Peppers packed with rice, tomato, mint and dill, then braised standing up in a shallow pan until the rice swells and the peppers soften. Vegan and naturally gluten free.
Prep
30 mins
Cook
50 mins
Servings
4
Per serving
£1.25
Difficulty
medium
This is the olive oil style of dolma, meant to be eaten cool rather than hot, so the rice keeps a little bite and the herbs stay green. Undersfilling is the key mistake to avoid overcorrecting: the rice roughly doubles, so two-thirds full is right.
Heat 4 tbsp of the olive oil in a wide pan. Add the pine nuts and toast for 2 minutes until golden, then add the chopped onions and cook for 15 minutes over a low heat until completely soft and sweet.
Stir in the tomato purée, allspice and cinnamon and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the rinsed rice and turn it in the oil for 2 minutes, then add the currants, 150ml water and 1 tsp of the salt. Cook for 5 minutes until the water is absorbed and the rice is still very firm.
The rice should be only part cooked at this stage. It finishes inside the peppers.
Take off the heat and fold in the dill, mint, parsley and half the lemon juice. Leave to cool for 10 minutes.
Fill each hollowed pepper about two-thirds full with the rice mixture, pressing lightly. Do not pack them tightly or they will split as the rice swells.
Sit the reserved pepper tops back on like lids and stand the peppers upright, packed snugly together, in a deep pan.
Mix the remaining olive oil, lemon juice, sugar, the last of the salt and 400ml water and pour it around the peppers to come a third of the way up.
Sit a small heatproof plate on top to hold them down, cover the pan and simmer very gently for 40 to 45 minutes, until the rice is tender and the peppers are soft.
Turn off the heat and leave them to cool in the pan for at least an hour. Serve at room temperature with the pan juices spooned over.