Chebureki
This deep fried half-moon-shaped meat turnover with an odd name sometimes spelled Chiburekki, a large pot sticker of sorts, is popular in the southern parts of Russia and adjacent countries.
Ingredients
- 5 cups all-purpose flour (approximately)
- 2 eggs
- ½ to ¾ cup water
- 1 tsp. salt for the dough and 1 ½ tsp. for the filling
- 1.5 lb. lamb meat (not counting bones)
- 1 large onion or 2 small onions
- Cilantro – 1 bunch (or enough to fill ½ cup when chopped)
- ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
- 5 Tbsp. water or 3 oz. yogurt
- Olive or vegetable oil for frying – lots
Directions
Prepare Dough for the Shells
- Combine the flour, eggs, 1 tsp. of salt, and ½ cup of water, and knead well. The dough should be dense but at the same time elastic and easy enough to roll. Add the remaining water in very small increments.
- Roll the dough into a ball, place in a container, put a wet paper towel on top, cover with a lid, and let stand for 30 minutes to an hour.
Prepare the Filling
- Mince the lamb and dice the onion, or put them through a meat grinder using a coarse plate.
- Finely chop cilantro to fill ½ cup
- In a mixing bowl, combine the lamb, onion, cilantro, ground pepper, salt, and 5 Tbsp. of water or 3 oz. of yogurt.
- Mix everything well and put in the refrigerator.
Make the Chebureki
- Dust your work surface with flour and roll the dough into a thin sheet, no more than 1/10” in thickness. You won’t have enough surface to roll all the dough at once, so divide it into manageable portions.
- Cut out large circles with a lid from a cooking pot with sharp edges 7 – 8” in diameter. Re-knead and reuse the dough between the cutouts.
- You can also cut the sheets in squares. Although you won’t get the classic look, making square chebureki will not affect their taste, and you won’t have to spend extra time re-rolling the leftover dough rings. Some skilled chebureki makers divide the dough into small pieces and roll them into circles one at a time. That takes practice, and you may end up with lopsided chebureki at first.
- Put about two heaping tablespoons of the minced meat filling on top of each dough circle, off center, and then fold the circle in half making the edges meet. Don’t overfill! Be sure the filling is completely sealed inside. For a better seal, lightly moisten the shell around the edge with a small piece of wet paper towel.
- Press together the edges and then crimp them with a fork for the signature ruffled look of chebureki (see the picture). Use a fair amount of force but be sure not to poke holes through the shell. For a “commercial” look, trim the edge with a pastry cutter with a fluted wheel.
- Carefully flatten the chebureki making sure they don’t burst open. Flattening is important for even and thorough cooking of the meat inside.
- Now the fun part: frying! Find a very deep frying pan or a wok and pour lots of oil in it. Fry on both sides until golden brown.
Remove with a skimmer and drain the extra oil. - Serve chebureki hot right after frying. Enjoy!
Watch our exclusive highly instructional and also entertaining video below or on our video page. The sound track is Russian folk music played on Zhaleika – a traditional village instrument.
Chebureki
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Serves: 10
This deep fried half-moon-shaped meat turnover with an odd name sometimes spelled Chiburekki, a large pot sticker of sorts, is popular in the southern parts of Russia and adjacent countries.
Ingredients
- 5 cups all-purpose flour (approximately)
- 2 eggs
- ½ to ¾ cup water
- 1 tsp. salt for the dough and 1 ½ tsp. for the filling
- 1.5 lb. lamb meat (not counting bones)
- 1 large onion or 2 small onions
- Cilantro – 1 bunch (or enough to fill ½ cup when chopped)
- ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
- 5 Tbsp. water or 3 oz. yogurt
- Olive or vegetable oil for frying – lots
Instructions
- Prepare dough for the shells:
- Combine the flour, eggs, 1 tsp. of salt, and ½ cup of water, and knead well. The dough should be dense but at the same time elastic and easy enough to roll. Add the remaining water in very small increments.
- Roll the dough into a ball, place in a container, put a wet paper towel on top, cover with a lid, and let stand for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Prepare the filling:
- Mince the lamb and dice the onion, or put them through a meat grinder using a coarse plate.
- Finely chop cilantro to fill ½ cup
- In a mixing bowl, combine the lamb, onion, cilantro, ground pepper, salt, and 5 Tbsp. of water or 3 oz. of yogurt.
- Mix everything well and put in the refrigerator.
- Make the chebureki:
- Dust your work surface with flour and roll the dough into a thin sheet, no more than 1/10” in thickness. You won’t have enough surface to roll all the dough at once, so divide it into manageable portions.
- Cut out large circles with a lid from a cooking pot with sharp edges 7 – 8” in diameter. Re-knead and reuse the dough between the cutouts.
- You can also cut the sheets in squares. Although you won’t get the classic look, making square chebureki will not affect their taste, and you won’t have to spend extra time re-rolling the leftover dough rings. Some skilled chebureki makers divide the dough into small pieces and roll them into circles one at a time. That takes practice, and you may end up with lopsided chebureki at first.
- Put about two heaping tablespoons of the minced meat filling on top of each dough circle, off center, and then fold the circle in half making the edges meet. Don’t overfill! Be sure the filling is completely sealed inside. For a better seal, lightly moisten the shell around the edge with a small piece of wet paper towel.
- Press together the edges and then crimp them with a fork for the signature ruffled look of chebureki (see the picture). Use a fair amount of force but be sure not to poke holes through the shell. For a “commercial” look, trim the edge with a pastry cutter with a fluted wheel.
- Carefully flatten the chebureki making sure they don’t burst open. Flattening is important for even and thorough cooking of the meat inside.
- Now the fun part: frying! Find a very deep frying pan or a wok and pour lots of oil in it. Fry on both sides until golden brown.
- Remove with a skimmer and drain the extra oil.
- Serve chebureki hot right after frying. Enjoy!
Russian name: Чебуреки
Another variation
I have tested it in San Francisco it was the best. I am trying to make it at home Hope I will be sucesseful