vegetarian guest. She had tried to make Dolmas herself but never turned out this good! They were a big hit. Another guest that will not eat ANYTHING green was spotted picking the stuffing out of the leaves! Could not find any currants so left them out. Was told later that I could have used white grape raisins (so try that if you too have trouble finding currants) Prepared stuffing and rolled dolmas the night before. I had never worked with grape leaves. First I thought I could just pull them out one at a time (like a can of baby wipes) but finally figured out that you had to work the whole bundle out of the jar then unroll it. Also I thought I would have plenty of extra leaves because it was a jar of 50 but as it turns out there were many that had holes in them or were badly torn and not useable (so buy plenty extra!). I served them hot out of the steamer. I used a electric steamer for 45 mins separating the layers of the dolmas with a little parchment paper (in hindsight not sure if that was necessary as they did not seem to stick to each other or the steamer at all) I did not do the lemon juice thing because when I have them at Greek restaurants I always think they have just a bit too much 'tang'. It was awesome easy and quite the crowd pleaser (as noted by other reviewers). Highly recommend it A Read More

Helpful

(77)

HENDRICA

12/13/2003

I made this recipe this weekend for a very large potluck ( 50 people). The reviews were tremendous whether from the few people who had had dolmas before or the vast majority utterly unfamiliar with them. I am providing the recipe (actually a link to it) to probably 10 people. (Another half dozen people took the left-overs home.) Although this is not a typical American party food I highly recommend it for that very purpose. It was surprisingly easy to make well-appreciated by both the meat-eaters and vegetarians in the crowd and offered a novel diversion from the "typical" potluck food. Although the ingredients sound hard to find all were available at my local grocery store (Thriftway)--I actually tried Trader Joes first but they didn't have grape leaves or dried currants. Read More

Helpful

(42)

Lindalou

07/19/2008

Helpful

(20)

JTIMBAN

01/09/2005

They were truly delicious but don't think about freezing them. I did and they do not freeze well. The rice was not good after they were frozen. Read More

Helpful

(20)

addy da

09/25/2005

I was looking for a vegetarian addition to my Lebanese lamb-filled grape leaves for a dinner party. This recipe complemented the meat variety perfectly. The flavor is complex and rich and the dish is satisfying and filling. I wrapped a few of the dolmas in home-made pita bread dipped in olive oil - fantastic. Highly recommended for vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. Read More

Helpful

(19)

LOCHINA

12/13/2003

Delicious! I added more pine nuts and currants and a little bit of fresh dill. They were perfect. Read More

Helpful

(14)

Gallus Gurl

02/06/2007

I love dolmas and I especially like this version. These are great for lunch because you can eat them cold and the recipe does make a lot. I think I will double the currents and pine nuts next time but overall very good. Read More

Helpful

(11)

CookinginFL

07/19/2008

Yummy - the only change that I made was to use raisins (which I chopped) in place of the currants. Read More

Helpful

(8)

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Nutritional Information

Dolmas (Stuffed Grape Leaves)

Servings Per Recipe: 8
Calories: 207.4

% Daily Value *

protein: 11 %

carbohydrates: 13 %

exchange other carbs:

dietary fiber: 8 %

sugars:

fat: 6 %

saturated fat: 3 %

cholesterol:

vitamin a iu: 32 %

niacin equivalents: 30 %

vitamin b6: 12 %

vitamin c: 10 %

folate: 23 %

calcium: 12 %

iron: 18 %

magnesium: 11 %

potassium: 5 %

sodium: 34 %

thiamin: 22 %

calories from fat:

percent of calories from carbs:

percent of calories from fat:

percent of calories from protein:

percent of calories from sat fat:

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.