How to Make Sambousek (Lebanese Meat Pies with Pine Nuts)

Sambousek (sambusak) are small half-moon pastries with a crimped edge, filled with ground meat, onion and pine nuts and fried until golden and blistered. They are a staple of Lebanese mezze, a fixture at weddings and parties, and in many homes a Ramadan iftar is not complete without a plate of them next to the soup. Cheese sambousek, filled with akkawi or halloumi and parsley, is the other classic.

The dough is simple and firm, closer to a pie crust than to bread, so it fries crisp rather than puffy. It is enriched with oil or ghee, which keeps it short and flaky. The filling is the same lightly spiced meat used for kibbeh, and it must be completely cool before you start shaping.

Ingredients

For the dough

• 300 g (2½ cups) all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp sugar
• 80 ml (⅓ cup) vegetable oil or melted ghee
• 120 to 140 ml (½ cup to ½ cup plus 1 tbsp) lukewarm water

For the filling

• 1 tbsp (15 ml) olive oil or ghee
• 40 g (¼ cup) pine nuts
• 1 medium onion (150 g), very finely chopped
• 300 g (⅔ lb) ground beef or lamb
• 1 tsp Lebanese seven spices (baharat)
• ¾ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp (15 ml) pomegranate molasses or lemon juice
• ½ tsp sumac (optional)

For frying

• About 1 liter (4 cups) neutral oil

Instructions

1. Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Pour in the oil and rub it in with your fingertips until the flour looks like damp sand, about 2 minutes.
2. Add 120 ml of water and knead for 5 minutes into a smooth, firm dough, adding the extra water a spoonful at a time only if it is too dry to come together. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
3. For the filling, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the pine nuts and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until golden. Lift them out onto a plate.
4. In the same pan, cook the onion over medium heat for 5 minutes until soft. Add the meat and cook, breaking it up finely, for 6 to 8 minutes until browned and dry.
5. Stir in the seven spices, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute. Take off the heat, add the pomegranate molasses, sumac and pine nuts. Spread on a plate and let it cool completely, about 20 minutes.
6. Divide the dough in two and keep one half covered. On a lightly floured surface, roll the other half as thin as you can, about 2 mm (1/16 inch).
7. Cut rounds with an 8 cm (3 inch) cutter or glass. Gather the scraps, cover and reroll them once.
8. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling on one side of each round. Fold the dough over into a half moon and press the edges firmly together. Seal by pressing with a fork or by pinching and folding the edge over itself in a rope pattern. Lay them on a floured tray, covered with a towel.
9. Heat the oil in a deep pot to 175°C (350°F). Fry 6 to 8 at a time for 3 to 4 minutes, turning once, until deep golden and blistered.
10. Drain on a rack or paper towel and serve warm.

Tips for the best sambousek

• Roll the dough thin. Thick dough stays chewy and soaks up oil.
• Use cool filling. Warm filling softens the dough and the edges will not seal.
• Seal tightly so no oil gets in and no filling leaks.
• Check the oil temperature with a thermometer. Too cool and they turn greasy, too hot and the dough browns before it crisps.

Variations

• Baked sambousek: brush with oil or beaten egg and bake on parchment at 200°C (400°F) for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden.
• Cheese sambousek: fill with 250 g (2 cups) desalted, grated akkawi or halloumi mixed with chopped parsley and a pinch of nigella seeds.
• Make ahead and freeze: freeze shaped, uncooked pies on a tray, then bag them. Fry from frozen, adding 1 minute.

How to serve and store

Serve hot with lemon wedges, alongside hummus, fattoush and other mezze. Fried sambousek is best the same day. Reheat leftovers in a 180°C (350°F) oven for 8 minutes to bring back the crunch.

A good seven spice blend from Beirut Spice Co. and a tart pomegranate molasses from Debs w Remman make the filling taste the way it does in Lebanon. Short on time? Emm Karam sells frozen sambousek ready to fry.

Frequently Asked Questions