Sambousek (Arabic Samosa, Meat & Vegetarian Filling)

This Arabic Sambousek recipe is the perfect crunchy appetizer to serve at any dinner! And I make mine with a hack I discovered years ago using ready made spring roll pastry - so easy. Whether you like it with a meat filling or with a vegetarian potato filling, I've got you covered. This freezer friendly recipe is also super handy for Ramadan.

Why this recipe works

Sambousek in Arabic is a crunchy fried pastry that's stuffed with either a deliciously spiced meat, onions and parsley mixture or a vegetarian peas and potato filling. It's traditionally served as an appetizer at dinner gatherings.

Typically, you'd make the dough from scratch and roll it out really thin and then stuff it. But the best part about this recipe is that it uses ready made frozen spring roll pastry similar to this one. It's so quick and works out perfectly.

You can also use wonton wrappers if you can't find spring roll pastry, which is similar but slightly thicker. They're both usually available at most grocery stores in the frozen section.

Both the meat and the potato filling come together within 15 minutes, so really the only time consuming part is the rolling. But you can do that while watching TV. Oh and did I mention it is SUPER freezer friendly? And you'll get amazing results whether you fry it, bake it, or air fry it.

I make the meat version most often when I have leftover ground beef; it is a very similar mixture to what I use in Egyptian Goulash and Hashweh Rice.

I also have a cheese version of this sambousek, if you're all about the cheese, check out the Sigara Boregi recipe!

Ingredients you'll need

For the meat mixture:

• Ground beef: You can use regular or lean ground beef. If using extra lean, be sure to add a bit more oil to the mix
• Spring roll pastry: You can usually find this in the frozen aisle of the grocery store, or you can also use wonton wrappers. For the round cigar shaped sambousek, I use the square sheets, and for the triangular shape I use a long rectangular sheet
• Spices: If you can't find allspice, then feel free to replace it with seven spice (an Arabic spice mixture)
• You'll also need a tablespoon of flour and some water to make a flour paste and seal the edges of the sambousek

For the vegetarian filling:

If you don't have peas, you can feel free to skip them, but they do add a nice flavour and colour. For the black pepper, adjust this based on how spicy you'd like it. The amount used in the recipe yields a medium spice level.

How to make this recipe

• Prepare the meat meat mixture if that's what you're using by softening the onions with some oil, then adding in the ground beef and breaking it up into small pieces using a wooden spoon. Once the beef is browned and the water has evaporated, add the spices and warm through, then add the parsley.

• If you're using the vegetarian filling, prepare it by peeling and roughly cutting the potatoes, then boiling them until fork tender. Soften onions with some oil in a pan, then add the cooked potatoes and mash them with a fork. Then add the spices and the frozen peas and cook until the peas are tender.

• To prepare the pastry, thaw out the spring roll pastry in the fridge overnight
• Remove it from the packaging and place it on a plate covered with a towel to prevent it from drying out
• For rolling the meat sambousek, use a square sheet and wrap it as pictured below. Place it in a diamond shape on your surface, and place a spoonful of the mixture on the bottom corner. Roll over the corner, then fold in the sides and continue to roll until you reach the edge. Seal with the flour paste

• To roll the triangular vegetarian sambousek, use a long rectangular sheet of pastry and place a spoonful of the filling on one corner. Fold it over diagonally to create a triangle. Then fold it over diagonally the other direction and continue to do that until you reach the end. Seal the wrapper using the flour paste

• Shallow fry them in a pan, ensuring the oil used comes up about halfway to the sambousek and is hot before dropping them in (the oil should start to bubble right away). Fry them for a few seconds on each side until golden brown

How to air fry or bake the sambousek

To bake the sambousek, preheat the oven to 375F. Brush the sambouek generously with vegetable oil on both sides and place on a baking sheet in one layer. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

To air fry, brush them generously with vegetable oil on both sides and lay them in one layer inside the air fryer. Air fry for

Freezing instructions

These sambousek are so freezer friendly. Simply roll them up then place them (uncooked) in a large container in one layer, preferably lined with parchment paper to avoid them sticking. Close the container with an air tight lid (or you can also cover tightly with a plastic bag - I've done that before).

Once they freeze (which should take a few hours), you can remove them from the container and place them in a freezer friendly ziploc bag to save on freezer space. They can stay in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Fry them from frozen for amazing results, and do this as close as possible to the time that you'll be serving them to maintain freshness. But if you need to fry them a good 3-4 hours in advance, don't worry - they hold up well.

FAQ's and Expert Tips

What kind of pastry can I use for Sambousek? You can use ready made spring roll pastry or ready made wonton wrappers. Both will yield great results and are easier than homemade dough.

Can I bake sambousek? Yes - you can bake them or air fry them for great results. Bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes and air fry at 380F for 20-30 minutes until golden. For both the oven and air fryer, you need to generously brush them with vegetable oil on both sides.

Can I freeze sambousek? Yes, this recipe is really freezer friendly. You can freeze them before cooking in one layer until they freeze solid, then remove them and store in a ziploc bag. Fry them from frozen for great results.

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