Brik Dannouni (Stuffed Lamb Turnovers)

Ingredients:

60g Gruyère cheese, finely grated
240g lamb meat cut into 3cm cubes
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
oil, for frying
1 batch puff pastry (or 1kg shop-bought)

Method:

If using fresh puff pastry, prepare according to the puff pastry recipe then wrap in clingfilm (plastic wrap) to keep moist as you prepare the remaining ingredients.

Place the lamb in a food processor and pulse several times until well chopped. Add the olive oil to a pan and use to fry the lamb, salt, paprika and black pepper until the meat is nicely browned (about 3 minutes). Transfer the contents of the pan to a bowl and set aside to cool to room temperature.

When the lamb mixture is cold add the egg and grated cheese. Stir to combine thoroughly then roll out one piece of the puff pastry on a lightly-floured work surface to rectangle about 30cm by 20cm in size. Use a 9cm pastry cutter to cut out about 12 circles from the dough then place a generous teaspoon of the lamb mixture on one half of each circle. Moisten around the edges with a little water then fold the dough over the filling. Crimp the edges with the tines of a fork then transfer to a well-greased baking tray. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.

When done, add oil to a depth of about 5cm in a high-sided frying pan or flat-bottomed wok over low heat. As soon as the oil is hot add a few of the turnovers at a time and fry for about 2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown all over and cooked through. Place in an oven to keep warm as you complete cooking the other turnovers. Serve warm with a table harissa sauce.