Authentic Greek Rice Food

MY MOM'S GREEK LEMON RICE

Steps:

• Melt butter in a pot over low heat. Pour in rice and stir to coat in butter. Let simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, until toasted but not burnt, about 10 minutes.
• Pour chicken broth, lemon juice, salt, and bay leaves into rice mixture. Bring to a rapid boil; continue to boil for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.

GREEK DOLMADES RECIPE: STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW!

Steps:

• First, peel and mince the red onion and the garlic.
• Then, reduce the spring onions into thin rounds.
• At this point, pour the vegetables into a saucepan along with 3 tbsp of olive oil and sauté 20 minutes over medium heat until the onion becomes soft and translucent.
• Now, add the rice into the pan, and sauté a couple of minutes along with the onions.
• Then, add 1 cup of boiling water and simmer the rice half of the time suggested onto the box, stirring as needed.
• If the water evaporates too early, add a little more: at the end, you want the rice half cooked, and the water completely evaporated.
• Finally, add salt and pepper to taste, cover the pan with a lid and let it rest far from the heat.
• At this point, rinse, dry and mince the herbs, and combine with the rice and onions.
• Eventually, pour the rice stuffing into a plate and let it reach room temperature.
• First, bring to boil a pot full of water. Then, place the pot far from the heat and poach immediately the leaves a couple of minutes.
• Finally, rinse the leaves with cold water.
• Now, line the bottom of a pot with a layer of grape leaves: these to protect the dolmades.
• At this point let's prepare the dolmades! Spread out one or two grape leaves, depending on their size.
• Then, place a tbsp of rice stuffing over the leaf, and roll the dolma folding the borders.
• Finally, place the dolma into the pot. Repeat this step to finish the leaves and stuffing, assembling more layers of dolmades.
• Now, pour the juice of the lemons, and the rest of the olive oil over dolmades.
• Then, place a plate over the dolmades. You want the plate to adhere to the rolls, and be a little smaller than the inner of the pot: otherwise, the dolmades will float during the cooking.
• Finally, submerge the plate and the rolls with water, cover the pot with a lid, and simmer gently about 45 minutes. Monitor the water during the cooking: if it starts to run out, add some more hot water.
• Once ready, let the dolmades cool down, then serve warm or at room temperature along with tzatziki or your preferred sauces.

GREEK LEMON RICE RECIPE

Steps:

• Wash rice well and then soak it for about 15 to 20 minutes in plenty of cold water (enough to cover the rice by 1 inch). You should be able to easily break a grain of rice by simply placing it between your thumb and index finger. Drain well.
• Heat about 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a large sauce pan with a lid (like this one) until oil is shimmering but not smoking. Add onions and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and orzo pasta. Toss around for a bit until the orzo has gained some color then stir in the rice. Toss to coat.
• Now add lemon juice and broth. Bring liquid to a rolling boil (it should reduce a little), then turn heat to low. Cover and let cook for about 20 minutes or until rice is done (liquid should be fully absorbed and rice should be tender but not sticky.)
• Remove rice from heat. For best results, leave it covered and do not disturb rice for about 10 minutes or so.
• Uncover and stir in parsley, dill weed and lemon zest. If you like, add a few slices of lemon on top for garnish. Enjoy!

GREEK DOLMADES RECIPE (STUFFED VINE/ GRAPE LEAVES DOLMATHES)

Steps:

• To make this traditional Greek dolmades recipe (stuffed vine/ grape leaves), start by preparing the vine leaves. For this dolmades recipe, you can either use vine leaves sold in jars or fresh (if you are lucky enough to find them). If you use the ones in jar, rinse the vine leaves, remove the stems and leave them in a colander to drain. If using fresh vine leaves, wash them thoroughly, remove the stems and blanch them in boiling hot water. Remove the leaves with a slotted spoon and place them in a colander to cool down completely.
• Prepare the filling for the stuffed vine/ grape leaves (dolmades). Place the rice in a colander and rinse with running water. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat, add 1/3 of the olive oil and the chopped onions. Sauté the onions, until translucent (but not coloured). Add the rice and sauté for 1 more minute. Pour in 2 cups of warm water and half lemon juice and simmer for about 7 minutes, until the rice absorbs all the water and is parboiled. Season with salt and pepper, stir in the herbs, remove from the stove and set aside to cool down for a while. This will be the filling for the dolmades.
• Layer the bottom of a large pot with some vine leaves (use the ones that are little bit torn) and start rolling the dolmadakia. (This is probably the most difficult part of the traditional dolmades recipe). Place one vine leaf (shiny side down) on a flat surface and add 1 tsp of the filling at the bottom end (stem). Be careful not to overfill the dolmades, as the rice will expand during cooking. Fold the lower section of the leaf over the filling towards the center; bring the two sides in towards the center and roll them up tightly. Place the stuffed vine leaves (fold side down) on the bottom of the pot and top in snugly layers. Be careful not to leave any gaps between the dolmades to prevent them from cracking open when cooking.
• Drizzle the stuffed vine leaves (dolmathes) with the rest of the olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Place an inverted plate on top to hold them down when cooking and pour in enough water just to cover them. Place the lid on and simmer the dolmades for about 30-40 minutes, until the water has been absorbed and the dolmades remain only with the oil.
• Remove the pot from the heat, remove the lid and plate and let the dolmades cool for at least 30 minutes.
• Serve this delicious Greek appetizer cold or at room temperature with a squeeze of a lemon. Give this traditional dolmades recipe a try and enjoy your own fresh homemade stuffed grape leaves (dolmades)!

GREEK RICE (SPANAKORIZO)

Steps:

• Measure out and rinse the basmati rice under running cold water. Set aside.
• Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Sauté onions until translucent (about 3-5 minutes). Add garlic and sauté for another minute.
• Add the lemon zest, cumin and spinach and cover the pan. Cook until the spinach wilts down (about 3-5 minutes).
• Stir the rice, vegetable broth, 2 tablespoons of the dill, salt and pepper into the spinach mixture and stir to combine. Bring to a boil.
• Reduce the heat to a simmer, replacing the lid on the pan, and cook until the rice is tender, about 15 minutes.
• Stir in the lemon juice and the remaining fresh dill before serving.
• Optional garnish with lemon strands.

EASY GREEK RICE

Steps:

• In a pan over medium heat, fry the onions in the oil for 2 to 3 minutes, until golden.
• Mix in the grated carrot and stir for another 2 minutes.
• Incorporate the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil.
• Stir in the lemon juice and rice.
• Cover, remove from heat and set aside for 10-15 minutes.
• Enjoy this easy rice recipe with Greek style!

GREEK RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium size skillet over medium high heat. Add the rice and onion and sauté until both are translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the water with 1 heaping tablespoon of tomato paste, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Simmer until the rice is just done, 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and the nutmeg, if using. Sprinkle with the parsley, if desired. Fluff with a fork and serve.
• NOTES: Not caring much for the flavor of plain water, a Greek cook who does not have stock on hand will usually flavor the water with tomato paste: about 1 tablespoon tomato paste to 1 cup water. This can be used for bulgur pilaf as well.
• As with bulgur pilaf, the quantity can easily be doubled, tripled, or more: Use 1 1/4 times as much liquid as rice. Be sure to increase the amount of olive oil and onion as you increase the rice and liquid.
• Adventures In Greek Cooking.

GREEK STYLE RICE RECIPE (GREEK PILAF)

Steps:

• Peel and chop the onion into small chunks then peel and mince the garlic.
• Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large saute pan/ deep frying pan (Use one you have a lid for)
• Add in the onions and cook over low heat for 4-5 minutes until soft, Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
• Pour in the rice and stir to coat in the olive and onion mixture.
• Add the zest and juice of one lemon, the dried oregano and then pour in the hot vegetable broth.
• Bring to a simmer then cover and cook for 15 minutes over low heat.
• Once the time is done, remove the pan from the heat and leave it covered for 10 minutes.
• Once this time is done, remove the lid and squeeze over the juice of the remaining lemon.
• Taste the rice for salt, then garnish with your fresh herbs and finish with extra virgin olive oil and plenty of black pepper and salt if needed.

TRADITIONAL "GREEK RESTAURANT" SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• Add all ingredients to a jar. Cover and shake for about a minute.

GREEK RICE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.