Spiced Meat Pies

Name: Spiced Meat Pies
Total time: 45 min
Yield: About 2 dozen pies
Cuisine: middle eastern
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon active dry yeast; 2 cups all-purpose flour; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, more for oiling pans; 1 pound ground beef (not more than 85 percent lean); 1/4 cup tomato paste; 1/2 onion, finely chopped; Juice of 1 lemon; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 1/2 teaspoons allspice; 1 tablespoon tamarind paste (available at Middle Eastern and Indian markets); 2 tablespoons pine nuts; Lemon wedges and coarse salt for sprinkling on top

Recipe from Iris Towers

Adapted by Julia Moskin

Spiced Meat Pies — Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times

Total Time: 45 minutes
Rating: 4(32)
Comments: Read comments

A love for sambusak and these meat pies, lahmejun, is like a badge of Syrian identity, and cooks say they are always the first to go at any gathering. —Julia Moskin

Featured in: Mother to Daughter, Since Forever

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Ingredients

Yield:About 2 dozen pies

For the Dough (see Note)

1teaspoon active dry yeast
2cups all-purpose flour
½teaspoon salt
2tablespoons vegetable oil, more for oiling pans

For the Topping

1pound ground beef (not more than 85 percent lean)
¼cup tomato paste
½onion, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
1teaspoon salt
1½teaspoons allspice
1tablespoon tamarind paste (available at Middle Eastern and Indian markets)
2tablespoons pine nuts
Lemon wedges and coarse salt for sprinkling on top

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

To Make Dough
1. Step 1
  Combine yeast and 2 tablespoons warm water and set aside for 5 minutes. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl; add oil, yeast mixture and a scant ½ cup warm water. Mix, using hands if necessary, until dough comes together: it should be elastic but not sticky. If needed, add a little more flour or water. Turn out onto a board (no need to flour it) and knead until soft and smooth, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place 1 hour.
Step 2
When dough has risen, combine all ingredients for topping in a bowl. Divide dough in two and roll out on a floured surface to about ⅛-inch thickness. Cut 3-inch rounds with a water glass or cookie cutter, stacking them between layers of wax paper. Roll and cut remaining dough.
Step 3
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spread a heaping tablespoon of meat mixture on each dough round, spreading all the way to the edge: meat mixture will shrink during baking. (Once assembled, pies can be frozen, stacked in wax paper, and then baked directly from freezer.) Arrange pies on 2 lightly oiled baking sheets. Bake 20 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking. Serve hot, sprinkled with lemon juice and coarse salt.

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