Best Dolmathakia Avgolemono Meat Stuffed Grape Leave Recipes

DOLMADAKIA AVGOLEMONO: GRAPELEAVES IN A LEMONY SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine the onion with ¼ cup olive oil in a pot and cook over medium heat until soft and golden. About 10 minutes.
• Combine the ground beef, herbs, rice, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Add the cooked onions and the oil that they were cooked in. Mix until combined.
• Rinse and dry the grape leaves. Cut the hard stem from each leaf. Reserve the smallest and the torn leaves to lay on bottom of pot.
• Lay a grape leaf shiny side down and place a tablespoon of rice filling on the bottom end of the leaf, near the stem.
• ​Fold the stem end of leaf over the filling. Fold the sides over and roll up snugly but not too tight. The rice will expand while cooking.
• Repeat with all of the remaining grape leaves until your filling is done.
• Layer half of the small and torn grape leaves to create a bed for the dolmades in a pot.
• Season the lamb on both sides with salt and pepper and place in the pot along with the grape leaves.
• Place the dolmades seam side down and very close together over the bed of leaves. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Pour the olive oil and lemon juice over the dolmades.
• ​Place the remaining reserved small leaves over the dolmades.
• Pour the water or chicken stock over the dolmades.
• ​Place an inverted plate over the dolmades to weigh them down and to prevent them from moving around and opening while cooking.
• Cover with lid and bring to a boil.
• Reduce to a simmer and cook about 45 minutes or until tender.
• Carefully strain the liquid out of the pot into a pitcher. There should be 3 cups of liquid. Add more water or chicken broth if there's not enough. Place the broth in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Combine the egg yolks, cornstarch, lemon juice, and dill in a small bowl and whisk together until smooth.
• Add some of the hot broth to the eggs and whisk well to temper.
• Add the egg mixture to the pot and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook 2-3 minutes or until slightly thickened.
• Either pour the sauce over the dolmades or pour some over them and serve the remaining sauce in a gravy boat alongside the dolmades with some lemon wedges.
• Enjoy!

DOLMATHAKIA ME KIMA: STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES WITH MEAT AND RICE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot, and add the juice of 1/2 lemon and the salt. Carefully unroll the leaves (do not separate them). Turn off the heat and place the leaves in the hot water for 3 minutes.
• Remove the leaves and place them in a bowl and cover with cold water. When cooled, drain in a colander. It is not unusual for many of the outer leaves in the jar to be damaged or to tear while using. Set these aside to use later in the recipe.
• To prepare the filling, start by soaking the rice for 10 minutes in hot water and drain. (Alternatively, sauté the rice with the onion.)
• Sauté the onions in 1 tablespoon of olive oil until translucent, not browned.
• In a bowl, combine the onion, ground beef, rice, remaining olive oil, dill, mint, juice of 1 lemon, salt, and pepper. Mix well by hand.
• To fill and roll the leaves, gently separate one leaf and place it shiny-side down on a work surface. Place a heaping teaspoon (or more depending on the size of the leaf) of the filling on the leaf at the point where the stem joins the leaf.
• Fold up the bottom of the leaf over the filling, then each side inward in parallel folds, and roll up the leaf. The roll should be firm, not tight, as the filling will expand during cooking. Repeat until all the filling has been used.
• Because the leaves on the bottom can burn while the filling cooks, put a plate or wooden souvlaki skewers in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot (see tip below). The plate should fit snugly in the pot.
• If there are unused leaves or leaves that were torn and not used during the filling process, put them on the plate or on top of the skewers. Place the dolmathakia on top, packing them closely together (not squashed), seam side down, so they don't unroll during cooking. Layer them until all are in the pot (two to three layers are best, but no more than four layers). Place several unused leaves over the top.
• Take another plate and place it upside down on top of the dolmathakia, using something to weigh it down (a second plate works well). Add the 2 cups of water to the pot and cover. Bring the water to a gentle boil, add the remaining juice from the 1 1/2 lemons, reduce heat to low, and simmer for approximately 50 to 70 minutes. Check to see if done-if the rice has cooked, they are done. If not, continue cooking for another 10 minutes and check again. Cooking time depends both on the type of pot used and the particular stovetop heating element.
• If preferred, you can use a pressure cooker. No plates are needed but do use the skewers in the bottom. Pack the dolmathakia into the pressure cooker, add the 2 cups of water, close and cook for 15 to 20 minutes at the first pressure mark.

"DOLMATHAKIA AVGOLEMONO" MEAT STUFFED GRAPE LEAVE

Steps:

• 1. If using fresh grape leaves, wash and blanch them by dipping in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, depending on thickness of leaves. Remove leaves and place them in a bowl and cover with cold water to cool. Cut off the stems. If using bottled or canned wash thoroughly to remove salt. If you feel they are not tender enough, they also can be blanched for about 3 minutes.
• 2. To prepare filling, soak the rice for 10 minutes in hot water and drain. In a bowl, combine ground beef, rice, onions, olive oil, parsley, dill or mint, juice of 1 lemon, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Mix well by hand.
• 3. To stuff the leaves , place a teaspoon of stuffing on the non-shiny surface of each grape leaf at the point where the stem was. Fold up the bottom of the leaf over the filling, then each side inward and roll up loosely but firm to give mixture room to expand while cooking. Repeat until all the filling has been used.
• 4. Line the bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot with broken or unused leaves. Place the dolmathakia on top, packing them closely together (not squashed), seam side down, so they don't unroll while cooking. Layer them all in the pot (I usually get 2-3 layers). Place several unused leaves on the top. Weigh down the dolmathakia by placing a heavy plate upside down on top of the dolmathakia. Add 2 cups of water to the pot and cover. Bring the water to a gentle boil. Add the remaining lemon juice, remaining salt, pepper and olive oil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for approximately 50-70 minutes. Check to see if done. If the rice has cooked, they are done. If not, continue cooking for another 10 minutes and check again. Cooking time differs on type of pot used and the stovetop element.
• 5. Avgolemono: Traditional Greek Egg-Lemon Sauce This creamy sauce works wonderfully with most vegetable dishes - casserole and steamed - and is a favorite with stuffed cabbage. Use it to give a special touch to leftovers containing ground meat, rice, or vegetables where the lemon taste will blend. Ingredients: 2-3 eggs, separated juice of 2-3 lemons broth from the dish being cooked Preparation: With a fork beat eggs both yolks and whites), slowly add the lemon juice. While beating or whisking continuously, slowly add 2-3 ladlesful of broth. Add the avgolemono sauce on the dolmathakia- in the pot and shake the pot in a circular way so the sauce covers all the dolmathakia. Don't stir with fork or spoon cause the dolmathakia will break. Cover with a towel for 10 minutes and then serve.
• 6. Serving: Individual servings of dolmathakia are 4-5 pieces on small plates as an appetizer, however they can also be used as a side or main dish. Storage: These will keep well in the refrigerator for several days. Return to room temperature before serving. Drizzle olive oil on top and cover to store. These can also be frozen. If you do freeze, reheat in the microwave or by steaming and serve warm. Don't just thaw and eat. It is always best to make the Egg Lemon Sauce fresh. Tips: With any leftover filling you can stuff vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, zucchini and eggplant. To make as a main course, use larger grape leaves and increase the amount of filling to 1 Tbsp on each leaf.

DOLMATHAKIA STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

Steps:

• the grape leaves have already been blanched, simply rinse and set in a colander to drain. If they are fresh, wash well and soak in hot salted water for 5 minutes, then drain.
• Heat 1/2 cup of olive oil over medium heat, and sauté the onion until soft.
• Add rice, half the lemon juice, herbs, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of water, increase heat and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes and turn off heat.
• Allow the filling to sit for 5-10 minutes.
• Place one teaspoon of filling at the stem end of a grape leaf and roll. Continue until filling has been used. (If any of the leaves are very small, use two for each roll.)
• Line the bottom of a pot with unused or broken grape leaves and place the rolls, seam side down, in the pot in layers. Add 1/3 cup of olive oil and the 3-4 cups of water (enough to reach the top of the rolls). Place a plate on top of the rolls to hold them securely while cooking and bring to a full boil. Cook for 20 minutes or until only the sauce remains.

STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES (DOLMA) WITH EGG-LEMON SAUCE (AVGOLEMONO)

Steps:

• DOLMA DIRECTIONS:.
• Saute onions and celery with 1 tablespoon butter until wilted. In a large bowl, add ground lamb, onions, celery, rice, mint sauce, parsley, salt and pepper. Mix well.
• Remove grape leaves from jar and open up onto a large plate.
• Remove one leaf (the bigger the better) and place onto a flat surface with shiny side down.
• Place a small amount of the filling toward the stem side of the leaf and then roll up (tuck in the left and the right side as you roll) towards the top of the leaf.
• Make sure you do not put too much filling in each one.
• Grease the bottom of a Corningware dish or Saucepot with a little oil or Pam, and then line the bottom with some of the smaller grape leaves that you did not use as rollups.
• Place into the dish/pot the rolled grape leaves close together and arrange in layers.
• Add chicken stock, lemon juice, wine or sherry, and remaining tablespoons of butter.
• In order to prevent the grape leaves from opening up during cooking, place a small flat Corningware plate or lid on top of the grape leaves.
• Then place Corningware glass cover onto the Corningware pot.
• Simmer on low for about 1 hour.
• After the 1 hour, set aside to cool.
• While cooling, make the egg-lemon sauce.
• After the sauce is made and you have drained the stuffed grape leaves by holding the lid in place and pouring the liquid into the sink, place several stuffed grape leaves on a dish and pour some hot egg-lemon sauce on top and serve.
• EGG-LEMON SAUCE DIRECTIONS:.
• Lightly beat 2 egg yolks with 1/4 cup of water.
• In a measuring cup, place 2 or 3 tablespoons lemon juice and add enough water for a total of 3/4 cup of liquid. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt.
• Heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil in a small pot and then add the cornstarch, stirring. Add a little of the lemon juice and water mixture to prevent it from becoming lumpy.
• Next, add a little more of the lemon juice and water mixture until smooth, and then add the rest of the lemon juice and water mixture and continue stirring until smooth.
• Remove from the heat for about 1 minute.
• Gradually add the beaten egg yolk mixture, stirring with a whisk until smooth. (Keep in mind that heating will cause the eggs to set, which you do NOT want to do.).
• NOTE: If you have any stuffed grape leaves leftover, you can heat them in a frying pan the next day and serve with the egg-lemon sauce. Or microwave the stuffed grape leaves with some egg-lemon sauce on top, prior to heating.