Yaprak Sarmasi

Yaprak Sarmasi is a special Turkish dish usually served at important occasions since it requires significant prep time. It’s a nice gesture to serve it for family or guests to show how much you care about them.

Yaprak Sarmasi

Course

Appetizer
Prep time

2 Hours
cook time

1 Hour
servings

4
Author

@charmerkitchen

Ingredients

1lb grape leaves
1 cup water, hot
¼ cup olive oil⠀
1 lemon, freshly squeezed

Stuffing

4 tbsp olive oil⠀⠀⠀⠀
½ onion, finely chopped
1 cup Lotus Foods Organic White Jasmine Rice
1 tsp salt⠀⠀⠀⠀
1 tsp dried mint leaves⠀⠀⠀
½ tsp black pepper⠀⠀⠀⠀
½ tsp allspice
1 cup water, hot

To Serve

½ lemon, freshly squeezed
yogurt dip

product used in the recipe

Organic White Jasmine Rice

1

Rinse grape leaves well and let drain while preparing stuffing.
2

For the stuffing, heat olive oil in a wide pan before adding onions and stirring for ~2 mins until lightly browned. Add washed and drained rice to pan and stir until it starts to stick together. Add salt, mint leaves, black pepper, allspice and hot water and mix to combine. Cover pan with a lid and cook for ~10 mins.
3

After stuffing has cooled, stuff one grape leaf at a time. Lay leaf flat on a cutting board with more textured side facing you. Cut off stem. Place a teaspoon of rice stuffing mixture in center of leaf, close to where stem was. Avoid using too much mixture, otherwise leaves may fall apart while cooking. Fold sides over filling and roll, tucking in sides as you go. Fold and roll leaves tightly, leaving enough room for rice to expand as it cooks.
4

Add a few layers of unrolled grape leaves to bottom of a large pot – this protects rolls from the direct heat. Next, neatly arrange rolls in rows, seam side down, inside prepared pot. When all leaves are in the pot, boil the water and pour it over rolls before the adding olive oil and lemon juice. The water should mostly cover the top layer of rolls.
5

Cover pot with a lid and cook for 45 mins over low heat until water has been absorbed. Set aside to cool then enjoy with more lemon, or yogurt dip, per your preference.