Grape leaves, raw

Grape leaves are best known as the wrapper for dolma and dolmades, the rice- or meat-filled rolls found across Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Balkan cooking, and they are also used to wrap fish or cheese before grilling, imparting a mild, slightly tangy, herbal flavor as they cook. Fresh leaves need a quick blanch to soften them enough to roll without tearing, while the jarred, brined leaves sold in most grocery stores are ready to use straight from the jar after a rinse. Young, tender leaves near the top of the vine are preferred over older, tougher ones lower down.

If picking leaves fresh, choose ones without holes or heavy blemishes, and use them within a day or two, or blanch and freeze them for longer storage. A cup of raw grape leaves weighs only about 14 grams and provides 93 calories per 100 grams, so a typical few leaves used for wrapping add very little in the way of calories to a dish. By weight they are notably high in vitamin A at 153% of the daily value, along with 39% for fiber and 28% for calcium, though the small quantity used per dolma limits how much of that reaches the finished dish.