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Meat, Maghreb and Middle East

Iraqi dolma

Iraqi dolma is a celebration dish for 4 people, made of onions, eggplants, and grape leaves stuffed with rice and ground meat, cooked on a bed of lamb ribs. It takes about 2 hours, rates as moderate difficulty, and costs around €4.10 per serving. The key to success is a loosely packed filling, so the rice can swell without bursting the vegetables.

Tonight it's the big Iraqi celebration dish, onions, eggplants, and grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat, cooked on a bed of lamb ribs.

Iraqi dolma
Total time
2 h
Difficulty
Medium
Cost per person
€4.10
Calories per person
660 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Summer, Fall
The kids
They generally like it

Iraqi dolma brings several stuffed vegetables together in one pot, onions turned soft and sweet, eggplants that soak up the cooking juices, and small grape leaf rolls with a slight tang. Ground meat and rice cook together inside each bite, seasoned with cinnamon, and the lamb ribs sitting at the bottom give the tomato broth a deeper flavor than a vegetarian version would have.

This dish takes time to assemble but then simmers on its own over low heat, which makes it a good fit for a Sunday when you want to cook with the kids, rolling the grape leaves works well with several pairs of hands. Serve it for a family dinner or when you have guests over, it feels generous and impressive without requiring any tricky technique.

The ingredients

4 people

Butcher

  • Lamb ribs 8
  • Ground lamb or beef 300 g

Pantry

  • Round riceoften in the pantry 150 g
  • Grape leaves in jar 24
  • Crushed tomatoesoften in the pantry 400 g
  • Tomato pasteoften in the pantry 2 tbsp
  • Cinnamonoften in the pantry 1 tsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Pepperoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Fruits and vegetables

  • Onions 4
  • Eggplants 2
  • Flat leaf parsley 1 bunch
  • Fresh mint 1 bunch
  • Lemon 1

Dairy

  • Butter 30 g

Allergens Lactose

The step by step recipe

  1. Mix the ground meat, rinsed raw rice, chopped herbs, cinnamon, salt, and pepper to make the filling.

    Add a little tomato paste to the filling for a deeper color.

  2. Peel the onions, slit them on one side and blanch them to separate the layers, then hollow out the eggplant halves. 10 min

    The onion layers become pliable after a few minutes in boiling water.

  3. Stuff the onion layers and the eggplants, then roll the filling in the grape leaves without packing them too tight. 20 min

    Roll the leaves with the vein side facing out, like a little cigar.

  4. Line a Dutch oven with the browned lamb ribs, arrange the stuffed vegetables on top, and cover with tomatoes diluted with a little water and lemon juice.

    Set an upturned plate over the dolmas so they stay in place.

  5. Cover and cook over low heat until the rice and meat are cooked through. 1 h 10

    Check the liquid level halfway through, it should always cover the rice.

Our tips to get it right

  • Rinse the raw rice well before mixing it into the filling, it loses excess starch and cooks more evenly inside the vegetables.
  • Pick round, firm onions, their layers separate more easily once blanched.
  • Taste the cooking liquid halfway through, add a splash of lemon juice if you want more tang or a bit of water if it reduces too fast.

The variations

  • Swap the lamb for ground beef throughout, the flavor turns milder but the texture stays the same.
  • For a vegetarian version, skip the lamb ribs and ground meat, double the rice in the filling, and add a bit more tomato paste for color.
  • For kids in a hurry, stuff only the grape leaves and onions, they roll and eat faster than the stuffed eggplants.

What to serve it with

  • Cold plain yogurt
  • Warm flatbread
  • Cucumber and tomato salad

Storage

Dolma keeps for 2 to 3 days in the fridge in a sealed container. It freezes well once cooled, in a suitable container. Reheat gently in a saucepan with a splash of water so the rice doesn't stick.

Questions about this dish

Can you prepare dolma ahead of time?

Yes, you can stuff the vegetables and grape leaves the day before and keep them covered in the fridge. Cook them the next day, the flavor doesn't suffer.

How do you keep the grape leaves from tearing while rolling?

Drain the leaves well and save the largest ones for the trickiest rolls. Roll loosely, the rice needs room to swell as it cooks.

Can you use fresh grape leaves instead of jarred ones?

Yes, blanch them for a few seconds in boiling water to soften them before stuffing. The flavor is a bit more herbaceous than jarred leaves.

What if the rice isn't cooked by the end of the cooking time?

Add a little hot water and keep cooking over low heat in 10 minute increments. Make sure the liquid still covers the rice while it finishes.

How long does it take to make an Iraqi dolma, stuffed vegetables and grape leaves cooked over lamb ribs?

Count 2 h in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “medium”.

How many calories are in an Iraqi dolma, stuffed vegetables and grape leaves cooked over lamb ribs?

About 660 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does an Iraqi dolma, stuffed vegetables and grape leaves cooked over lamb ribs cost?

About €4.10 per serving, or €16.40 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains lactose. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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