Algerian Chicken & Preserved Lemon Bourek

Name: Algerian Chicken & Preserved Lemon Bourek
Prep time: 1 h 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 2 h 10 min
Yield: 36 bourek
Ingredients: 36 spring roll wrappers (I use the large square ones in a green pack); 1182.95 ml ground chicken; 3 large brown onions, finely chopped; 78.78 ml fresh cilantro, finely chopped; 0 preserved lemon, skin only; 2.46 ml ras el hanout spice mix; 1.23 ml schwartz Season-All salt; 3-4 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped; 29.58 ml olive oil; 88.74 ml plain flour; 118.29 ml water

Submitted by Um Safia

"The fillings for bourek really are endless, I love the traditional ground lamb & parsley, the prawn & bechemel, potato & cheese........the list goes on. Here I combined ground chicken with fresh coriander & a little preserved lemon for a delicious fried snack. You can freeze these bourek easily & when you come to cook them, allow to 1/2 thaw before deep frying. You can also shallow fry them in a frying pan about 1" deep in sunflower or vegetable oil. Bourek are wonderful whenever, but really they are a Ramadan essential in any Algerian household. (If you are new to making bourek & rolls, here is a step by step -in photos- demo for you: http://radiancerecipes.com/chinese-springrolls/)"

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photo by Um Safia

Ready In:: 2hrs 10mins
Ingredients:: 11
Yields:: 36 bourek

ingredients

36 spring roll wrappers (I use the large square ones in a green pack)
1182.95 ml ground chicken
3 large brown onions, finely chopped
78.78 ml fresh cilantro, finely chopped
0 preserved lemon, skin only
2.46 ml ras el hanout spice mix
1.23 ml schwartz Season-All salt
3-4 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped
29.58 ml olive oil
Flour Paste
88.74 ml plain flour
118.29 ml water

directions

In a medium sized casserole, heat the olive oil & gently fry the onion until pale golden. Add the chicken & fry for 15-20 minutes on a medium heat.
Add your ras el hanout & the Season All, mix well & cook for a few minutes.
Wash the preserved lemon really well (make sure to discard the flesh), then chop it very finely & add to the casserole. Cook for a few more minutes.
Remove the casserole from the heat, add the coriander (cilantro) & allow to cool. Mix in the chopped eggs & re-season if required.
Once the filling is cooled completely, you are ready to assemble the bourek.
Make your flour paste by putting the flour in a bowl & gradually adding the water until you have a very runny paste - a bit like crepe batter.
Lay 1 spring roll sheet on your work surface & place 2 generous teaspoonfulls of the filling onto the sheet. You need to place it in a line approx 1" up from the bottom of the sheet & the line of filling should have a fraction over 1" of spring roll sheet visable on both the left & right side.
Next bring the left side of the sheet over the filling - it will overlap the filling by about an inch. Do the same with the right side.
Take the bottom of the sheet in both hands & pull it up so that it covers the line of filling.
With a pastry brush or the back of a teaspoon, brush a small amount of the flour paste along the edges of the sheet.
Now start to roll the bourek, be careful to keep it tight & even. When you have rolled it up securely, you can brush a tiny amount of the paste along the seam so that the bourek stays closed whilst it is being fried.
Repeat these steps with the remaining 35 spring roll sheets.
Now you can either freeze the bourek or fry them in hot oil (I like to deep fry at approx 165-170c) in batches, until a deep golden colour & very crispy!

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Reviews

I loved this recipe because it made me want to put chicken in my bourek. DH loves preserved lemons so I knew he would like it. I only find the spring roll wrappers here the same brand with the red coloring but I didn't like the thickness when I tried before but thankfully the little store by my house sells Turkish bourek pastry sheets. Made this very easy. I wasn't sure about the part that said not to use the flesh of the PL. We usually just eat the whole thing so I just minced it and mixed it in. They were fabulous. I left out the egg just for preference. The flour paste tip was nice. It worked great just frying them in a little oil. Thanks Rezika. Made for Ramadan Tag 09.

Jamilahs_Kitchen

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

Um Safia

ABOVE: My eldest, Talha with his 'Zaar Star! I'm 29 years old and have been cooking since I was old enough to wield a wooden spoon! My Mum is a fantastic cook and both my Grandmas were great cooks too. I've also had the pleasure of working in two commercial kitchens - one which I ran and the other I was second chef of. You can find me lurking in the NA*ME (North Africa / Middle East) Forum where I am a host: http://www.recipezaar.com/bb/viewforum.zsp?f=59 and also in the Cooking for Kids Forum where I am co-host: http://www.recipezaar.com/bb/viewforum.zsp?f=34 <style>body { background: url(http://i714.photobucket.com/albums/ww141/Um_Safia/seamless%20tiles/seamlesstile1.jpg);background-repeat: repeat; }</style> I am fortunate enough to have 2 children of my own now and enjoy cooking with my eldest who is almost 8 years old. My daughter is almost 3 & has now started joining me in the kitchen & 'helping'. She likes to stand on a chair next to me, give instructions & stir. We eat food from all over the world but my husband prefers it like 'mama used to make' or in his case ''like yemma makes it'' as he is Algerian! We are currently living in the UK after living in Algeria for a while. You will notice that I have posted quite a few Algerian classics. If I had the time and the money, I would spend all day every day trying new recipes! My husband has a 'recipe score' which is this: 1: "Add it to your recipe book - I loved it and wanna eat this again soon!" 2: "Interesting....I will enjoy eating this again." 3: "I cleared my plate but don't expect me to eat this again...ever." However, I rate 'Zaar recipes the by the 'Zaar standard, so don't worry. Oh and fyi, I have a problem being negative so will probably NEVER give a rating less that 4*!!! Other than cooking, I love anything arty-crafty and enjoy painting when I get the chance, which is rarely these days. 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