N° 1 for California Olive Ranch
Recipe and Essay on Olive Oil Poached Stuffed Grape Leaves
Ode:
You’re either a dolmas lover or you are not. And if you are, then you know when you come across these stuffed marinated grape leaves they become your meal, regardless of what time of day it is, including breakfast.
The first dolmas offered to me was by a mentor and initially I didn’t get her obsession. As years went by when I came across them I would get a couple in her memory. The love has been a gradual one and now not unlike potato chips, cherries or cigarettes during a night out in Paris, I can’t just have one. For many a dolmas can have a similar effect to a young person’s first taste of coffee, it's curious but not an initial hit.
As palates mature sometimes we find ourselves peaking at a love for something, dolmas have been that for me. In the long term, whatever these items are they open your palate and you realize you have had a very happy and long relationship to its taste and memories.
This recipe gives good face when traveling, delicious, substantial and good at room temp. In their vegan form they can hold for at least 6 hours without refrigeration and taste better in fact.
On ingredients:
I recently read a piece by Samin Nosrat; she writes about working at Chez Panisse when the great Alice Waters held a competition for the best tomato sauce amongst the cooks at the restaurant. Samin notes how Alice rejected most submissions due to the use of rancid olive oil. A true master can taste and smell old oil through the sharp flavors and nose of garlic, onion, and tomato. This recipe is one where you don’t have to be an Alice Waters to identify if the oil is off as it’s one of the top ingredients. The stuffed grape leaves are slowly poached in extra virgin olive oil and broth, so take care to buy the freshest olive oil (and use it within the month of opening). For this recipe, I used the Destination Series Everyday Extra Virgin Olive Oil from California Olive Ranch. This option is from the brand’s latest line of extra virgin olive oils made from their California farmers and partner growers around the world. With notes of fresh herbs, fruit and green grass, it’s perfect for everyday in the kitchen.
Throughout the Mediterranean and the Middle East they are stuffed with various fillings like ground meat, cheese, grains and nuts. For this recipe, I’ve used red rice, lentils, walnuts and studded them with barberries. Dried barberries are available at most Indian and Middle Eastern markets. Also ordering them on the internet is a very real thing. They are the cousin to the currant, tart and bright red in color. Currants are interchangeable when soaked in a little lemon juice as are dried cherries when chopped fine, but omitting them all together is perfectly fine. If you want to play around with other ingredients, add them to this recipe at a ratio of 1 part to 4 parts rice. Refine by adding more or less with each batch you make.
I used preserved grape leaves, if you are of the lucky tribe that lives in Northern California or in a wine region and has seasonal access to fresh leaves you’ll want to blanch the leaves in salted boiling water for a few seconds. When using preserved leaves, carefully wiggle them from the bottle, drain and soak them in warm water for 15 minutes to remove some of the salt from the brine they’ve been packaged in.
I used preserved grape leaves, if you are of the lucky tribe that lives in Northern California or in a wine region and has seasonal access to fresh leaves you’ll want to blanch the leaves in salted boiling water for a few seconds. When using preserved leaves, carefully wiggle them from the bottle, drain and soak them in warm water for 15 minutes to remove some of the salt from the brine they’ve been packaged in.
Recipe
Ingredients
16 oz. jar of preserved grape leaves
group 1
¼ cup lentils
1 cup uncooked rice, any medium grain works (brown, white, or red)
1 medium onion, minced fine
1 lemon, zest and juice
½ cup walnuts, chopped to the size of rice
2 tablespoons barberries
1 tablespoon tomato puree
¼ cup of quality extra virgin olive oil (like California Olive Ranch)
½ teaspoons salt
group 2
¼ cup tomato paste
2 cups stock or water
½ cup olive oil
Juice of one lemon
Filling:
Carefully remove the grape leaves from the jar, drain and soak them in warm water for 15 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the filling by combining all the elements from group 1. Remove the grape leaves from the water and drain well. Use 2 or 3 leaves to line the bottom of a Dutch oven or other thick bottom pot with lid.
Stuff:
There are two versions I like to make. One is a roll, commonly seen, they are good for traveling. The other version is slightly bigger with a more visual presence saved for eating during a mezze style meal alongside of some merguez sausage, a tzatziki, hummus and fried flatbread.
For the first style, lay out one leaf vine side up and stem down, add a tablespoon of stuffing at the base of the leaf and mold it so it lays horizontally across the base. Pull the sides up and roll the bottom up, making sure to push in the sides so they are all tucked in. Start laying them in the prepared pan close together side by side.
For the other version, lay two leaves vine side up connecting the stems together, essentially one leaf right side up and the other upside down, the stem base part overlapping. Add 2 tablespoons of stuffing in the middle and pull up the sides up piece by piece to the center. Turn over to reveal a star like the design then place them in the prepared pan tucking them close together side by side.
Poach:
In a sauce pot, warm the tomato paste, slowly add the stock or water whisking constantly to dilute the tomato paste. Season to taste with salt, chili or a dukkah spice mix. Pour over the rolls, add the olive oil and place a plate on top (so the rolls stay put and don’t float and bobble around while cooking). Add a little more water if the rolls aren’t fully submerged in liquid. Cook over low heat for 1 hour.
Presentation:
Once done, allow them to cool and set for up to an hour before trying to remove them from the pot. Drizzle with the juice of one lemon. For the love of a garnished dish I added rare pink pine nuts and marigold petals that I dried from the summer.