In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except grape leaves, ¼ cup olive oil and water.

If you have grape leaves in brine, you don’t need to do any work on them,  just wash them well to remove excessive salt. If you have fresh grape leaves, blanch them in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Transfer into cold water and drain.

Cut off the stems of the leaves. (See the video)

Place a leaf on a cutting board or on a plate, shiny side down. Place about 1 tablespoon of the rice filling near the end of the leaf, fold and roll it up. (Please see it in the pictures above or watch the video to see how).

Place stuffed and rolled grape leaves into a pan either leaving the centre of the pan empty or in rows without leaving any space at the bottom of the pan.

If there is any leftover filling, put it in a cup or glass, place it into the centre (you can see it in the video) so that it is cooked at the same time with the leaves or freeze it for later use. If there is no leftover, just skip this step. But you can still place the rolls in the pot in the same way.

Pour 1 and ¾ cups water and ¼ cup olive oil over the rolls.

Cook covered over the lowest heat for about 45 minutes or until the rice inside the rolls is cooked.

Cool completely before serving.

Squeeze lemon over it.

Heat olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat. 

Add in tomato paste and dried mint, cook for about a minute. 

Add in diced tomatoes, minced garlic and lemon juice. Cook until tomatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.

Pour this sauce over the stuffed grape leaves before serving.