How To Make Stuffed Grape Leaves With Rice And Meat
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Stuffed grape leaves is a very tasty Mediterranean dish. Stuffed grape leaves can be vegetarian (stuffed with rice and herbs) or contain meat. This version of stuffed grape leaves is stuffed with rice, group meat and herbs. Sometimes stuffed grape leaves are served as an appetizer, but this version of stuffed grape leaves is filling enough to be a main dish. It also tastes very authentic – exactly like the stuffed grape leaves at a Mediterranean restaurant.
Recipe: Stuffed Grape Leaves Recipe With Rice And Ground Meat
Ingredients
- 8 ounce jar of preserved grape leaves
- 1/2 cup of uncooked long-grain rice
- 8 oz ground meat (I usually use beef)
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 tomato, finely chopped
- 4 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 3 tbsp tomato paste (you can also use ketchup)
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 lemon, squeezed
Instructions
- Put the rice and 1/2 cup of water in a pot and bring to a boil. When it boils, turn off the heat, remove from heat and cover.
- Drain the grape leaves and carefully rinse them with cold water.
- In a bowl, mix the meat, rice, salt, pepper, tomato paste, cinnamon, onion, tomato and parsley.
- Stuff the leaves: put a leaf on a plate, vein side up. Put a heaping teaspoon of the filling in the center of each grapeleaf. Fold the ends over the filling, then roll the grape leaf into a roll.
- Pour 1 tbsp of oil on the bottom of a non-stick pot. Put the grape leaves in the pot, seam side down, in layers. Put sliced garlic on top.
- Pour the lemon juice over the stuffed grape leaves. Pour just enough water to cover the grape leaves.
- Bring to boil, reduce heat to the lowest simmer, cover and simmer the stuffed grape leaves for 1 hour.
Here’s the closeup photo of the stuffed grape leaves in a pot – just finished cooking!
These stuffed grape leaves go really well with baba ganoush – a mediterranean appetizer dip made with eggplant, tahini, lemon juice and garlic. Check out my easy recipe how to made baba ganoush.
I adore dolmades – they’re a must order when I go to a Greek or Lebanese restaurant. They’re surprisingly easy to make aren’t they :D
dolme is turkish food