Delicious recipes made up from Wild Grape Leaves
There are many recipes which could be made from wild grape leaves and they are not only good in taste but also healthy for the body.
Brined Wild Grape Leaves
Harvesting: While harvesting the leaves of wild grape it should be kept in mind that only those leaves should reaped which are tender, large and minty-green in color whereas the dark-colored older leaves should be avoided as they are likely to be stringy, fibrous and tough in nature.
The whey (optional) which is required to prepare this recipe can be made with the help of plain curd (or more appropriately yogurt) that contains living cultures in it .This yogurt should be put in a dirt-free cloth inside a big mesh filter like a bandanna. Now the strainer should be placed over a container and it should be allowed to drip all its fluid contents for some hours. The liquid that is obtained in the container is called the whey and the left out yogurt in the mesh can be used for some other foodstuff which could be used in the form of a cream cheese. The ingredients required for the preparation of a nice brined wild grape leaves are as follows:
Fresh large wild grape leaves- 3 dozen
Sea salt- 1 tbsp (1 tablespoon)
Whey- 4 tbsp (in case whey is not prepared, another tbsp of salt can be used)
Clean water- 2 cups
Three dozen of wild grape leaves fill about one quart of Mason jar. It should ne noted that the amount of components used for the preparation of this recipe given here is for 1 quart, so to fill more jars one will need to multiply the amounts by the number of jars one want to fill. Following are the steps required to be pursued to prepare brined wild grape leaves:
1. First and foremost, the brine should be mixed together thoroughly in a container or a bowl and should be set aside.
2. Now, the grape leaves should be piled one on the top of other until a pile of 12 leaves (1 dozen) is formed.
3. After this, the stack should be rolled up so as to obtain a tight compact roll and this should be put in a jar.
4. Now 2 more rolls of grape leaves should be made like this to pack the jar.(this will make 3 dozen of grape leaves)
5. This should be followed by pouring of brine on the rolls of grapes leaves till the jar or the container is full which should then be capped.
6. After filling and capping all the jars, the jars should be put on a shelf for a minimum of 48 hours wrapped up tightly in a towel or in a piece of cloth, as there is supposed to be some outflow from the jars. This will then be followed by a healthy process of decomposition. This process is very important and hence should be taken care of.
7. After keeping the jars for at least 48 hours on the shelf, all the jars should be put in the fridge and should be kept there for a minimum of 1 month.
8. After keeping them in the fridge for four weeks or 1 month, they are prepared to utilize. They will stay the same throughout the year so that they can be used whenever it is needed to make Dolmas.
Stuffed Wild Grape Leaves (Dolmas)
Stuffed Wild grape leaves are a very tasty dish which can be easily prepared at home. The recipe given here is to make roughly 3 dozen of stuffed Wild grape leaves. This dish should be made in advance so that the filling can be allowed to cool and then be rolled in wild grape leaves. The amounts of constituents required to prepare three dozen of stuffed wild grape leaves are as follows:
Raw rice- 1 ½ of cups (wild rice can also be used)
Plain water- 2 ¼ of cups
Olive oil- 2 Tbsp
Finely chopped onion- 1 ½ of cups
Finely chopped cloves of garlic- 5
Fresh lemon juice- 2 Tbsp
Common salt- 1/2 a tsp
Black pepper- 1/4 a tsp
Minced parsley- 1/4 a cup
Freshly minced mint - 1/4 a cup (In case mint is not available one can also another ½ a cup of parsley)
Pine nuts- 1/2 a cup (optional)
Below are the steps that are required to prepare the filling for Dolmas or stuffed wild grape leaves:
1. First of all, the rice should be allowed to be cooked in a pan with water till they become soft.
2. In the meantime, onion should be fried in olive oil till they turn tender.
3. Now, garlic, pepper, pine nuts and salt should be added to the above mixture and this should be allowed to fry gently for around five another minutes.
4. After this, rice should be left to cool and they should be put in another bowl and then mixed with the onion mixture, mint, parsley and fresh lemon juice. All the components should be thoroughly mixed. This is going to be the filling for the dish.
Following are the steps that are required to make a healthy delicious meal of Stuffed wild grape leaves:
1. First and foremost, the lustrous side of each grape leaf should be put on dirt-free flat surface.
2. After this, a tablespoon of filling already prepared should be put close to the end of the stem.
3. Now, the sides of these leaves should be folded and rolled tightly so as to form a compact roll.
4. These over-stuffed leaves should now be arranged onto a cookie-sheet which should be covered with olive-oil.
5. This should be followed by brushing of olive-oil on the top surfaces of each and every roll with the help of a pastry brush.
6. Now, the rolls should be baked at approximately 325 degrees for around twenty minutes until they get cooked properly.
7. The cooked rolls should be allowed to cool completely and then these should again be brushed with olive oil.
8. A mix of lemon juice (about 3 Tbsp) and salt (about 1 tsp) should be made and this mixture should be coated at each roll nicely with the help of a pastry brush.
9. The rolls should be kept in the refrigerator now so that the rolls get cooled thoroughly. The rolls should be served cold.
The Dolmas or stuffed wild grape leaves look very beautiful placed o a tray and decorated with slim pieces of lemon.
Venison-Wild Rice Filling
The Dolmas or the stuffed wild grape leaves can also be prepared by using the filling made from wild rice. The ingredients required to prepare a delicious wild rice filling are as follows:
Ground venison- 1 cup
Raw wild rice- 1/2 a cup (pieces and bits)
Plain water-1 ½ of cups
Olive-oil- 2 Tbsp
Finely chopped onion- 1 ½ of cups
Finely chopped cloves of garlic- 5
Freshly chopped wild greens- 1/2 a cup
Hickory nuts- 1/2 a cup
Fresh lemon juice- 2 Tbsp
Common salt- 1/2 a tsp
Black pepper- 1/4 a tsp
Below are the steps that are required to be followed to make a delicious wild-rice filling for the Dolmas:
1. First of all, the rice should be cooked with some water in a pan until they become tender.
2. In the meantime, onion should be fried with ground venison in olive oil till they turn brown in color.
3. Now, garlic, pepper, hickory nuts and salt should be added to the above mixture and this should be allowed to fry gently for around five another minutes.
4. After this, rice should be left to cool and they should be put in another bowl and then mixed with the onion mixture, wild greens and fresh lemon juice. All the components should be thoroughly mixed. This is going to be the filling for the dish.
Now this filling could be filled in the leaves of wild grape and the same steps required to prepare the Dolmas enlisted above can be followed.