Stuffed grape leaves is a famous Mediterranean cuisine, especially liked in places like Lebanon and Palestine and famous there by the name Warag Enab.Stuffed grape leaves are perfect if you are on a clean or a Mediterranean diet and slowly trying to lose weight, but not if you do it the regular way (using white rice).
I will share with you a healthier, but also just as delicious recipe. To be honest though, I just had stuffed grape leaves for lunch; my mom made it, and it was so delicious that I thought it would be a shame if I did not share this her recipe with you.
Benefits of Eating Grape Leaves
Before we jump right into the recipe, you might be interested to know what is the nutrition value of what you are about to eat and how it might benefit you.
1. Source of Fibers
Grape leaves are a rich source of fibers. Fibers increase satiety, so after eating those stuffed grape leaves, you'll probably feel full for a longer period. Fibers are also good for your digestive tract, especially if you have constipation.
2. Rich in antioxidants.
3. Grape leaves are also a source of vitamins such as vitamin A and C.
Warg Enab Recipe
Now that you have an idea about the health benefits of grape leaves, let's cut to the chase and make it.
Rice is a main component of stuffed grape leaves, so to make it healthy and clean, we will substitute white rice with brown rice.
Servings: for four to five individuals.
Preparation time: it takes about 30-40 minutes.
Cooking time: 30 minutes.
Ingredients:
1. For the Filling:
- 1 cup of short-grain brown rice; typically it's cooked with white rice, but since we want a clean Mediterranean diet, we will use brown rice.
- 1 large onion, I prefer red onions.
- 4 cloves of garlic, up to five is fine too.
- 1/2 cup of fresh parsley.
- 1/4 cup of fresh dill. Parsley and dill are essential herbs in any Warag Enab recipe. You can also add mint if you want, but I don't like its taste with stuffed grape leaves.
- 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 2 spoonfuls of tomato paste (you can use homemade paste dissolved in 2 cups of water).
- 1 cup of water
- Salt and pepper to taste
2. For the Assembly
- ½ jar of grape leaves (about 30-35 leaves), rinsed and drained
- 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Instructions:
A. Prepare the Filling
The first thing you need to do is prepare the filling for the stuffing. To do that, follow the steps below.
1. Rinse the rice under cold water; that way you will get rid of the starch on the surface. That way the rice won't be sticky. There are different kinds of rice; you would know the type you use better; some need to be soaked for 10 minutes or so before, so they wouldn't take time to cook.
2. Put the onion, garlic, parsley, and dill in a food processor and let them get chopped very finely.
3. Add the rice, lemon juice, one cup of tomato paste water, and ½ the cup of extra virgin olive oil to the mashed mix of vegetables.
4. Add salt and pepper.
5. Mix well.
B. Roll the Grape Leaves
Now to the fun part.
1. Lay the grape leaves flat on a clean surface, with the shiny side down and the stem end closest to you. If the leaves have thick stems, trim them off.
2. Place about a teaspoon of the rice mixture in the center of each grape leaf.
3. Do not overfill the leaf, as the rice will expand during cooking and might tear the leaf down.
4. Fold the sides of the leaf over the filling, then roll it up from the stem end to the tip, creating a tight roll.
5. Repeat the previous step with the remaining leaves and filling.
6. Save the juice that remains for the cooking.
C. Cooking The Stuffed Grape Leaves
1. Arrange the stuffed grape leaves rolls tightly on a pot.
2. After you form one layer, you can start making a second layer on top.
3. Pour the second cup of tomato paste water, the mix juice, and 1 cup of water evenly on to the stuffed grape leaves. Pour the extra virgin olive oil evenly on the top.
4. Put it on high heat until the water boils, then switch to low heat and cover the pot.
5. Check on it after 20 minutes and see if the rice is cooked or not; if it seems like it still needs more time, add a ¼ cup of water evenly and cover it again.
6. Serve it hot and enjoy.
Tip:
Squeeze a lemon on top before you eat it; it makes it even tastier.
You Can Serve Warag Enab With the Following
1. Serve it as an appetizer with yogurt.
2. As the main dish alongside a bowl of salad and a protein source like meat or fish.
3. Make a Meze platter with stuffed grape leaves and other Mediterranean dishes like humus and baba ganoush.
Recipe Video
Takeaway
Warag Enab, or stuffed grape leaves, is a delicious Mediterranean cuisine. It's healthy and suitable for a clean diet or a Mediterranean diet if you use whole brown rice. Although it seems like a difficult recipe to follow, in fact it's pretty simple, and it doesn't take long to get cooked. You can use it as an appetizer or as a main dish; either way, you will get to enjoy the delicious taste of my mom’s recipe.
Sources:
Kaur, Jaspreet & Sharma, Kartik & Singh, Jyoti & Bhadariya, Vishesh & Author, Corresponding. (2022). A comprehensive review on the nutritional value and health benefits of grape leaves. 11. 2235-2243
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