Traditional Greek Cabbage Leaves Stuffed with Beef and Rice in an Egg and Lemon Sauce (Dolmades)

This is a traditional Greek recipe for stuffed cabbage leaves in an egg and lemon sauce. It’s the famous Lahanodolmades with Avgolemono.

Photos and story can be found here.

Ingredients

• 1 whole cabbage, ~ 1 kg (35 oz)
• 500 gr (17 oz) mince beef.
• 200 gr (7 oz) rice (I used long grain).
• A bunch of flat leaf parsley finely chopped.
• A bunch of fresh dill finely chopped.
• 1 onion finely chopped.
• 1 onion cut in 5-6 pieces.
• 2 carrots.
• 2 celery sticks coarsely sliced.
• ¼ cup of extra-virgin olive oil.
• Juice from two lemons.
• 2 eggs.
• 1 tablespoon corn flour.
• 1 teaspoon of salt.
• 1 teaspoon of ground pepper.

Instructions

• Add the beef, finely chopped onion, parsley and dill (save some for the sauce at the end), rice and olive oil into a bowl. Season with salt and pepper and knead well. Cover with cling film and set aside.
• Cut the cabbage in half. Use a knife and cut the core out. Add it in a pot with hot water and boil it for ~ 10 minutes until the leaves start to be detached from the main body. Remove it from the pot and separate the leaves.
• Peel the carrots and slice them coarsely (8-10 slices). Add the carrot, celery and the coarsely cut onion in the bottom of a large and deep pot. Use some of the cabbage leaves that are damaged to cover them and create a base for your dolma. This will be your stock.
• Place one of the boiled cabbage leaves (with the vain side up) on a flat surface (a large plate will do). Add one tablespoon from the meat/rice mixture close to one edge of the leaf. Start rolling the dolma tightly, making sure that is sealed on both sides.
• Place the dolma close to the wall of the pot, on top of your stock vegetables and cabbage leaves. Prepare the next dolma and add it next to the previous one. Add the rest of the dolma trying to create homocentric circles. Just make sure the circles are tight so the dolma will not disintegrate during the cooking. Depending on the size of the pot and the dolma, you may need to make the same kind of structure on top of the first one.
• Use the remaining or damaged cabbage leaves to cover the dolma. Use a suitable plate and place it facing down on top of the cabbage leaves. The weight of the plate will make sure that the dolma will not move while cooking.
• Add some hot water until the plate is just covered. Cook the lahanodolmades at low heat with the lid on for ~ 1 ½ hours.
• To prepare the egg and lemon sauce, whisk the eggs in a bowl. Add the lemon juice and keep whisking. Use a large spoon and introduce some of the cooked dolma juice into the bowl while you keep whisking. It is very important that you keep whisking so that the eggs do not get cooked by the heat of the juice. Add some more and keep whisking. Add the corn flour and keep whisking. Pour the sauce on top of your dolma, shake the pot well and let it cook for another 10 minutes at low heat.
• Serve the dolma hot with the nice egg and lemon sauce from the pot.

bon appetit