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Sambuus
Crisp beef pastries
Somali crisp beef pastries with green chilli and coriander, made for Ramadan
Sambuus are the triangles of crisp pastry Somali families fry by the hundred during Ramadan, filling them with minced beef, onion, green chilli, coriander and xawaash; trays of them sit on every iftar table from Hargeisa to Toronto. The filling must be dry, and the pastry thin. The mistake is a wet filling, which steams the pastry from the inside and makes it soggy; cook the mince until all the liquid has gone. Chef's tip: shop-bought spring roll pastry, cut into strips, makes good thin sambuus at home.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 24
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 ⅛ lb beef mince
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 3 garlic clovescrushed
- 2 tsp xawaash spice mix
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 green chilliesfinely chopped
- 4 spring onionsfinely chopped
- ⅔ oz corianderchopped
To fill and fry
- 24 spring roll pastry sheetsabout 20 cm square
- 2 tbsp plain flourmixed with 2 tbsp water to make a paste
- 4 ¼ cups vegetable oilfor deep frying
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add 1 ⅛ lb beef mince and cook for 8–10 minutes, breaking it up, until browned with no pink left and all the liquid has evaporated. It must reach 160°F.
10 minStep 2: Add 1 onion, 3 garlic cloves, 2 tsp xawaash spice mix and 1 tsp salt and cook for 5 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in 2 green chillies, 4 spring onions and ⅔ oz coriander. Spread out and cool completely.
5 minStep 3: Cut each 24 spring roll pastry sheets sheet in half to make 2 strips (keep the rest covered with a damp cloth). Fold one end of a strip over to form a cone, fill with a heaped tablespoon of filling, then keep folding into a neat triangle. Seal the end with a dab of 2 tbsp plain flour paste.
Step 4: Heat 4 ¼ cups vegetable oil to 350°F. Fry the sambuus 5 or 6 at a time for 3–4 minutes, turning, until golden and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper.
15 minStep 5: Serve warm with lime or a green chilli sauce. Freeze uncooked sambuus on a tray, then bag; fry from frozen for 1–2 minutes longer.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 120 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does sambuus take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 45 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 24 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 onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic cloves?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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