Minced meat packs into a dense mass and loses its juiciness. Meat cut into 5 mm dice gives the filling texture: you can feel every piece.
Meat samsa is a classic of Uzbek baking. What matters most is the layered dough (thin sheets of dough stuck together with butter) and the filling: chopped meat, never minced, with plenty of onion and a pinch of zira (cumin). At home, samsa is baked in a very hot oven; in Uzbekistan it goes into a tandoor, which gives it a distinctive dry crust. This recipe is written for a home oven and gets close to the tandoor result.
Method
- 1
Make the dough with the flour, water, egg and salt, and knead for 10 minutes until elastic.
- 2
Roll the dough out into a large, thin rectangle and spread it with the softened butter.
- 3
Roll it up tightly into a log and cut it into pieces 3 cm thick.
- 4
Cover the pieces with cling film and leave them to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- 5
Chop the meat with a knife into 5 mm dice; do not put it through a mincer.
- 6
Finely dice the onions and mix them with the meat, then add the tail fat, spices and salt.
- 7
Stand each piece of dough cut side down, roll it out into a 12 cm round and put a spoonful of filling on it.
- 8
Bring the edges up into a triangle and pinch the seams firmly together.
- 9
Place the samsa seam side down on a baking tray, brush with egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- 10
Bake at 200 °C for 30–35 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown.
Cook's tips
- Chop the meat with a knife rather than mincing it: the texture of the filling depends on it.
- Use equal weights of meat and onion; with less onion, the filling turns out dry.
- Chill the shaped samsa in the fridge for 15 minutes before baking; this helps the layers open up.
- Do not cut samsa straight out of the oven. Give it 5 minutes to rest so the juices settle.
FAQ
Beef samsa: common questions
Butter gives the best layers. Margarine works as a substitute, while vegetable oil gives a less flaky pastry.
Do not cover the samsa with film straight after baking, or the steam will soften the crust. Let it cool on a wire rack.
Yes: freeze them raw, once shaped. Bake straight from frozen, adding 8–10 minutes to the baking time.
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Get the ingredients at Arkan Bazar
You will find rice, spices, dried fruit, nuts, non flatbread and tea for most of these recipes on our counter at Riga Central Market, Nēģu iela 7, open daily from 09:00 to 17:00.