Stranger Foods

PalestinianArabic samosas

Serves 12 | Prep 30 mins | Cook 40 mins

Indian samosas, Hispanic empanadas, Cornish pasties, Bosnian burek: there are so many ways to encase various fillings with pastry before the whole thing gets baked or fried. Sambousek is the Palestinian way. Traditionally they’re fried but we’ve baked ours here.

Source: Falastin

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

x0.5

Dough

1½ tsp fast-action dried yeast
1 tsp caster sugar
170 ml lukewarm water
320 g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tbsp milk powder (also known as dried skimmed milk)
⅛ tsp ground turmeric
¼ tsp salt
3 tbsp sunflower oil
4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing

Filling

1x 400 g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 sirloin steak, trimmed of most of the fat and finely chopped (about 250 g)
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp baharat
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp Aleppo chilli flakes (or regular chilli flakes)
¼ tsp ground turmeric
¼ tsp salt
10 g parsley, finely chopped

Mint yogurt (optional)

180 g Greek-style yoghurt
1 tsp dried mint
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
5 g mint leaves, roughly chopped

1 egg, whisked together with 1 tbsp water, to make an eggwash
1 tsp black or white sesame seeds, or a mix

Instructions

°C

°F

Show amounts inline

First make the dough. Put the yeast, sugar and water into a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside for , until it starts to bubble.
Put the flour, milk powder, turmeric and ¾ teaspoon of salt into the bowl of a free-standing mixer with the dough hook in place. Mix for , just to incorporate, then add the yeast mixture, followed by both oils. Increase the speed to medium and mix for , until the dough is soft, sticky and elastic. Tip the dough on to a clean work surface and bring together to form a ball. Grease the mixing bowl with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and return the dough to the bowl. Turn it a couple of times so that it’s completely coated in oil, then cover the bowl with a clean tea towel. Set aside somewhere warm for , until doubled in size.
Meanwhile, make the filling. Roughly crush the chickpeas with the back of a fork, leaving about half of them whole. Put the oil into a medium saucepan and place on a medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for , stirring a few times, or until softened and browned. Add the meat, spices and ¾ teaspoon of salt and cook for , stirring constantly. Add the chickpeas and cook for another . Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the parsley and set aside to cool.
Place all the ingredients for the mint yoghurt in a bowl with ¼ teaspoon of salt. Mix to combine, and keep in the fridge until ready to serve.
Cut the dough into 12 even pieces, about 45 g each. Roll each piece into a ball, cover with a clean tea towel and set aside for , to rest. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan.
Taking one ball at a time, roll it into a circle, about 12 cm wide. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the cooled chickpea mixture - about 35-40 g - into the middle of the dough and fold the dough over itself to form a half-moon shape. Press down the edges with your fingers and seal with a fork. Continue with the remaining batch and arrange on 2 large parchment-lined trays, spaced well apart.
Brush the top of the sambousek with the egg wash and sprinkle evenly with the nigella and sesame seeds. Bake for about , until they are cooked through and golden brown. Leave to cool for about and then serve warm or at room temperature with the yoghurt alongside.

Similar recipes

Open meat pies Photograph of Vegetarian turkish pide.

Vegetarian turkish pide Photograph of Lahmacun.

Lahmacun

Barbari bread