Dolma Dalya Algerian Tomato Pepper Stuffed Vine Leaves Recipes

DOLMA DALYA - ALGERIAN TOMATO & PEPPER STUFFED VINE LEAVES

Steps:

• Vine Leaves:.
• To prepare fresh vine leaves, trim the stalks & wash the leaves under running water. Blanch in lightly salted water for 15 minutes. Rinse then drain & set aside.
• To prepare bottled vine leaves, take the leaves out of the bottle & soak in plenty of cold water for at least 20 minutes. Rinse the leaves individually under running water the set aside.
• To prepare vacuum packed vine leaves, remove the leaves from the packet & soak in plenty of cold water for at least 15 minutes. Rinse the leaves individually under running water the set aside.
• Finely dice the pepper, tomato & onion. Fry gently in a little olive oil along with the minced garlic for approx 4 minutes. Add the spices & seasoning & cook for a further 30 seconds.
• Remove from the heat & add the rice, olive oil & water. Set aside.
• Broth:.
• Finely dice the onion & tomato & fry gently in a little olive oil. Add the cinnamon & seasoning, water, stock cube & lemon / lime juice. Cook for 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, remove from heat. At this point, you can do one of three things: liquidize the sauce, strain it to leave just a broth or keep it as it is.
• Stuff & fold your vine leaves:.
• Remove one leaf from the bowl of water & place in the centre of a dinner plate.
• Place one teaspoon full of filling into the bottom centre of the leaf - as in the photo.
• Take the left corner of the leaf & fold up to cover the filling.
• Do the same with the right hand side.
• Bring in both sides then gently roll up the leaf.
• Repeat these steps another 49 times - When folding the leaves, be firm but do not wrap them too tightly as they may split as the rice expands. Also don't be tempted to overfill the leaves either.
• NB: Most prepacked vine leaves come with their stalks attached. If they are tender you can leave them on - tuck them in the leaf or alternatively leave sticking out for a pretty effect. If the stalks are tough then remove them with a pair of scissors.
• Place carefully one at a time in a large pot. You can put up to 3 layers in a pot if necessary.
• Place a large plate or dish over the top of the vine leaves & gently pour the sauce broth over the top. Cover & cook on medium heat for at least 25 minutes; until the vine leaves are tender.
• My family enjoys these hot or room temperature drizzled with lemon / lime juice & good quality olive oil. They are really good served as an appetizer with a selection of dips such as garlic mayo etc.

RICE-STUFFED VINE LEAVES

Steps:

• Cook the rice in a large pan of boiling water according to the packet instructions, or until tender. Drain and transfer to a bowl.
• While the rice is cooking, peel and crush the garlic, trim and slice the spring onions and shred the ham.
• Heat half of the oil in a pan, preferably non-stick, (you will probably need more oil if you are not using a non-stick pan) and sauté the mushrooms and garlic for 3 minutes, or until they have softened; add the spring onions and ham and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat, and toss the mixture with the cooked rice, season to taste, stir in the oregano, crumble in the cheese and mix until all the ingredients are well-combined.
• Lay the vine leaves on a work space and spoon a little of the rice mixture onto the centre of each leaf, then fold over the edges and roll up tightly.
• Heat the remaining oil in the cleaned pan, add the stuffed vine leaves and sauté over a gentle heat for 5 minutes, turning once.
• The vine leaves may be served hot or at room temperature.
• Note: Vine leaves are sold in gourmet delicatessens and in some supermarkets. If you are unable to get vine leaves, you can make this recipe using 8 green cabbage leaves. To prepare the cabbage leaves, add them to simmering water for 1 minute, or until wilted, and drain thoroughly.

DOLMA (ALGERIAN STUFFED VEGETABLES)

Steps:

• Peel the zucchini and potatoes.
• Chop the stem off the zucchinis.
• Chop the potatoes and zucchini in half short ways so now you have 4 zucchini pieces, each about 3 inches long and 4 potato pieces, each about 2 inches long.
• Carefully scoop out the inside of each zucchini piece, leaving a wall about 1/4 inch thick around. Discard the scooped out part.
• Carefully scoop out each potato in the same manner but save the scooped out portion.
• Mix together the ground meat, 1 tablespoon of parsley, rice, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon.
• Stuff the meat mixture into the potatoes and zucchini, loosely.
• Heat oil in large pan and saute onion and lamb together.
• Add the water and bring to boil over medium high heat.
• Add the chick peas, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
• Put the stuffed vegetables in the sauce along with the reserved potato pieces. Cook covered for 1/2 hour.
• Remove from heat and add lemon juice and 1 tbsp parsley.

STUFFED VINE LEAVES - AUTHENTIC TURKISH DOLMA RECIPE

Steps:

• Dice the onions and sauté with 1/4 cup of olive oil.
• When they turn translucent, add the pine nuts and sauté for 5 more minutes.
• Add rice and stir constantly for 5-10 minutes until the rice is translucent.
• Add the spices (dried mint, cinnamon, lemon salt, black pepper, dried currants, sugar and allspice) and chopped parsley.
• After another quick stir, add 1/2 cup of boiling water and simmer on low medium heat for 15-20 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed by the rice mixture.
• Take off heat and let cool.
• And now, here comes the fun part. Traditionally, you would put a spoonful of the cooled mixture in the center of the top part of the leaf, fold the sides inwards and then roll the leaf like a cylinder. But since I have "The Ultimate Dolma Machine" (follow the link mentioned in the description section), I just placed a leaf on the rubber compartment of the machine, put a tbps of mixture in the middle and with a single slide, there comes my dolma from the other side of the machine. The process was a breeze. It took me only 10 minutes to roll nearly 40 perfectly shaped dolmas. Below is the process fully photographed.
• As the final step, spread a layer of vine leaves on the bottom of a large and heavy pot (to prevent the stuffed leaves from burning).
• Lay all your dolmas side by side and tuck very tightly.
• Transfer the remaining 1/4 cups of olive oil, juice of half a lemon and 2 cups of boiling water, cover with a plate upside down (so that the dolmas don't move around in boiling water) and bring to a boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until all the water is absorbed (roughly 45-60 minutes).
• Transfer to your serving dish and let cool.

ISRAELI STUFFED VINE LEAVES

Steps:

• To prepare the grape leaves: If using fresh, soak for 5 to 6 minutes in hot water. If using canned, soak for 5 to 6 HOURS in cold water. For either, gently squeeze dry with clean kitchen towels.
• Soak the prunes in water for 3 hours; remove and coarsely chop.
• Coarsely chop the cherries and raisins.
• Combine all the ingredients except the vine leaves, lemon slices, and oil.
• Use the mixture to stuff the leaves that you will roll up into 2 inch rolls while tucking in the edges.
• Cover the bottom of a shallow pan with half the lemon slices; arrange the rolled vine leaves on top.
• Top that with the remaining lemon slices; pour in the olive oil and 2 cups water.
• Cook over medium heat for 1 hour.
• To serve hot: Remove leaves with a slotted spoon and serve on a lemon slice (from the bottom layer).
• To serve cold: Discard all the lemon slices and chill the leaves well.