“Greece has everything. And so does dolma, here it is called “dolmadakia”. Dolma with a lamb is a favourite festive dish, and on weekdays Greeks cook dolma without meat, wrapping only rice and greens in the leaves. At the end of the meal, they fill the dolma with a delicious egg and lemon sauce – avgolemono. It’s so good, you don’t need any meat.
Ingredients
300g pickled grape leaves
1 cup round rice
2 medium onions
1 large bundle of greens (parsley, mint, dill)
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 lemon juice
salt, freshly ground black pepper
For the avgolemono sauce:
3 eggs
juice of 2 large lemons
Step by step recipe
Step 1
Prepare the pickled grape leaves for the dolmadakia
Soak the pickled grape leaves in cold water for 30 minutes, then rinse to remove any excess salt. Rinse in a colander and allow the water to drain.
Step 2
Prepare the filling for the dolmadakia
Peel the onion and chop very finely or chop with a blender (be careful that you get chunks, not mashed). Finely chop the herbs. Mix the rice, onion and herbs and season well with salt and pepper.
Step 3.
Wrap up the filling for the dolmadakia.
Lay the grape leaf on a work surface with the veins facing upwards. On the base of the leaf, at the petiole, a little away from the edge, place 1 tbsp of the filling. Wrap the leaf: cover the filling with the bottom edge of the leaf, then the right and left ends, then the top.
Step 4
Place the dolmata in a pan.
Stack the dolma in a wide pan with a thick bottom, the dolma should fit tightly together. When all the dolma is in the pan, put a flat plate on top of it, this will keep it from floating up. Pour enough water into the pan so it’s about 1-1.5cm above the level of the dolma. Add olive oil and lemon juice, season with salt, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the dolma for 1 hour, until the rice is cooked.
Step 5.
When making dolmadakia you will need a sauce made from eggs and lemon juice.
For the sauce, whisk the eggs with the lemon juice. Scoop about a ladleful of hot liquid into a pan of dolma and pour into the sauce in a very thin stream, stirring constantly with a whisk. Be careful not to boil the eggs.
Step 6.
Pour the sauce into the pan with the Dolmadakia.
Remove the pan with the dolma from the heat and pour in the sauce. Cover with the lid and shake the pan gently so that the sauce spreads evenly. Leave for 30 minutes. Serve the dolma warm together with the sauce.