Dolma with prunes in beet leaves
6 servings
90 minutes
Ilya Cherkashin, chef of the Saviv restaurant, shared the recipe with us.
1
Prepare all the ingredients.
2
Remove the tough stems from all the greens (parsley, cilantro, tarragon), chop them with a knife, and add to the minced meat.
- Parsley: 50 g
- Cilantro: 50 g
- Tarragon (estragon): 25 g
- Ground lamb: 1 kg
3
If the prunes are hard, soak them beforehand. Then set aside 3-4 berries, chop the rest, and add them to the minced meat.
- Prunes: 100 g
4
Add salt, ucho-suneli, and khmeli-suneli to the minced meat.
- Salt: to taste
- Blue fenugreek (utskho-suneli): 15 g
- Khmeli-suneli: 20 g
5
Pour chicken broth (150 ml) into the minced meat - this will add juiciness to the filling.
- Chicken broth: 400 ml
6
Add the boiled rice (cooked for 8 minutes and cooled) and mix well.
- Rice: 50 g
7
Blanch beet leaves in boiling water for 5-10 seconds, then transfer them to ice water — they will become elastic and retain their color.
- Beet greens: 200 g
8
Pour a little water on the work surface, lay the flattened beet leaf with the tail away from you. Beat the central vein in the leaf with a spoon to make it flat.
9
Place 30 grams (1 tbsp) of minced meat at the edge of the leaf, fold the sides of the leaf, and then roll it like a cigar. Prepare dolma from the remaining leaves and minced meat in this way.
- Ground lamb: 1 kg
10
Soak grape leaves in water (if dry) or rinse off excess salt (if pickled). Lay two layers of grape leaves at the bottom of the baking dish so that they stick out halfway from the dish.
- Grape leaves: 30 g
11
Place the first layer of dolma tightly next to each other, starting from the edges and moving towards the center. Arrange the second layer in a checkerboard pattern.
12
Mix the pre-prepared homemade pepper paste (roasted peppers peeled and blended with olive oil) with the remaining broth and pour it over the dolma so that the liquid is slightly above the surface of the leaves.
- Sweet pepper paste (biber salçası): 40 g
- Chicken broth: 400 ml
13
Tear the remaining prunes and dried apricots (if used) by hand and place them in the gaps between the dolma. Lay cinnamon sticks on top of the dolma.
- Prunes: 100 g
- Dried apricots: to taste
- Cinnamon sticks: 2 pieces
14
Completely cover the dolma with grape leaves, then place an inverted plate on top as a press.
15
Bake the dolma in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 20-25 minutes (if no liquid leaks from under the plate when pressed lightly, the dolma is ready).
16
Serve dolma warm with sour cream, labneh, thick matsoni, or similar dairy products.
- Sour cream: to taste