7 recipes for pickling grape leaves

Young grape leaves can be pickled and preserved in a saline solution with the addition of acetic, citric or malic acid.

Like fresh, pickled leaves are used to prepare dolma (stuffed cabbage rolls) - a traditional dish of the peoples of Transcaucasia, the Balkan countries, and Asia.

Dolma from pickled grape leaves is prepared quickly. Simply remove the leaves from the jar and add the filling. After canning, the leaves are strong and flexible and can be easily wrapped.

To preserve for the winter, it is better to pick or cut the leaves with scissors or a knife. This must be done no later than the end of July. Later ones can be tough.

After collection, remove the petioles and rinse with cool water. The leaves are then blanched in boiling water until the color changes. Then cool in cold water.

The collected leaves must be healthy, without signs of damage by pests and diseases.

On average, a 1 liter jar contains 5 rolls.

When marinating you can add:

Dill;
Garlic;
Bitter and allspice;
Horseradish root;
Mustard seeds.

After a week, the grape leaves are ready for filling.

Pickled grape leaves with garlic

Required:

Grape leaves
1 liter of water
3 teaspoons mustard seeds
6 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons salt

Collect grape leaves. Trim the petioles and wash.

Place in boiling water and remove as soon as they lose color.

Remove from boiling water, place in cold water and cool.

Place 10 leaves on top of each other and roll into a roll.

Place the rolls in a jar. Add 1 teaspoon mustard and 2 cloves garlic.

Boil a liter of water with salt. Pour in grape leaves and cover the jars with lids.

Pasteurize for 15 minutes. Then seal it tightly and turn it upside down. Leave until completely cooled, covered with a terry towel.

Store in a cool place.

Freezing preparations for dolma

Kitchen appliances and utensils: hob and saucepan.

Ingredients

Water	3 l
grape leaves	60 pcs.

Choosing the right ingredients

Now I will share with you which grape leaves are suitable for dolma:

To prepare the preparations, it is better to use freshly picked leaves . It is advisable to harvest in mid-summer, when they are young, soft and tender.
For preservation , choose larger leaves .
They must be free of damage, rot and dark spots.

Step by step recipe

Wash, remove the stems and divide 60 grape leaves into three piles of 20, placing them from largest to smallest. So the bottom largest one will hold the entire pack.
Pour three liters of water into a deep saucepan. Bring it to a boil, but do not let it boil.
Place one pack into the water so that the large ones are at the bottom.
“Bathe” them in water until the color of each changes.
Do not let the water boil. Our task is to pour boiling water over the dolma preparations, but not to cook them.
Remove from water and place in a rimmed dish. Let the water drain.
Repeat these manipulations with each stack of blanks.
Straighten the leaves and place them in a plastic bag.
Release all the air from the bag and close it so that they do not bend.
Stack the packages on top of each other in this order:

The first package is tails up.

The second package is tails down.

The third package is tails up.

Place in the freezer when cool. You can store it for one or two seasons.

Video recipe: preparing grape leaves for dolma in the freezer for the winter

I invite you to watch a short video that describes in detail how to prepare grape leaves for dolma. You will be able to see what they will become after being in the water, and how to put them in a bag correctly.

There are a lot of ways to preserve grape leaves, and every housewife uses the one that is most suitable for her. This way they are well preserved in canned form. When you open a jar of such preparations in winter, the room is filled with the fresh, summer aroma of grapes.

Pickled grape leaves with vinegar

Required for 250 ml of water:

50 ml glass of alcohol vinegar 9%
0.5 cloves of garlic
0.5 teaspoon mustard seeds
0.5 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 bay leaf
2-3 grains of black pepper
1-2 grains of allspice
0.5 tablespoon salt

Boil water with vinegar and salt.

Add spices to the jar with rolled leaves.

Pour hot marinade and seal tightly.

Turn the jars upside down. After cooling, you can further pasteurize.

How to choose leaves for dolma

Not every grape leaf is suitable for dolma, but only young and healthy ones. You need to choose bright green, shiny ones from green grape varieties. In red varieties they are more rigid and the edges are embossed. You need to collect leaves during flowering before processing. But since grape leaves grow constantly, you can collect them throughout the summer, before processing. There is no need to take leaves from vines growing near the road.

It is important to properly process the foliage in order to fully reveal the aroma, which will give dolma a special taste in winter.

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A simple way to pickle grape leaves for the winter

This recipe does not require brine. The leaves are pasteurized in a jar and immediately rolled up.

Wash the leaves collected for canning. Trim the petioles and fold them into 10-12 pieces.

Place in prepared jars.

Cover with boiled lids. Place in a saucepan and add water until it reaches the shoulders. Sterilize 10 minutes after water boils.

Remove and seal tightly. Wrap in a blanket and leave for a day. Store in a cool place.

Before preparing dolma, blanch the leaves in boiling water for 5-6 minutes.

Benefits and chemical composition of grape leaves

The benefits of grape leaves have long been appreciated by traditional medicine.

The huge range of their medicinal properties is due to:
vitamin A : maintains normal functioning of the visual organs, improves the condition of the skin, prevents the development of cancer cells;
B vitamins : normalize the functioning of the nervous system, strengthen the walls of blood vessels, participate in protein synthesis, prevent the development of heart attacks and strokes;
ascorbic acid (vitamin C) : strengthens the immune system, increases the body's protective functions, promotes better resistance to harmful environmental factors;
manganese : regulates blood glucose levels, takes an active part in cell development, prevents the development of diabetes;
magnesium : improves the functioning of the cardiovascular system, relieves nervous tension, normalizes sleep, relieves depression;
iron : prevents the development of anemia, enriches the blood composition, helps fight fatigue;
calcium : strengthens bone and muscle tissue, promotes the proper formation of the skeleton.

Important! 30 g of grape leaves eaten (5-6 pieces) covers the body’s daily need for vitamin A.

In folk medicine, this product is used as an effective remedy for:

constipation and problems with the digestive tract;
edema and swelling;
headaches;
nosebleeds;
neurasthenia and hysteria.

Tea or a decoction of this herb can lower blood sugar levels, treat functional heart diseases, and restore and improve vision.
Thanks to the increased content of antioxidants, grape leaves help fight premature aging, rejuvenate the body, and promote rapid cell regeneration. Another undeniable advantage of the product is its low calorie content, which is only 93 kcal per 100 g.