Somali Sambusa
Sambusa are a dough pocket, filled with a ground meat mixture and fried. Don't let these small pastries fool you, they are packed with flavor and so, so, good!
Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 5 minutes mins
Total Time 35 minutes mins
Course Appetizer
Cuisine African, Somali
Dough
- 3 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1⅔ cups Luke-warm Water
- 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
Pastry "Glue"
- 3 tbsp. All-Purpose Flour
- 1½ tbsp. Water
Filling
- 1 lb. Ground Beef
- 1 Large Onion chopped thin
- 5 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 tsp. Salt
- ½ tsp. Cumin
- ¼ tsp. Black Pepper
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cardamom
- ¼ tsp. Ground Ginger
- ¼ tsp. Ground Turmeric
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cloves
- ¼ tsp. Ground Cinnamon
- ⅓ cup Fresh Cilantro chopped finely
- Vegetable Oil for frying
Dough
Add the flour to a large mixing bowl and slowly add in the water and oil, kneading as you go. Do this until all of the liquids have been added. If too dry, add a small amount more water. If too moist, add more flour.
Form the dough into a ball and knead on a flour-dusted surface for an additional 10 minutes.
Place the ball of dough back into the bowl and cover. Set aside while you make the pastry "glue" and meat filling.
Meat Filling
Place ground beef, onion and garlic in a skillet and cook over medium heat until no pink remains. Drain of any liquids and then put the mixture in a medium mixing bowl.
Add the remainder of the filling ingredients and combine well.
Putting It All Together
Divide the dough into 6 balls. Rolls each ball out into a thin circle. Slice that circle in half, directly down the middle.
Pick up one of the halve and hold it, flat side down. Take the right edge and fold it about ¾ of the way over towards the left. Now take the left side and do the same towards the right. This should create a pocket.
Spread a little of the pastry "glue" with your finger where the two sides overlap to bind them.
Place about 1 ½ tbsp. of the meat mixture into the pocket and press the final flap of dough down over the opening. Use some more of the pastry "glue" to bind. Continue this process until all of the dough is gone and you have 12 sambusa.
Heat the vegetable oil over medium until it is well-heated.
Cook, 2-4 at a time. For me it took about 2 minutes on each side to achieve a golden-brown color.
Remove from the heat and cool on a paper towel covered plate. Let cool and enjoy!!!