Dolma (Stuffed Grape Leaves)

Dolma is a main course from the Middle East. It's really delicious, and can be eaten for days. For a pot of dolma, 1–3 other people are recommended to help.
Ingredients
Vegetables
- 25 grape leaves
- 2½ pounds onions (about 10 medium-sized onions)
- 2 hot peppers
- 2 zucchini, peeled
- 2 squash, peeled
- 1 small cabbage
- 2 tomatoes
- 2 green bell peppers
Stuffing
- 2 pounds coarse or minced raw chuck roast
- 1½ tablespoons allspice
- 1½ teaspoons black pepper
- 3 cups raw rice
- 1 large can (12 ounces) tomato paste
- 1 can tomato purée or 3 fresh tomatoes
- 2 jalapeños (optional), chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2½–3 tablespoons salt (or to taste)
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon citric acid (lemon doozy)
- 2 cups water
Steps
- Blanch grape leaves in pot of boiling water, covered with towel, 3–5 min.
- Cut each onion at bottom root. Slice ½-inch lengthwise. Boil 5–10 min until soft. Separate layers without tearing.
- Slice zucchini and squash lengthwise. Hollow out.
- Core cabbage. Boil 10 min. Pull leaves apart for stuffing.
- Hollow out hot peppers, tomatoes and peppers. Keep tops.
- Combine all stuffing ingredients in large bowl.
- Lay each grape leaf shiny side down. Place 1 tablespoon stuffing at bottom center by stem.
- Fold bottom of leaf up over stuffing. Fold in sides. Roll up into cylinder.
- Stuff tomatoes and green pepper. Replace tops.
- Stuff other vegetables. Place zucchini and squash on their side; place onions (rolled tightly) and tomatoes upright.
- Layer stuffed vegetables in pot, alternating grape leaves and vegetables. Finish with grape leaves on top.
- Mix citric acid and water. Pour over dolma to just barely cover top layer of grape leaves.
- Place small inverted plate directly on dolma as weight.
- Cover pot. Cook over high heat 10 min or until boiling.
- Lower heat to medium. Simmer about 40 min until most liquid is absorbed and rice and meat are cooked.
- Remove from heat. Stand 10 min.
- Remove lid and plate. Place large platter on pot. Wearing oven mitts, flip pot onto platter on a table.
- Arrange dolma on platter. Serve.
Notes from the original
- Stuff all the vegetables a bit loosely to allow rice to expand while cooking.
- Bulghur may be substituted for rice in any dolma recipe.
- 1 cup lemon juice can be substituted for the citric acid.
Source. Adapted from “Cookbook:Dolma (Stuffed Grape Leaves)” by Wikibooks contributors, revision of 2025-07-17, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Changes. Steps rewritten into short commands. Introduction shortened. Wiki formatting removed. This adapted recipe is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo. DOLMA-5-1.jpg by Unknown authorUnknown author, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia. Resized; otherwise unchanged.






