About the dish
Dolma is a shared name for stuffed vegetables and rolled leaves made from the Balkans and Turkey through the Caucasus to Iraq and Iran. The best-known version uses young vine leaves around a filling of minced lamb or beef, rice, onion and herbs such as dill, mint and coriander. Stuffed peppers, tomatoes, aubergines, courgettes and cabbage leaves are just as popular. Dolma is braised slowly in a little stock and served warm with garlic yoghurt, while meatless versions with rice in olive oil are eaten cold as a starter. Rolling hundreds of little parcels is often a job for the whole family before a holiday.
Main ingredients
- vine leaves
- minced lamb or beef
- rice
- onion
- dill and mint
- yoghurt
- garlic
Albania: In Albania, japrakë – vine leaves filled with rice, sometimes with meat.
Armenia: In Armenia: տոլմա (tolma), served with garlicky matsun yoghurt; during Lent a version with beans and lentils is made.
Azerbaijan: In Azerbaijan: yarpaq dolması in vine leaves and kələm dolması in cabbage; the tradition of making dolma was inscribed on the UNESCO list in 2017.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: In Bosnia, dolma mostly means stuffed peppers, onions (sogan-dolma) and courgettes.
Bulgaria: In Bulgaria, лозови сарми – sarmi in vine leaves.
Cyprus: In Cyprus, κουπέπια (koupepia) – vine leaves filled with meat and rice.
Greece: Ντολμαδάκια (dolmadakia) – vine leaves filled with rice and herbs, often meatless, with lemon.
Iraq: In Iraq dolma is a whole pot of stuffed vegetables – onions, peppers, courgettes, aubergines and vine leaves – braised in a tangy sauce, often over lamb ribs.
Türkiye: In Turkey dolma means stuffed vegetables, while rolled vine leaves are called sarma; meatless versions with rice cooked in olive oil and eaten cold are also popular.
More: Wikipedia (pl) Wikipedia (en)
