Stuffed Grape Leaves / Yarpag Dolmasi
No Azerbaijani table is complete without DOLMA, the all-time favorite, and my favorite too as a matter of fact. The word DOLMA means “stuffed” in Azeri. Variations of this dish are present in cuisines of several other countries, including Middle Eastern, Persian, Turkish and Greek. I’ve tried different versions but still there is something special about Azerbaijani dolma. There is this irresistible flavor of aromatic fresh herbs mixed with that of meat and rice. Also, it is smaller and rounder (or squarer) in shape than its foreign counterparts that usually have longer tube-like shapes. I like my dolma to be of a bite-size, neither too small nor too big. Try it with a scoop of creamy garlic-yogurt sauce on top and you will promise to yourself to make this dish again as soon as possible! Warning but a harmless one. Rolling the leaves may require a bit of effort and time - but hey the result is WORTH it, I PROMISE!! Note: You can find canned grape leaves in gourmet food stores and in most Middle Eastern/Persian stores. Are you ready to cook? Let’s roll!. I mean, let’s roll the leaves:)
GRAPE LEAVES STUFFED WITH MEAT AND RICE / YARPAQ DOLMASI
Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 1 ½
Serves 4 to 6
INGREDIENTS
1 pound (450g) ground lamb or beef
1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
½ cup short or medium grain rice, washed and drained
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)
½ cup chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper to taste
80 small or 40 medium size fresh grape leaves or canned leaves (about ¾ of 16oz can)
3 tablespoons butter, melted
½ cup water
Yogurt-garlic sauce
1 cup plain yogurt, mixed with 2-3 gloves peeled and crushed garlic
1. To prepare the filling, in a mixing bowl combine meat, onion, rice, fresh herbs, salt (add less if you are going to use salted canned leaves) and pepper and knead thoroughly.
2. If using fresh grape leaves, blanch them in small batches (about 10 at a time) in a pot with boiling water for 2 minutes. This will soften the leaves and make it easer to roll them and faster to cook. Remove the leaves with a slotted spoon and drain. Cut off the stems or any hard veins.
If using canned leaves, put them in batches in colander and place the colander under a sink, then rinse the leaves under cold water and drain. Cut off the stems. If using medium or large leaves, cut them in half. If there are any torn or damaged leaves, do not discard - use them to patch holes in other leaves. NOTE: If canned leaves are too thick, blanch them in boiling water for about a minute, then drain and proceed as directed in the recipe.
3. Hold a grape leaf shiny side down on the palm of your left hand, and place 1 or 2 teaspoons of the filling at the stalk end of the leaf. With your right hand, fold top, then the sides over the filling and roll up tightly.
4. Arrange the stuffed grape leaves close together seam side down in a medium non-stick pan, making several layers. If using fresh grape leaves, sprinkle a little salt in between each layer.
5. Pour butter over the grape leaves and add water. Place a small lid or a small ovenproof plate on top to keep dolmas tight and to prevent them from opening. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium to low and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until the leaves are tender and the filling is cooked. There should be little liquid left, reduced to the oily consistency.
6. Serve hot with garlic-yogurt sauce scooped on top, fresh salad or pickles and bread!
NUSH OLSUN!
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28 Comments Add your own
1. Anonymous | January 23rd, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Whoohoo! I am glad you sent me the link. I love dolma! Will roll soon:)) Your pics are so good, too! Welldone.
2. Nora | January 24th, 2008 at 1:51 am
Farida,I loved the way show the process in pics. It is going to be comprehensive book indeed:-) - with all its pictures, step-by-step instructions. keep up a good work!
Nora
3. hapitli | January 25th, 2008 at 5:47 am
wow, halal olsun size! tebrik edirem! that’s so great! hope american girls learn from you how to cook azeri meals:))
dolma is my favourite..and you present it in a very nice manner!
4. Anonymous | January 25th, 2008 at 6:27 am
Wow, this web site rocks! I browse ethnic food blogs alot, but honestly, this is by far the best I’ve seen so far!
5. ondan-bundan | January 29th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
Great initiative! Can you put a penny or some other standardized identifiable object next to your dolmas? I want to get an idea of its size. Putting aside personal preferences, I always thought that a smaller dolma held higher esthetic value in Azerbaijani culture ;-)… though it could be a regional or even a family tradition. Thanks for this page! Dolma is definitely one of my all time favs.
6. Farida | January 30th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Thanks for your comment. About the dolma size, it is not as small as a penny. Maybe the size of a whole walnut without a shell (can’t think of anything else), it all depends. some make it real small and round, some a little bigger. I make it small but kind of “squarerish”.
7. Sevinj | February 15th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
Farida, dolma is delicious! I see in USA you can find relatively small leaves. Not in Ottawa. Sometimes I have to divide the leaf in three or eve four. Dolma is wonderful! Could you put the recipe of badimjan dolmasi?
Thank you .
8. familiabencomo | March 24th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Thank you, Farida, for posting this! The dolmas look yummy. This is one of our family’s favorite treats…. I hope I don’t ruin it for them by trying to make it myself!
tanti baci, bella, Amy
9. jeremypb | March 24th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
I started making stuffed grape leaves after reading a recipe here:
and love them so now I’m looking at some other recipes, that’s how I came across this one. I’m going to try some of the different spices you use. They look delicious!
10. jeremypb | March 24th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
sorry, here’s thelink to the recipe i use hopefully it works this time
11. jeremypb | March 24th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
http://www.oneforthetable.com/oftt/stories/my-mother-s-grape-leaves-3.html
12. farida | March 24th, 2008 at 6:33 pm
Jeremy, thanks for visiting. Dolma has so many different variations and every country has its own special recipe. I hope you enjoy my Azerbaijani version too. Please let me know how it turns out. All these talks about dolma make me crave for it now:)
13. Findiq | May 25th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
I am so excited about your tendir recipe! I lived in bilesuvar for 2 years as an english teacher and miss good bread all the time! I’m in south carolina so we don’t really have grape leaves. it is not so diverse here. I assume that the filling for tomato dolma is the same. But how do i actually cook them and do you have any tips on hollowing those suckers out?
Also, please take a moment to check out my version of the azerbaijani national anthem
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_zl8e7-dT8
14. writerbakermusicmaker | June 2nd, 2008 at 9:26 pm
The pictures of your process are gorgeous. Makes my mouth water just looking at them.
15. Maja | November 22nd, 2008 at 3:37 pm
my goodness!! this is amazing!!! i just came across your site, and dolma is one of my favourite foods, in the balkans the recipe is similar =D
16. Kasey | December 14th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
I LOVE dolmas. They are a family tradition and I just made them myself for the first time last night. My mom adds cinnamon to hers, but the rest of her recipe is nearly identical to yours. I’m going to post my results sometime this week. Hopefully I’ll make my mom proud with my dolmas!
17. James Craig | March 26th, 2009 at 11:26 am
I just returned from a wonderful trip from Baku.I stayed in old town by the “maidens tower”. I had Dolma it was great. So I plan to make it for my next business party as well as stuffed mushrooms with eggplant. The paople of azerbaijan are so kind. I can’t wait to return. The food is great and the sea is beautiful. I loved the “Eternal Flame” and the monuments
18. Colleen | May 16th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Sa? olun, Farida! M?n Bak?da ya?ay?ram. Bu ax?am m?n yarpaq dolmas? bi?ir?r?m - birinci d?f?! Çox q???ng blogdur.
19. Colleen | May 16th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
Ooops - just noticed that Azerbaijani letters don’t work on your blog. Wonder why? Anyway, you will know the missing letters for sure.
20. Rob | June 9th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Hi Farida, I had my first attempt at making the dolma at the weekend. They were a great success and brought back good memories of my visits to Gence. I tried mine with cabbage leaves. I thought they were going to fall apart but they held together well. I will be making them again soon and thought I might try them with chopped mint added - any thoughts? Rob (UK)
21. Mesud E. | June 11th, 2009 at 7:12 am
Birdaha SALAMLAR eziz Feride xanim!
Dolmani siz yazan qaydada hazirlamisham, bir-ikisin yedim sonra fikirleshdim ki gelim birince size MIN KERE CHOOOOOOOOOX sagol deyim sonra gedib yemeye davam edim!
BIR DAHA TESHEKKURLER!
Saqilarimla,
Norvec,den- Mesud.
22. Edible Lives: Farida̵&hellip | July 2nd, 2009 at 7:55 am
[...] favorite recipe on my blog is for stuffed grape leaves and this is only because it happens to be my favorite [...]
23. ayxan | September 9th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
YARPAQ DOLMASI MY FAVORIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITE!!!!!!
24. Gunay | December 29th, 2009 at 1:36 am
Hi Farida, Happy coming new year!! I’ll make dolma for the new year party using your receipe ;)) Thanks a lot!! Gunay from Japan.
25. Azerbaijan – Yarpag dol&hellip | February 1st, 2010 at 12:45 pm
[...] However I was so excited about booking my holiday online I forgot about the dish and now the house smells of burnt vine leaves. Unfortunately burnt does not mean cooked so with a gallon more of water they are boiling away – call it a 6th sense but I have a feeling this is not going to be one of my finest meals! Recipe from here – a very good step by step guide minus burnt bits. [...]
26. Leyla | February 7th, 2010 at 6:20 am
Hi Farida, thank you so much for all the recipes, I’ve tried a couple already and they turned out delicious! Just was wondering, what gives a better result, in your opinion - using beef or lamb for yarpaq dolmasi? I’ve never made doma and want to make it for my mom’s birthday
Thanks in advance!
27. FARIDA | February 9th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
LEYLA: Both work great for yarmaq dolmasi. Honestly, I love both variations, but make with beef more often. The family likes it better:) Beef makes it sort of lighter, while lamb is more satisfying and rich.
28. AZ Cookbook - Food From A&hellip | March 5th, 2010 at 4:56 pm
[...] soup with fresh herbs, chickpeas and sometimes meatballs), use it as a condiment to scoop onto dolma, or onto pasta dishes, in the latter case flavoring it with crushed garlic, or make a refreshing [...]
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