- Vine leaves (fresh in spring, brined the rest of the year)
- Rice with dill, mint, parsley and onion
- Olive oil and lemon
Dolmades
Dolmadakia: stuffed vine leaves, a traditional Greek meze. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Dolmades (dolmadakia) are vine leaves rolled around rice: the classic Greek meze. The small parcels are stuffed with rice, herbs (dill, mint, parsley), onion and olive oil, simmered in lemony broth and served at room temperature.
They are eaten as part of a meze spread, with bread, tzatziki and wine, or as a light lunch. Versions with minced meat (dolmadakia gialantzi vs. with meat) are the winter, hot-served variant.
Key ingredients
Where to try it
- Meze tavernas across Greece, as part of the spread.
- Markets sell them ready-made; the homemade ones are smaller and tighter.
- In spring, they appear with fresh leaves in village tavernas.