What is dolma? This name comes from the Turkish verb "dolmak", which means "to be stuffed." This is a whole group of dishes from stuffed vegetables or leaves, the recipes of which appeared in the kitchens of the former Ottoman Empire and its environs.
Today this dish symbolizes Greek and Turkish cuisine, it can also be found in the Balkans, in the countries of the Caucasus, on the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East, Central Asia, North Africa and the Western Mediterranean.
Dolma is widespread in Azerbaijan and Armenia, where it is customary to cook it with grape leaves or wild mulberry. However, there are recipes with chard leaves, cabbage, artichoke, potatoes, eggplant, onions, zucchini, bell peppers, beets, as well as figs and dried apricots.
Azerbaijan national dish
As noted above, the most famous dolma recipe in Azerbaijani is using grape leaf. The filling may include meat or vegetables. The meat dish is usually served warm or hot, often with sauce; the vegetarian version is usually cold. Both species are often eaten with yogurt and garlic.
The dolma dish in Azerbaijan is not just stuffed grape leaves. To cook this dish, people also start zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes or cabbage. Traditionally, chopped lamb, lamb and / or beef, rice, onions and herbs are used as fillings.
The recipe for dolma in Azerbaijani includes four varieties:
- from eggplant
- sweet pepper
- from tomato
- from grape leaf.
It is impossible to imagine a festive table in Azerbaijan without this dish. Dolma is so popular that the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of this country is currently resolving the issue of adding information about it to UNESCO lists as a culinary tradition of Azerbaijan, which could turn into a world cultural intangible heritage.
How to cook this dish
Azerbaijani-made dolma from grape leaves is simple. For her you will need:
- 500 grams of lamb or beef,
- 1 onion, finely chopped,
- 2/3 cup rice
- 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped finely,
- 1 small bunch of dill, chopped,
- 15 fresh mint leaves, chopped,
- 1 teaspoon,
- 1/4 teaspoon of tea pepper
- 65 fresh grape leaves (or canned),
- 4 tablespoons melted butter,
- 1/2 cup of water
- garlic yogurt (1/2 cup plain yogurt mixed with 2 minced garlic cloves).
Cooking process
In a large bowl, mix the ground meat, onions, rice, fresh herbs, salt and pepper and knead vigorously for 5 minutes.
When using fresh grape leaves, rinse 10 in a large pot of boiling water for 2 minutes. This will soften them and make rolling easier. Cut the stems and hard parts.
If you use canned leaves, place them in a large colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water. If they are too thick, blanch in boiling water in the same way as fresh, but only for one minute, then drain.
Spread the grape leaf shiny side down on the board or palm and place 1 teaspoon of the filling in the base of the stem. Fold the lower end of the sheet, then its sides above the filling and roll it up. Repeat with all the leaves. Then place the workpieces in a high-frying pan or pan, close to each other. You can put them in several layers, if necessary. If you use fresh grape leaves, sprinkle a little salt between each layer. Pour melted butter on top and add water.
If necessary, place a small cover or plate on top of the dolma to hold the products tightly to prevent them from opening. Put on the stove and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low or medium low and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until leaves are soft.
Azerbaijani Dolma Recipe: Option Two
There are many varieties of this dish, including among the classic species. The recipe below is a more dense and fatty meal, compared with the first option. For him you will need:
- 150 grams of grape leaves ,
- 500 grams of minced meat from a mixture of lamb and beef (in a ratio of 1: 1),
- 200 grams of onion,
- salt and pepper,
- 1/2 teaspoon of tea turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- fresh herbs - coriander, dill, mint and tarragon,
- 50 grams of round grain rice,
- 50 grams of chickpea
- 80 grams of lamb fat.
How to do it?
How to cook Azerbaijani dolma this way? Remove the fat from the refrigerator to make it soft enough.
If you use fresh herbs, rinse and chop finely. Wash the rice, but do not cook it in advance. In turn, the chickpeas need to be boiled in advance, and then cut each pea into two halves.
Combine minced meat and chopped onion with your hands. Add rice, chopped herbs and dried spices, salt and pepper, chickpeas and fat. Mix well.
When using fresh grape leaves, wash and dry them. If you take canned ones, place them in a large bowl, add hot water and leave for 2-3 minutes to soften. Strain the leaves.
Take a sheet, put a piece of minced meat in the middle and fold the corners down, and then lift it up and roll it into a ball. Repeat this with each sheet.
Place dolma in a pan with a thick bottom. Place an inverted dessert plate or saucer on top of the workpieces and place a heavy object, such as a stone, on top. This helps to stop dolma deployment during cooking. Add water to the pan according to product level.
Bring to a boil. Turn the heat on and simmer for one and a half hours until the meat and rice are cooked. To check the sufficiency of salt and seasoning during cooking, dip a slice of bread in the liquid in a pan and try.
The dish is served with yogurt mixed with finely chopped garlic and fresh bread.
Azerbaijani Vegetable Dolma
Sometimes meat is not used, and the leaves of cabbage or grapes are filled with vegetable filling. This dish is called “naked dolma”. To do it, you will need:
- 200 grams of rice
- 4 onions,
- grape leaves,
- 200 grams of chestnuts,
- 120 grams of butter,
- 200 grams of tomatoes or 1 tablespoon of tomato paste,
- 80 grams or 1 bunch of coriander,
- 200 grams of yogurt,
- 4-5 cloves of garlic,
- cinnamon, salt and pepper.
Azerbaijani summer dolma is prepared as follows. Slice onions and herbs. Wash the rice. Add peeled and chopped chestnuts, tomatoes (tomato paste), oil, pepper and salt. Onion, herbs and rice and mix well. Brew grape leaves in boiling water, peel them from the stems and wrap each of them around a lump of filling with a square shape. Place the dolma in the pan, add water, cover with a plate and simmer for 1 hour.
Serve this dish sprinkled with cinnamon, along with yogurt mixed with finely chopped garlic.
Fish option
The recipe for dolma in Azerbaijani may involve the use of not only meat and vegetables, but also fish. For this version of the dish you will need:
- 400 grams of any fish fillet,
- 40 grams of onion,
- 180 grams of grape leaves,
- 80 grams of coriander,
- 200 grams of yogurt,
- salt and pepper.
Peel and chop the fish (preferably omul or zander), then mix with salt, pepper, finely chopped onions and coriander. Remove the stems from the grape leaves and dip them in hot water for a minute. Wrap about 25-30 grams of filling in each leaf and place in a pan. Pour the broth made from fish heads and fins and simmer until cooked. Serve with yogurt in a separate bowl.
Option with quince
Another authentic recipe for dolma in Azerbaijani is using quince as a basis. For him you need:
- 400 grams of minced lamb / lamb,
- 1600 grams of quince
- 80 grams of molten butter,
- 100 grams of chestnuts,
- 50 grams of dill,
- 20 grams of sugar
- salt.
Add salt, dill and peeled chestnuts to minced meat, fry in oil. Cut out the middle of the quince, fill the fruits with the filling. Fold in a saucepan, pour the broth isolated when frying the minced meat, and simmer until the dish is cooked.