Azerbaijan / Main
Azerbaijani dolma
Vine leaves with lamb, rice and mint, cooked under a weight, with garlic matsoni.
Ingredients
- Vine leaves300 g
- Lamb, minced600 g
- Rice150 g
- Onions2
- Fresh mint50 g
- Coriander50 g
- Dill30 g
- Ghee60 g
- Matsoni or yoghurt400 ml
- Garlic4 cloves
- Cinnamon1/2 tsp
- Salt and pepperto taste
Quantities are auto-calculated from the original recipe as a guide. Items without numbers (e.g. “to taste”) are not changed.
Method 7 steps
Scald fresh leaves for a minute; soak preserved ones half an hour in cold water.
Rinse the rice and mix it with the mince, finely chopped onion, salt, pepper and cinnamon.
Chop all the herbs fine and work them into the filling; their volume should be obvious.
Put a teaspoon of filling on each leaf, tuck in the sides and roll it into a tight cylinder a finger thick.
Line the bottom of the pot with torn leaves and pack the dolma in tight layers, seam down.
Dot the top with ghee, add water level with the top layer and cover with a weighted plate.
Cook an hour on a low heat and serve with matsoni whisked with crushed garlic and salt.
