Greek cuisine · Vegetable Dishes

Stuffed Onions

Onion layers filled with rice, herbs and raisins, rolled into parcels and cooked in stock.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 6 large onions
• 150 g round-grain rice
• 60 g raisins
• 1 tbsp pine nuts
• 1/2 bunch dill
• 1/2 bunch mint
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 120 ml olive oil
• 2 lemons
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• Salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Peel the onions, cut a lengthwise slit from the top to the center on one side and cook in boiling water for 8 min until the layers loosen easily; let cool and peel off the layers one by one.
2. Soak the raisins in warm water for 10 min, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan for 2 min until golden.
3. Finely chop the small onion trimmings from the center and sweat in 60 ml olive oil for 5 min, then stir in the washed rice, tomato paste, cinnamon, drained raisins, pine nuts and chopped herbs, and season generously.
4. Place 1 tsp of filling on the narrow end of an onion layer and loosely roll it into a parcel – the rice needs room to swell.
5. Layer the parcels seam-side down tightly in a wide pot, pour in 400 ml hot water, the remaining olive oil and the juice of one lemon, and weigh down with a plate.
6. Cover and cook over low heat for 40–45 min, until the rice is soft and almost no liquid remains in the pot; serve lukewarm with wedges of the second lemon.