Armenia · Vegetable and Mushroom Dishes · Gluten-free
Dolma
Dolma made from grape leaves is a dish with deep traditions in the cuisines of many Middle Eastern, Caucasian and Eastern Mediterranean countries. It consists of meat or vegetarian stuffing wrapped in grape leaves.
85 min 440 kcal 4 serves Advanced🌾Gluten-free🇦🇲Armenia★★★★★4.6· 5 reviews
Ingredients
ServingsMetric
- 40 grape leaves
- 500 gground meat
- 1 largeonion
- ½ cuprice
- to tastesalt and black pepper
- 1 tspground cumin
- finely choppedfresh herbs
- 2 tbspolive oil
- 1 tbsplemon juice
- 1 cuphot water or broth
Method
- In a large bowl, mix the ground meat, finely chopped onion, pre-cooked rice, finely chopped fresh herbs, olive oil, salt, pepper, cumin and lemon juice. Mix thoroughly.
- Place about 1 tablespoon of the filling on each grape leaf. Fold the edges of the leaf towards the center and gently roll it up, starting from the base of the leaf.
- In a deep pot, lay a few unused grape leaves on the bottom to prevent sticking. Place the dolma tightly together in the pot.
- Pour hot water or broth over the arranged dolma so that they are completely covered. Cover the pot with a lid and simmer over low heat for about 1-1.5 hours until the rice and meat are cooked.
FAQ
Yes, fresh grape leaves are even better — they're more tender and have a brighter flavor. Pick young leaves in spring (May–June) before they get tough. Blanch in boiling water for 1–2 minutes, then cool in ice water. If jarred: rinse well from brine, otherwise the dolma will be too salty.
Rate this
Rate this recipe
Keep browsing
More dishes from the Armenian archive — picked by overlap with what you're cooking now.
Join the conversation
Comments (1)
Cook the grape leaves until it just barely yields to a knife for dolma. It continues softening from residual heat for 2-3 minutes. Cooking until fully soft in the pan means mush on the plate.