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Fataya
Dakar's fried beef turnovers with a tangy onion sauce
Fataya are the half-moon pastries sold in paper cones outside schools and at bus stops all over Dakar, and fried by the dozen at home for baptisms and Tabaski. The dough is soft and short, the filling is minced beef cooked with onion, garlic and a little chilli, and they come with a sharp onion-and-mustard sauce for dipping. The common mistake is overfilling, which makes them burst in the oil; a heaped teaspoon per small round is enough. Chef's tip: let the filling cool completely before you fill the dough, or the steam softens the pastry and it tears.
- Total time
- 85 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
For the onion sauce
To fry
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Mix 14 oz plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder and 1 tsp salt in a bowl. Rub in ¼ cup vegetable oil with your fingertips, then add ¾ cup warm water a little at a time and knead for 5 minutes into a soft, smooth dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
35 minStep 2: Meanwhile heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry 1 onion for 5 minutes. Add 3 garlic cloves and cook for 1 minute.
6 minStep 3: Add 14 oz beef mince and cook for 8–10 minutes, breaking it up, until no pink remains and any liquid has cooked off. Mince must reach 160°F.
10 minStep 4: Stir in 1 tbsp tomato paste, ½ scotch bonnet chilli, ¾ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper and cook for 2 minutes more. Take off the heat, stir in 3 tbsp chopped parsley and spread on a plate to cool completely.
2 minStep 5: For the sauce, cook 2 onions in 2 tbsp vegetable oil over a medium-low heat for 10 minutes until soft. Stir in 1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 2 tbsp white vinegar and 3 tablespoons of water, simmer for 2 minutes and season.
12 minStep 6: Roll the dough out thinly (about 2 mm) and cut out 10 cm rounds. Put a heaped teaspoon of filling on each, brush the edge with water, fold into a half-moon and press shut. Crimp with a fork.
Step 7: Heat 4 ¼ cups vegetable oil in a deep pan to 350°F. Fry the fataya 5 or 6 at a time for 3–4 minutes, turning once, until puffed and deep golden. Drain on kitchen paper.
15 minStep 8: Serve warm with the onion sauce. Uncooked filled fataya freeze well on a tray; fry them from frozen for 1–2 minutes longer.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 430 kcal
- Protein
- 17 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does fataya take?
- About 85 minutes in total: 50 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of baking powder?
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.
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