Hot appetizers · The home kitchen
Meat Sambousek
Sambousek encloses warmly spiced beef and onion in a crisp pastry shell. A simple dough gives the parcels a tender bite, while fully cooking and cooling the filling makes assembly easier. These small half-moons work well on a hot appetizer platter alongside cheese rolls, falafel and a fresh vegetable salad. This is an original home-style interpretation inspired by the menu’s ingredients, rather than Beiruty’s restaurant formula. Quantities are written for a domestic kitchen so you can prepare the dish confidently and adjust the final seasoning to your own taste. The independent recipe linked below provides another cook’s perspective and useful background for exploring this style of food at home.
A home-style recipe inspired by our menu. Restaurant preparation, portions and ingredients may differ.
Make it at home
Meat Sambousek recipe
- Serves
- 6
- Prep
- 60 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rest / chill
- 30 min
- Total
- 115 min
Ingredients
- Dough: 250 g all-purpose flour, 125 ml water, 35 ml olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt
- Filling: 250 g ground beef, 130 g finely chopped onion, 15 ml olive oil, 15 g chopped parsley, 1/2 tsp allspice, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt
- 750 ml neutral oil for frying
Method
Mix dough ingredients, knead 5 minutes until smooth, cover and rest 30 minutes.
Soften filling onion in olive oil 8 minutes. Add beef, allspice, cinnamon and salt and cook to 71°C/160°F, breaking into crumbs. Stir in parsley and cool completely.
Divide dough into 16 balls and roll each into a 10 cm circle on a lightly floured surface. Add a tablespoon of filling, fold into a half-moon and firmly crimp edges.
Heat oil 4 cm deep to 175°C/350°F. Fry in batches for 3–4 minutes, turning until golden. Drain on a rack.
Make it your own.
- Cool filling before shaping so the dough stays firm.
- Keep the sealing edge free of oil and filling.