CHEESE AND MEAT SAMBOUSEK
You will find these crunchy fried stuffed pastry triangles present on every Iftar table during Ramadan. And once you try them, you will realize that your table is incomplete without a sambousek or two!
INGREDIENTS
Cheese Mix:
Sambousek pastry sheets
3 tablespoons labaneh (I use Turkish labaneh, like Pinar)
1/2 cup feta cheese
180g of Philadelphia cheese spread
1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese mix
Optional: 1/2 cup chopped parsley
Frying oil
Meat Mix:
Sambousek pastry sheets
450g minced meat
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup peas
2 potatoes, boiled and smashed
1 tablespoon tomato salsa
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 teaspoon cumin, or more to taste
Salt and pepper, to taste
Frying oil
PREPARATION
1. In a large bowl, place all the cheese ingredients and mix well to combine. Set aside.
2. Over medium heat, sauté onion until fragrant and translucent in color.
3. Add the minced meat to the onion and stir until browned and completely cooked.
4. Add the cumin, salt and pepper, peas and pine nuts. Stir until the peas have softened.
5. Next, add the already cooked and smashed potatoes, and mix thoroughly. At this point, you’ll want to taste and check if you need to adjust the seasoning. Mix just enough to combine all the ingredients, then remove from heat and into a bowl.
6. Using the sambousek pastry sheets, begin by placing 1-2 tablespoons of either the cheese or meat mixture in the top corner of the dough sheet. Roll it in layers to form a triangular shape. Brush the last layer with a bit of cheese spread or beaten egg or a little water and close it.
7. Repeat until both mixtures are done.
8. Heat the frying oil in a pan, then deep-fry the sambousek until they turn a nice golden color. Make sure you don’t overcrowd the pan, fry them in batches until you get the quantity desired.
9. Serve immediately, as they are best eaten hot.
10. Alternatively, you can skip steps 8 and 9, and store the sambousek in ziplock bags and freeze them for up to 6 months.
Notes:
You can prepare your own dough, or use different kinds of pastry sheets to make sambousek.
You can also make different sambousek shapes besides triangles.
A healthy alternative is to bake them in a 200C preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until they turn a golden brown.
You can try different fillings, such as chicken, or vegetarian by opting out of using any protein.
