Azerbaijani recipe
How to make Dolma
Yarpaq dolması
All of Azerbaijan; stuffed leaves and vegetables are loved across the Caucasus, the Middle East and the Balkans
Young vine leaves wrapped around minced lamb, rice and herbs and simmered gently, then served warm with garlic yoghurt. In Azerbaijan dolma is usually folded into small neat parcels. Cabbage leaves, peppers, tomatoes and aubergines are stuffed the same way.
Ingredients
- About 40 vine leaves in brine (one jar), rinsed
- 500 g minced lamb or beef
- 60 g short-grain rice, rinsed
- 1 onion, grated
- 1 small bunch each of coriander, dill and mint, finely chopped
- Salt and black pepper
- 30 g butter
- To serve: 300 g plain yoghurt mixed with 1 crushed garlic clove
Method
- Mix the meat, rice, onion and herbs with salt and pepper and knead well.
- Lay a vine leaf shiny side down, stalk towards you, and cut off the stalk. Put a heaped teaspoon of filling near the base.
- Fold the bottom over the filling, fold in the sides and roll it up into a small, firm parcel. Repeat with the rest.
- Line a heavy pan with a few spare leaves and pack the dolma in tightly, seam side down. Dot with the butter and add hot water to just cover them.
- Put a small plate on top to hold them down, cover and simmer very gently for about 50 minutes, until the rice and meat are cooked. Serve warm with the garlic yoghurt.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
In 2017 UNESCO added the tradition of making and sharing dolma in Azerbaijan to its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
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