Bourek (Algerian spring rolls)

Chicken, beef , cheese, shrimp,…etc.

There is a variety of bourek for every palate – they may be stuffed with ground beef, chicken, cheese, or fish. You cannot have an Algerian soup without bourek – they are faithful companions and share a common final touch: a squeeze of lemon to make this appetizer complete.

D’youl are the main component of any bourek. (dyol wraps are north African pastry sheets that look like phyllo sheets. They are made of wheat flour and semolina, water, and salt. Once the batter is made, it is brushed in a nonstick pan for few seconds then the sheet is taken out of the pan before it is gets dry. The bourek sheets are the kept in a kitchen towel until used).

Beef Bourek:

Ingredients:

6 servings – Preparation and cook time: 45 mnts 

1 lb ground beef

1 onion, minced

Your preferred choice of cheese or cream cheese

A handful of parsley, minced

Salt to taste

Ras el hanout seasoning “7 spices” (I will talk about ras el hanout later)

Dyol wraps or spring roll wraps

Lemon quarters

Vegetable oil for frying

Step by Step Instructions:

1.     In a frying pan over medium heat, add one tablespoon of oil and minced onion, sautee until softened. Add ground beef.

2.     Stir with spoon, when beef is almost cooked through, add salt & ras al hanout.

3.     Once cooked through, remove from pan and let cool. Add minced parsley.

4.     Once the ground beef is completely cooled down, take one sheet of d’youl or a spring roll wrap, put a full tablespoon of ground beef filling on the top center of the d’youl sheet.

5.     Add your choice of cheese.

6.    Then fold and roll per diagram.

7.     Add two centimeters of vegetable oil to pan and heat until oil hisses with a drop of water added.

8.     Fry bourek four lined up at a time until golden.

9.     Flip and fry until the other side is golden.

10.  Allow to cool and drain on a paper towel and serve hot with a lemon slice on the side.