Dolmades, my way
I consider myself a dab hand at making dolmades. I cannot claim any advantage based on ethnicity, but I do have lots and lots of experience. I have always cooked a delicious rice filling spiked with currants and pine nuts, fragrant with dried mint and dill. The rolled vine leaf parcels are then steamed over a very low heat until tender.
Last weeks post for disappointing meat filled dolmades sparked a flurry of comments extolling the virtues of fresh vine leaves over the preserved variety. Having only ever made dolmades with the later, I felt compelled to make a batch to my tried and true formula using preserved vine leaves to reassure myself that in fact it was not the leaves that were at fault. Meanwhile, I think I may have found a source of fresh vine leaves, so in the future I’ll be able to compare the flavours and textures of fresh versus pickled.
For me the essence of success with the combination of brined vine leaves and unsalted rice filling is the capacity of the rice to absorb salt and make the leaves palatable.
These guidelines for making dolmades with vine leaves preserved in brine apply.
1. The vine leaves need to be separated, soaked in cold water and rinsed as they can be very salty.
2. Put a layer of leaves on the base of the saucepan 3-4 deep, use any very small or coarse large leaves for this. They act as a buffer to raise dolmades out of the water to prevent flavour loss, and also avoid any scorching
3. Place the filling on the underside of the leaf so when they’re rolled, the smooth glossy surface is on the outside.
4. Don’t overfill the parcels, but be sure to roll each dolma tightly.
5. Closely pack each layer of stuffed and rolled vine leaves into the pot.
6. Be liberal with the oil so the dolmades don’t stick together.
The rice filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons currants
1 cup short grained rice such as arborio
Boiling water
1 dessert spoon dried mint
1 dessert spoon finely chopped fresh dill
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil extra
Juice of 1/2 lemon
250g vine leaves preserved in brine
Heat the oil in a small pan, brown the pine nuts then remove them with a slotted spoon to some paper towel to drain. Set aside.
Add the rice to the oil and cook, stirring constantly until it looks translucent.
Add the currants and 1/2 cup of boiling water, reduce the heat and simmer until the water is absorbed, stirring frequently.
Continue adding small quantities of boiling water as it is absorbed stirring the mixture often.
After 10 minutes, when the rice is creamy, but still firm, remove it from the heat and stir in the pine nuts, herbs and a very generous grinding of fresh black pepper. Spread the rice on a tray to cool.
Prepare the vine leaves as detailed above.
Lay each leaf shiny side down, place a dessertspoon of filling at the stem end, fold in the sides then tightly roll the leaf into a cigar shape.
Line the base of a deep saucepan with a layer of 3-4 flat vine leaves. Lay the dolmades on top in firmly packed layers.
Sprinkle the lemon juice and remaining olive oil on top then add 1/2 cup of water to the pot.
Cover tightly and bring to the boil. Put a simmer mat under the pot, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Steam for 20 minutes.
Cool before serving.
Makes 30
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21 comments on “Dolmades, my way”
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Please Pass the Recipe by Sandra Gay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Please Pass the Recipe 
Looks and sounds delicious! Your photo and its’ source have been featured on the World Food Guide website:
http://worldfood.guide/photo/dolmade_1076/
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Hubby and I love these. Unfortunately, I buy them… bet they don’t come close to yours! Another of your yummy dishes to add to my list! It would be so much easier if you lived close by, don’t you think? 🙂
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Much easier, then I could pop by and bring you some dolmades.
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Oh my gosh, one of my favourite snacks. Not something I ever thought to make myself, but this post may give me the inspiration to do so. Thanks for the recipe!
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Welcome! Homemade dolmades taste so much better than those made commercially, do give them a try.😃
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These look perfect!
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Much, much happier with this filling!
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G’day! looks terrific, true!
Your photos are mouth-watering and am now craving dolmades too!
Cheers! Joanne
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Thanks Joanne, make yourself a batch and satisfy that craving!😀
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Looks like you’ve been successful! The filling reminds me more of Turkish dolmades with the pine nuts and currants. Looking forward to hearing all about your experiments with fresh leaves…
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Ah! Interesting you define this filling as Turkish, my Greek friend claims this was his mother’s preferred filling, but then there is so much cross pollination between these cultures. Perhaps it’s a regional or familial choice which filling you put in dolmades. We find this style much tastier!
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One of my Greek friends is an “Istanbul” Greek (from a refugee family who left Turkey in the 60s) who indicates that the addition of the pine nuts and currants are generally considered Turkish. And then, many of my Turkish cookbooks have similar recipes. You are right, however, there are so many cross-overs between Greek and Turkish foods, not least the names for many dishes and ingredients. After all, most of Greece was part of the Ottoman Empire for centuries before winning independence in 1832 – and even then the northern parts (Thessaly and north) were still Ottoman until the early 20th century. It would be interesting to know which part of Greece you friend’s family originated.
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Reblogged this on The Cook Book Guru and commented:
Earlier this month Lady Red Specs shared her dolmades from Tessa Kiros’ Falling Cloudberries and expressed her disappointment with the flavour. At the time she mentioned her wonderful vegan version and I thought it worthy of sharing them with you all to see another more flavourful version as part of our conversation about food from Falling Cloudberries. Enjoy, Leah
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yay, so happy to see this recipe. I’m going to post this onto The Cookbook Guru if you don’t mind to share with them the better option 🙂
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It was reassuring to make “my” dolmades, they were exactly as they should be, delicious! On reflection, I think the volume of water and the cooking time might be the problem with Tess’s recipe. XXX
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ah good to know…..might be worth a repeat then? x
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Maybe……..
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I went out and bought a jar of preserved vine leaves last week…I think you inspired me 😉
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I hope so, dolmades filled with rice are delicious, just be diligent separating, soaking and rinsing the leaves before you fill them. I’d love to hear how your dolmade making goes.
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