Grape (or Vine) Leaves Stuffed with Ground Beef (Wara’ Enab bel Lahma el Mafrooma)
Prep Time: 30 minutes to prepare the filling and an hour to roll the leaves
Cook Time: 35-40 minutes
Serves: 60-80 leaves, which feeds about 10 people
- one 1-lb jar of brine-preserved grape (vine) leaves
- 2 cups short-grain white rice (sushi rice is a great substitute because it has similar properties to Egyptian rice – short, thick and gets a bit sticky when it’s cooked).
- 1 lb grass-fed, organic ground beef
- 2-3 cups homemade chicken or beef stock (you may use water if you’re out of stock, but the taste won’t be nearly as rich)
- 2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped or pureed in the food processor
- 3 tablespoons grass-fed organic ghee
- juice of half a lemon
- unrefined sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 2-3 bay leaves, sliced garlic (2-3 cloves), onion slices and lemon slices to cover the bottom of the pot before stacking the stuffed grape leaves
Cooking Directions
(1) Open the jar of grape leaves, unroll the bunch of leaves, and thoroughly rinse under running water to remove most of the packaging liquid. Place on a strainer to drain.
(2) For the filling: In a bowl, add 2 cups of uncooked rice, 1 lb. of organic ground beef, 2 thinly-diced or pureed onions, 3 tablespoons of ghee, salt and pepper, and mix well using a large fork to make sure all ingredients are well integrated.
(3) On a large plate or cutting board, take one grape leaf and place on it about 1 teaspoon of the filling, as shown below:
(4) Then, shape the filling into a cylinder and fold the bottom two sides of the grape leave up as shown:
(5) Fold the right and left sides of the grape leave towards the middle, overlapping one side over the other and pulling in a bit to make sure it’s tightly folded in:
(6) Start rolling the grape leaf upward tightly to close it off:
(7) And there you have it – a nicely wrapped grape leaf…
(8) As you’re wrapping, watch for torn leaves that are unsuitable for stuffing and place them in the bottom of the pot that you will be using to cook the grape leaves.
(9) Add a layer of sliced 1 sliced onion, 2-3 sliced cloves of garlic, 1 sliced lemon, 2-3 bay leaves to the bottom of the pot.
(10) When you have stuffed and wrapped all the grape leaves, pile them in a circle in the pot on top of the sliced onion and lemon:
(11) Pour 2-3 cups of homemade chicken or meat broth to cover at least three-fourth of the pile of grape leaves in the pot. You can also mix the chicken/meat broth with water in whatever proportion to dilute for a lighter version of the dish, and add 2-3 cups of the diluted mix, but you will likely notice a slight difference in taste.
(12) Cover the grape leaves with a heat-proof dish that fits into the pot to keep the leaves from unraveling while cooking. Leave on medium-high heat for a few minutes until the broth starts to boil, then lower the heat to medium-low and cook for about 35-40 minutes until the meat and rice are fully cooked.
(13) Squeeze the juice of one lemon on top and enjoy either hot or cold, alongside tzatziki yogurt sauce or tarbiya if you like.
Stuffed grape leaves may take some time to roll individually, but it is definitely worth it! You can plan to make a bunch and freeze some, uncooked, in a pyrex dish until you’re ready to cook them at a later date (but no more than 3-4 months down the line). If you’re planning a get-together or potluck, consider having a ‘grape leaves rolling party’ where an assembly line of scooping enough filling and rolling can be optimized. Turn on some Middle Eastern music in the background for a little flavor!
Recipe courtesy of mideats.com. See original recipe at this link.
