Stuffed Grape Leaves

Many things in life appear to be difficult to deal with, hard to achieve,or even impossible to happen. This when you see it from a far distance. However, when you close up, all these virtual boundaries you have placed between you and your goal will disappear completely and instantly, even if you didn’t know about them in the first place. And instead, you will find something beautiful .. something splendid. The reason behind what I’m saying is that, I used to think that Stuffed Grape Leaves is the last thing I could do in my whole life .. well not any more!

There are zillion and zillion of recipes out there on how to make a tasty Stuffed Grape Leaves. You will see some of them containing meat and some don’t, some of them can be eaten cold and others should be hot before serving, and the list of this variety will continue without an end. In the last 26 years of my life, I’ve tasted numerous of this variety, however, I couldn’t find one that can compete with my aunt’s recipe! I’ve also noticed that no one could resist her’s however hard he/she tries to do so, it is unresistable dish indeed.

I called my aunt two days back, and told her that “my colleagues asked me to prepare something for them since we are celebrating Ramadan’s arrival”, and that I wanted to learn her stuffed grape leaves recipe long time ago and I believe that this is a good chance to do it! She welcomed me to visit her and to do the cooking thing in her kitchen. Well, of course I told her about the additional equipments I have to bring with me, since the recipe seemed to be the impossible mission. I told her about the camera, tripod, flash, etc. and warned her that these stuff may crowd the kitchen! Just in case that this may discomfort her. Apparently, she welcomed them as well.

My problem with stuffed grape leaves was that, I always believed that the process is too hard to implement, it needs very experienced cook and the result is not guaranteed at all! All this turned to be an illusion and the reality was >> stuffed grape leaves are simple, straight forward and easy. The only thing is, if you want to have the delicious authentic taste then, you’re supposed to spend a long time on stuffing, rolling and cooking. The preparation time may take approximately two hours if you are working alone, and you will need another three hours for cooking on very low heat! So, if you are preparing this for guests, then I recommend that you do it one day before their visit.

Stuffed Grape Leaves

This recipe serves a big number of people no less than 10. It is recommended to prepare it one day before, because it takes long time to be prepared and cooked. Cooking it one day in advance and placing it in the refrigerator will give the grape leaves more richness in taste.

Adapted from my aunt.

Filling ingredients

1 lb grape leaves,washed and drained (usually it comes in a jar)

2 cup short grain rice, thoroughly washed and drained

1 bunch parsley, stem removed, chopped, thoroughly washed and drained

2 handful fresh mint, stem removed, chopped, thoroughly washed and drained

2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped

2 medium sized onions,chopped

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon mix spices (ground Cumin, ground black pepper, ground coriander, ground cinnamon and ground dried black lemon*)

1 medium sized lemon, juiced

1 medium sized potato washed and peeled

Chicken Stock Ingredients

2 chicken stock cubes**

75g tomato paste

1/2 medium sized fresh lemon, juiced

1/4 cup olive oil

3 cups hot water

Needed equipments

1 medium sized strainer

1 larg mixing bowl

1 medium heat proof bowl

1 medium sized chopping board

1 tray,10 quart or more(optional, you can use anything that makes the rolling surface straight)

1 8- to 10-quart heavy pot

1 medium sized plate, make sure you are using a plate with material that doesn’t brake with heat.

7 inch iron heat defuser

Making the stuffed grape leaves

1. Using the chopping board, cut the parsley and fresh mint into small pieces. Place the chopped leaves in the big bowl.

2. Put the rice, chopped tomatoes, onions, the lemon juice and all the spices into the same big bowl and mix thoroughly then set it aside.

3. To get small sized stuffed grape leaves, cut each leave into three equal parts, or into two parts if the leaves are small in size. Lay the smooth side of the leave on the tray, face down, and let the harsh side of the leave face up.

4. Stuff each leave with a very small amount of the filling, use a teaspoon to help you in measuring the exact amount needed. Align the filling near the boundary of the wider side of the leave.

5. Fold up the right side of the leave and let it cover the filling, then fold the left side of the leave and place it on top of right side. Start rolling the leave from the bottom, where you have placed the filling to the top. Make sure that the folding is tight so it won’t open while cooking. Try to make both left and right sides straight, so you can get a smooth cylindrical shape while rolling the leave.

6. When the rolling part is finished, place the rolled leave in your palm, close your palm very tightly over it and press hard. This will ensure that the rolled leave won’t open while cooking. Repeat the previous steps till you finish all the grape leaves.

7. Chop the peeled potato into 1/2 inch slices, then align them in the bottom of the cooking pot. After covering all the surface with potato slices, gently start to align the stuffed grape leaves on top of the potatoes until the pot is filled. Place a heavy (flipped upside down) plate on top of the stuffed leaves. The plate should cover a big portion of the stuffed leaves but not completely, to give the vapor some space to evaporate.

8. Mix the chicken stock ingredients together in the medium sized bowl. Then pour the mixture on top of the plate that covers the stuffed leaves. The stock level should reach the surface of the stuffed leaves. If it didn’t add some water till it does.

9. Cover the pot and place it on a medium heat for half an hour. After that adjust the heat to low and let it cook for an hour.

10. When the hour is finished, remove the cooking pot and place the iron heat defuser***. Bring the pot back and place it on top of the defuser. Keep the pot on heat for two hours. This is implemented for gas type stove. For electric type adjust the heat as low as possible.

11. When the stuffed leaves complete the two hours on the low heat, take one piece and check the rice in it. It should be tender and you can smash it with a fork if you pressed gently. If it didn’t check if there is any remaining water. If not then add 1/4 cup and keep cooking for another half an hour then check again.

12. When the stuffed leaves are done, turn off the heat and keep it to cool down for a while, 15 minutes is more than enough. Then using the same tray you have used before turn the pot up side down and take all the stuffed leaves out side and empty the pot into the tray. Then bring your serving plate and arrange the stuffed grape leaves in it. It is best when served warm.

* If available, if it’s not then proceed without it.

** You can use 3 cups hot prepared chicken stock instead. If you do so, then don’t remove the 3 cups of water mentioned above.

*** Note that the defuser is used only for gas type stoves and not for the electrical type.

**** If you have excess remaining filling you can store it in the refrigerator for 3 days approximately.

enjoy with love,

Maryam

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Tagged as: leaves, ramadan, stuffed