Stuffed Vine Leaves (Dolmadakia)
This is the vegan version of stuffed vine leaves. Although in Romania the most common version contains ground meat, here I used the Greek version.
In Greece they're called dolmadakia and are served as an appetizer with yogurt or a tangy lemon sauce. Since they have no meat, they obviously have no fat, so they're excellent served cold too. If you can find young leaves, that's great; if not, you can buy them already blanched - I've seen them in supermarkets but haven't tested them yet.
Ingredients
250 g rice
5 sprigs parsley
3 sprigs dill (or mint)
1 level teaspoon dried oregano
1 large tomato
2 small onions
6 tablespoons oil
salt, pepper
1 tablespoon homemade vegeta
1/4 lemon
25 vine leaves
Pieces: 25
How to prepare stuffed vine leaves (dolmadakia)
- Stack the washed vine leaves and place them in a pot of boiling water. Let them blanch for 2 minutes. Drain and let them cool.
- Meanwhile, prepare the filling: sauté the finely chopped onion in hot oil until well softened, about 5 minutes. Add the onion with all the oil to the rice. Then add the chopped herbs, oregano, grated tomato, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.
- Place a teaspoon of filling on each vine leaf. Fold up the edges from the stem end, then the side edges, and roll (see photos).
- Arrange the stuffed leaves in several layers in a small pot. Pour water to cover and add a tablespoon of homemade vegeta and a little salt. Add the lemon juice.
- Place a small plate on top of the rolls to keep them submerged. Bring to a boil, then cover the pot and let simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes.
* you can also bake them in the oven at 200°C for about 1 hour - Serve warm with lemon sauce as a main dish, or cold with yogurt as an appetizer.
Blanching the leaves for 2 minutes
Preparing the filling
Placing filling on the leaf
Folding up the stem end
Then the sides
And rolling
In the pot