Passport & Plate - Dolma
Armenia | Sunday, March 9, 2014 | 8 photos
Ingredients
1 kg minced meat (you may also add 200 grams pork fat)
3 onions
1 cup round rice
150 g butter
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon salt
black pepper and cayenne (depending on taste)
greens – basil, savory, parsley, coriander, dill
1 kg grape leaves
How to prepare this recipeWe should put these canned leaves into boiled water, and as soon as they change their color – become brownish - we immediately take them out of the water. Dolma is made of minced meat, onion, rice, different types of spices all mixed together. Later the stuffing is rolled up in grape leaves.
Add one cup of washed round rice to one kilo of meat.
Take 1 kg minced meat, add 3 minced or chopped onions, 1 cup of round rice, 150 grams butter, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, and 1 tablespoon salt, black pepper and cayenne, depending on taste. Add some dried basil, savory, and chopped coriander, parsley, and dill to the meat.
It is necessary to put the ingredients properly in order to keep the flavor peculiarities. But the most interesting part is that dolma, prepared by different people, has different flavors. I think that it is connected with the ‘hand’ of the cook. I should mention that the greens are very important for dolma cooking.
Basil and savory are the most important greens here. The last ingredient to be added is half a cup of warmish water. Later start kneading the mixture.Leave the meat to rest for a few minutes and then startsrolling it up in grape leaves. Open grape leaves carefully, put one teaspoon of stuffing on it and roll up cigar-like. After putting some grape leaves on the bottom of the pan, arrange dolmas on them, add some water to cover dolmas, add two teaspoons of oil to make them shining and beautiful and put the pan on a gas fire. In 20 minutes, dolma is ready. Dolma is usually ready when the rice has been thoroughly cooked.
The story behind this recipeDolma is an armenian dish. Every armenian housewife knows how to cook it. But everybody cook it in different taste. This is my grandmather;s recipe. Dolma is made of minced meat, onion, rice, different types of spices all mixed together. Later the stuffing is rolled up in grape leaves. (Dolma may also be made with cabbage leaves – especially for vegetarian dolma served during the Easter Fast.
Many people prefer mixing the mass with a spoon, but I do not think that it is right. It is necessary to wash hands and knead the mass with hands. The meat must play in your hands; touching the meat with your fingers you may feel its fattiness, the amount of the rice in it. And finally the kneaded stuffing tastes much better.Any traditional Armenian kitchen cupboard includes canned grape leaves (mainly in one-kilo glass jars) in its stock. Armenian housewives use those grape leaves during the whole autumn, winter and early spring. Grape leaves are sold in different markets of Yerevan and fresh ones usually start appearing around end of May.Many people prefer eating grape leaves dolma with matsuni(Armenian traditional natural yogurt) with garlic, and to tell the truth, it is much tastier that way.
After you cook dolma you should arrange it on a plate and cover with white layer of matsuni. The tasty aroma of dolma will spread in the room. We say "Bari Akhorzhak" – Bon Appetite and start eating.
Bon Appetite
