Winter Warmers: Onion dolmas recipe

Makes 6 serves

What you’ll need

• 500 grams ground beef*
• 5 large onions
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 bunch parsley
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup pomegranate molasses
• 4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon sea salt or 1/2 tablespoon table salt
• 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 tablespoon cumin
• Pepper to taste

*For a vegetarian option, you can opt for plant based meat or lentils instead of the beef.

For the sauce

• 2 cups onion water (reserved form boiling)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

To serve

• Greek yogurt
• Extra chopped parsley

Method

1. Boil the peeled onions in a pot of water. Make sure to cover them with water for 20 minutes (or until soft).
2. Reserve 2 cups of onion water for the sauce and set onions aside to cool.
3. Remove roughly half of the onions core and chop finely. Add to a large bowl and mix in the remaining ingredients until well combined.
4. Remove 1 peel from each boiled onion and place 2-3 tablespoons of the filling into the onion and wrap firmly. Arrange each one in the bottom of the slow cooker.
5. For the sauce, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and pour on top of the onions. Cover the onions with parchment paper. This allows them to stay extra juicy.
6. Cover the onions with a sheet of baking paper and cook on high in the slow cooker for 5 hours.
7. Once cooled, top with chopped parsley and serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt.

Why use a slow cooker?

Slow cookers are the perfect life hack during winter. They’re beginner chef friendly, you can cook both mains and desserts in them, and they’re energy efficient. In fact, they use a little more energy than a traditional light bulb. So, you can have something slow cooking all day while you work – saving your energy and energy at home.

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