Mindy's Murtabak

Ingredients

Roti:

• 1 ½ cups plain flour
• Pinch salt
• ¼ cup ghee
• ½ cup tepid water
• Vegetable oil, to coat
   

Filling:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 cm piece ginger, peeled, finely chopped
• 2 eschalots, finely chopped
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• 300g minced beef
• 3 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground fennel
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1 red chilli, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground white pepper
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 handful fresh bean shoots

Pickle:

• ½ cup rice wine vinegar
• ½ cup caster sugar
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 coriander root
• 1garlic clove, crushed
• 1 red chilli, deseeded, finely chopped
• 1 long green chilli, deseeded, julienned
• 1 Lebanese cucumber, peeled into ribbons with a vegetable peeler
• 1 tomato, blanched, peeled, deseeded, finely diced.

Method

Preparation: 1 hour plus 1.5 hours resting time
Cooking: 45 minutes

1. For roti, sift flour and salt into a bowl, make a well in the centre, add ghee and mix well, gradually add the water to make a dough. Knead on a clean bench for 10 minutes or until soft and elastic. Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth, set aside to rest (ideally for 2 hours) or in a warm place for at least 25 minutes. Remove from bowl, roll on an oiled bench into a 30cm log, cut into 4 equal portions and roll into balls. Coat each ball lightly with oil. Flatten and stretch each ball into a flat round shape the size of a dinner plate.

2. For filling, heat oil in a wok over high heat, add the garlic, ginger, eschalots and spring onions, quickly stir-fry. Add mince and keep stirring to brown all over. Add ground coriander, cumin, fennel, turmeric and chilli. Stir in the soy and white pepper. Cook a further 2-3 minutes or until mince is cooked. Remove from wok and set aside.

3. For pickle, place the vinegar, sugar and fish sauce in a saucepan, place over a medium heat and bring to the boil, add the coriander root, garlic and chilli, reduce to a simmer and reduce by 1/3, place the cucumber and chillies in a bowl, strain the liquid and pour over, set aside. Just before serving add the tomatoes. Line a 5-6cm chefs ring or cookie cutter with cucumber ribbons to form a cylinder. Fill with a little of the pickle mixture.

4. Heat an oiled flat grill plate over a high heat, place flat dough onto the hot pan, spoon 4 tablespoons of the filling into the centre of the dough, cover with a tablespoon of the beaten egg and top with bean shoots, and cook for 1-2 minutes, Fold each corner in to form an envelope and enclose the mixture, using a  a flat spatula carefully turn over and cook for a further few minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Repeat with remaining dough.

5. Cut on a diagonal, place on a serving plate with the pickle to serve.