The Turkish word dolma means vegetables like peppers, courgettes and tomatoes that can be stuffed with different ingredients to eat. The Turkish tradition of stuffing vegetables for dolma dates to the times of the Ottoman Empire when this recipe became popular. It was an easy dish for anyone, no matter what class, to cook. Now it is a family ritual where siblings, parents, grandparents, and whoever else is available gather together to prepare this dish. Sitting around a large table filled with trays of vegetables and stuffing; everyone will gather talking and claiming their spot in the assembly line of food. With a constant flow of coffee and tea everyone waits for the dolmas to be cooked and then feast on their hard work.

This recipe is based off the traditional home cooked meals in Turkey. I modified a recipe I found online from Ozlem’s Turkish Table. You can multiply the recipe easily to feed larger groups and freeze it to heat it up later.

Serves 6-8

Preparation Time: 1 and ½ hours                   Cook Time: 25 Minutes

Ingredients:

4 Medium bell peppers

4 medium tomatoes

Filling:

110gr/4oz/1/2 cup ground beef

115gr/4oz/1//2 cup wholegrain basmati rice, rinsed

1 medium onion

Bunch of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp dried mint

2 tsp ground black pepper

Salt to taste

Sauce:

Flesh of scooped tomatoes, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp tomato paste

6-8 cloves of garlic, crushed

  

These ingredients can all be found at your local grocery store, although you may have to search a little to find this specific type of rice. I also suggest getting the freshest vegetables possible because they will be easier to gorge and stuff.

Before you start this dish, I will share some tips to make your cooking experience much smoother.

If you chop up all the ingredients before you start cooking, it will save a lot of time during the mixing process. I wasted a lot of time cutting onions and parsley after I browned my meat, so it sat on the counter and got cold before I mixed everything together. I don’t know if this really affected the taste, but it made the meat look less appetizing.

When you go shopping for your tomatoes, make sure you get the big round ones that look like apples, unlike the littler ones like I purchased. Having bigger tomatoes will make it much easier to carve and stuff because they are rounder, which makes it much easier to hold when you cut the middle out. Plus, they will sit straight up in the pan and you won’t have them slipping all over in olive oil.

Aside from carving the tomatoes, the only other issue I had was cooking the rice. I have made rice many times in my life, and this type of rice definitely boiled quicker than any other kind. Luckily, I didn’t burn mine, but be careful and check it often so it doesn’t get stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to make this dish your own. If you like spicier food, try adding some red pepper flakes or jalapenos to the filling. You can also use different meat like turkey or chicken for a different flavor. There are no specific details to how you have to season your meat, so feel free to add more garlic or lemon pepper to add some zest to your meal. Make sure to make your dish to your liking and share your creation with your friends!

Instructions:

1.Brown the meat on medium heat until there is no pink left. Add salt and pepper as a light seasoning for the meat.

2. While browning the meat start to boil the water for rice on low heat. When the water is boiling add the rice and let simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Make sure to check frequently and stir to avoid the rice burning on the bottom of the pan.

 

3. Peel the outside of the onion off and chop the onion thinly. Here is a link to see how to chop an onion easily. Link Here

 

4. Pull the parsley leaves off the steams and chop finely.

5. Add the rest of the filling ingredients in a bowl with the meat and rice. Season and knead until blended thoroughly. The filling is ready.

6. Next start the sauce. Begin by pealing 2 tomatoes. Then chop up the skin finely.

This video shows an effortless way to peal tomatoes quickly. Link here

7. Add the olive oil, tomato paste, and garlic to with the tomato skin. Then mix until you don’t see any big clumps. Then add to the filling and stir until the mixture is all light red.

Here is a video to show how to open cloves of garlic. Link here.

 

8. Now it’s time to prepare the vegetables. Cut the stalk end of the peppers off, make sure to cut enough off that it will make a top for your peppers. Save the tops to cook with later. Then carefully cut around the seeds and pull them out.

9. Next take the other 2 tomatoes and cut the top off and slowly carve out the middle like a pumpkin. Save the tops again for baking later.

10. Optional: If you have extra onions you can cut in half and then take out the middle to stuff as well. You should have extra stuffing to make a few onion dolmas, if you would like.

11. Time to stuff the vegetables. Take about 3 spoonfuls of the filling and pack them into the vegetables until they are about ¾ full. You don’t want to fill all the way to the top because the rice will expand when they are baking.

12.Preheat the oven to 350. Then drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a baking pan. Place the vegetables upright with the tops on as lids, tightly packed in the pan.

13. Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the vegetables have turned slightly brown.

14.  Take out of the oven and let cool for at least 10 minutes. Then they are ready to serve!