Shish Barak (dumplings in yogurt)

Name: Shish Barak (dumplings in yogurt)
Total time: 150 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Arab
Ingredients: For the dough:; 300 g all-purpose flour; ½ tsp salt and 1 tbsp oil; About 150 ml lukewarm water; For the filling:; 300 g ground beef or lamb; 1 small onion, finely chopped, and 2 tbsp pine nuts (optional); 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper and ½ tsp allspice; 1 tbsp oil for the filling and oil for greasing the tray; For the yogurt sauce:; 1 kg full-fat plain yogurt; 1 egg (or 1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup cold water) to stabilise the yogurt; 1 cup water and 1 tsp salt; For the garlic and coriander:; 5 garlic cloves, crushed, and ½ cup chopped fresh coriander; 2 tbsp oil or ghee and 1 tbsp dried mint

Recipe No.: A-25

Arab150 minServes 6

Shish barak is a Levantine dish of meat-filled dough shaped like little ears and cooked in garlic-and-mint yogurt. According to food historian Charles Perry, the name goes back to the old Persian word joshpara; the Arabs pronounced it shushbarak, and shishbarak may have been reinterpreted through a folk etymology linking it to 'shish' and 'börek'. Similar dumplings are found across Central Asia, the Caucasus and the Middle East.

Ingredients for Shish Barak

For the dough
300 gall-purpose flour
½ tspsalt and 1 tbsp oil
150 mlAbout lukewarm water
For the filling
300 gground beef or lamb
1small onion, finely chopped, and 2 tbsp pine nuts (optional)
1 tspsalt, ½ tsp pepper and ½ tsp allspice
1 tbspoil for the filling and oil for greasing the tray
For the yogurt sauce
1 kgfull-fat plain yogurt
1egg (or 1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup cold water) to stabilise the yogurt
1 cupwater and 1 tsp salt
For the garlic and coriander
5garlic cloves, crushed, and ½ cup chopped fresh coriander
2 tbspoil or ghee and 1 tbsp dried mint

Method

Knead the flour, salt, oil and lukewarm water into a smooth, firm dough (5 to 8 minutes). Cover and rest 30 minutes.
For the filling: cook the onion in the oil for 5 minutes until soft, add the meat and break it up for 8 minutes until dry, then add salt, pepper, allspice and pine nuts and cool.
Roll the dough 2 mm thick on a floured surface and cut into 6 cm circles.
Put ½ teaspoon of filling in the centre of each circle, fold it in half and press the edges to seal, then bring the two ends together and pinch them to make a small ear shape.
Heat the oven to 200°C. Arrange the dumplings in an oiled tray and bake 12 to 15 minutes until golden.
For the sauce: whisk the yogurt with the egg (or cornstarch), salt and water in a pot over medium heat, stirring constantly in one direction until it boils, then lower the heat and simmer 10 minutes.
Add the baked dumplings to the yogurt and simmer 10 minutes until they soak up the sauce.
In a small pan fry the garlic and coriander in the oil for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant, stir them into the shish barak with the dried mint and serve hot with white rice.

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