Greek cabbage rolls recipe (Lahanodolmades)

Instructions

• Remove the stem of the cabbage with a sharp knife creating a small hole.
• Add 1 tablespoon salt to a large pot of hot water and add cabbage and cover pot for 10 minutes. Turn cabbage over and cover the pot for a further 5 minutes.
• In a separate pan add 3 tablespoons olive oil.
• Add onions and leek, stirring through thoroughly until soften.
• Stir through rice, combining ingredients.
• Add eggplant, zucchini and red capsicum, stirring through thoroughly.
• Once ingredients have combined add crushed tomato puree, stirring through thoroughly.
• Add spring onions, dill, parsley, spearmint and fennel, stirring through thoroughly.
• Cover pan for 10 minutes on medium heat.
• Add 2 teaspoons salt (or to taste), 1 teaspoon pepper (to taste), 1 teaspoon paprika. ½ teaspoon chilli flakes, 1 teaspoon dry mixed herbs and juices of 2 – 3 lemons.
• Combine all ingredients, stirring through thoroughly and adding 1 cup water to the mixture.
• Turn heat off and cover the pan.
• In a deep pot add leftover fresh herbs and vegetables to base.
• Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and shallow fry for 5 minutes. This step will ensure cabbage rolls will not stick to the base of the pot when cooking. Spreading evenly across pot base.
• Separate blanched cabbage leaves
• Remove the harder part from the bottom of the cabbage leaf, making a “V” type incision. As demonstrated in our video starting at 5:47 until 5:57.
• Add 2 tablespoons mixture to the cabbage and fold cabbage leaf using the technique demonstrated in our video starting at 5:57 until 6:23, repeating this process until all of the mixtures have been utilised.
• Add rolled cabbage rolls into a deep pot, adding remaining lemon juice over the cabbage rolls.
• Cover cabbage rolls using 1 unblanched cabbage leaf and placing a shallow bowl over cabbage leaf as a weight.
• Add 2 cups of water and cook covered on high heat for 25 minutes, checking to see if pot juices are at boiling point before turning the heat down to a low.
• Remove shallow bowl and cook covered for a further for 15 minutes.
• Turn heat off and cover with a clean kitchen towel and pot lid for 10 minutes.
• Remove kitchen towel and cabbage leaf before serving.