Dolma (meat-filled)

evelyn/athens's Note:

I was recently asked for a recipe for Dolma with a meat filling, and here's my recipe.

• Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins
• Prep Time: 1 hrs 30 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large onion, minced
• 1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef or 1 1/2 lbs lamb or 1 1/2 lbs pork (I use pork)
• 3/4 cup short-grain rice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint or 3 teaspoons dried mint
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or 3 teaspoons dried dill
• salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 100 jarred grape leaves, packed in brine, rinsed thoroughly (about)
• 1 1/2 lemons, juice of
• boiling water
• 2 beef bouillon cubes

Egg-Lemon Sauce

• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 lemons, juice of
• 2 tablespoons cornflour

Directions:

1. Combine meat with olive oil, onion, herbs, rice and season generously.
2. Line the pot you will be cooking your dolma in with a couple of layers of torn grape leaves (to prevent the dolma from being scorched while cooking).
3. Place a grape leaf, shiny side down, on surface in front of you.
4. If the stem is quite thick, cut it out with a knife, making a V.
5. Pinch off about a teaspoon of the meat filling and place in the centre of the leaf.
6. Fold in sides of leaf and roll up, not too loose and not too tight (allowing a bit for the expansion of the rice as it cooks), into neat little packets.
7. Place neatly in pot and continue making dolma until you've used up all your meat mixture.
8. Pour lemon juice over and cover dolma with boiling water, covering dolma with about 1/2 inch of water.
9. Weight down with a plate and put lid on pot.
10. Cook at a gentle simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until rice is tender.
11. Carefully remove dolma, and place in a heatproof platter.
12. Make Egg-Lemon Sauce (Avgolemono).
13. Beat the eggs with the lemon juice and corn flour.
14. Slowly dribble in hot stock left from cooking dolma, whisking egg mixture constantly.
15. Keep adding hot liquid slowly, whisking, to temper the eggs.
16. Pour the egg mixture into the pot with the remaining stock and whisk over a medium-low heat until sauce has thickened.
17. Pour sauce over your dolma and enjoy!

Reviews

[JoeB]

I made these last week and they were delicious. Even my wife loved them (who has thus far only liked evelyn's vegitarian version of this). I also added a Tablespoon of toasted pine nuts and about a teaspoon of currents (since I had them around). Very very good!