Pan-Fried Chebureki [Чебуреки на сковороде]
Pan-Fried Chebureki are crispy, golden-brown, half-moon turnovers filled with savory, juicy minced meat, a popular Eastern European food.This recipe is a favorite of my uncle Vlad and he often cooks it.
servings
Ingredients
The Dough
- 350 g all-purpose flour
- 250 ml water for boiling
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp salt
The Filling
- 400 g minced meat pork, veal and/or beef mix
- 2-3 yellow onions to taste
- 60 ml very cold water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
The Frying
- 120 ml vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
The Dough
- Prepare the ingredients for the dough. The most successful dough for chebureki is choux pastry made with boiling water. Sift the 350 g all-purpose flour into a deep mixing bowl to remove impurities and aerate the flour. Add 1 tsp salt.
- Boil the 250 ml water and pour the boiling water into the bowl with the flour. Mix the ingredients until the mass forms into lumps. Leave the dough to stand at room temperature to cool slightly.
- Pour in the 2 Tbsp vegetable oil and beat in the 1 egg. Mix everything to get an elastic smooth dough. Knead on a flour-dusted table.
- Put the dough back into the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave for 30 minutes or overnight if you can at room temperature to rest.
The Filling
- While the dough is resting at room temperature, prepare the filling ingredients. Dice the 2-3 yellow onions.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the 2-3 yellow onions together with the 400 g minced meat so the minced meat becomes more uniform. Add 60 ml very cold water, 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper to taste and mix.Denis Tips: It is important that the filling in homemade chebureki is juicy, so it is better to use a mixture of pork, veal and beef. Also, that extra burst of steam from the ice water is what guarantees that hot, dripping broth when someone bites into it.
The Shaping
- Divide the rested dough into 6 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece of dough into a thin round circle. Put a little meat filling on one half.
- Cover the minced meat with the second half of the dough and form the chebureki.
- Crimp the edges tightly with a fork so they look nice and the meat juices stay inside during frying.
The Frying
- Heat the 120 ml vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium. There should be enough oil to cover a third of the chebureki.
- Fry them over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes on the first side. Denis Tips: Spoon the hot oil over the top of the cheburek while the bottom fries. It seals the top dough immediately and creates those beautiful, crispy blisters before you even flip it.
- Flip and cook again bout 3-4 minutes on the other side until golden brown and cooked through.
The Serving
- Place the finished chebureki on a plate lined with paper towels to absorb excess oil.
- Serve and enjoy your Pan-Fried Meat Chebureki [Чебуреки на сковороде с мясом]!