Moroccan Kefta (Ground Meat) Briouat Recipe

Briouats are small Moroccan pastries which are stuffed with a variety of fillings and then fried. This recipe features ground meat (kefta, kofta or kufta) enclosed in crisp, paper-thin Moroccan pastry called warqa. Phyllo (fillo) dough or spring roll wrappers can be substituted for the warqa.

Kefta briouats are usually served as a finger food or appetizer, but they can also be served as an entrée. This filling is mildly seasoned. Also try Spicy Kefta Briouats.

What You'll Need:
1/2 kg (1 lb. 3 oz) ground meat (beef, lamb or a combo)
1 medium onion (finely chopped)
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Optional: 1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter (for cooking meat)
Handful fresh parsley leaves (chopped)
3 eggs, lightly beaten
About 1.1lb./1/2 kg warqa (or filo dough or large spring roll wrappers)
4 tablespoons butter (melted, for folding the briouats)
1 egg yolk, (lightly beaten, for folding the briouats)
4 cups vegetable oil (or as needed for frying the briouats)

How to Make It

1. Mix the ground meat with the onion and spices. Melt the butter in a large skillet or frying pan and add the ground meat. Cook over medium heat, stirring to break up the meat into fine pieces until the meat is well browned and thoroughly cooked.
2. Stir in the parsley and the three eggs, and cook over medium-high heat just until the liquids are absorbed. You should be able to pack and mold the meat. Set the kefta filling aside.

1. Fold the briouats. See How to Fold Briouats below. With scissors, cut the pastry dough into strips about two-and-a-half inches wide. Place a single strip of warqa or spring roll wrapper – or two layered strips of phyllo dough – on your work surface. (If the strip of warqa is less than 10 inches long, use two layers.) Lightly brush butter on the bottom two-thirds of the dough. Place a large tablespoon of filling towards the bottom of the strip, and fold the bottom up to enclose the filling.
2. Fold the bottom left corner of the enclosed dough upwards to the right, aligning it with the right edge of the strip. Then flip the bottom right corner upwards to the left, aligning it with the left edge of the dough. You should see a triangle take shape. Continue folding the triangle, flipping right and then left in this manner, until you reach the end of the dough.
3. Trim any excess length off the edge of the dough, dab it with a little egg yolk, and tuck the end of the dough into the "pocket" formed by the open edge of dough on the briouat. You can use the tip of a butter knife or your scissors to help tuck in the flap of dough.
4. Cook or freeze the briouats. Deep fry the briouatsin hot oil until light golden brown. Drain and serve. Briouats stay warm for a long time, but if frying them well in advance of serving, you can reheat them in a 350 degree F oven for five to 10 minutes.

Note: Uncooked briouats can be refrigerated for one day or frozen for up to two months in a freezer bag or plastic storage container.

They can be fried directly from the freezer, or allowed to thaw for 30 minutes to one hour before frying.

How to Fold Moroccan Briouats (Braewats) in a Triangular Shape

Set Up Your Work Area

Briouats (braewats) are fried Moroccan pastries that might be stuffed with almonds, meat or seafood. The photos here will show you how to fold the briouats into triangles. (You can also fold if you prefer.)

Once you've made the filling, set up a work area with your pastry dough, some melted butter, and a lightly beaten egg yolk.

This photo shows Moroccan warqa, but you can also use phyllo dough (thick #10 phyllo sheets are best) or large flour-based frozen spring roll wrappers.

A quick note about warqa: Try to purchase warqa only when you're ready to use it. It's fairly easy to handle while very fresh, but even a half day it becomes much more fragile and can break or tear when folding the briouats.

Cut the Dough Into Strips

Cut the dough into strips approximately 2 to 2 ½ inches wide. If you're using Moroccan warqa, you'll need to carefully separate the layers of dough before cutting.

These strips of warqa are about 12 inches long – long enough that only one layer of dough is needed for each briouat.

If using smaller diameter warqa, you'll need two layers of dough for each briouat. If using thin phyllo dough, you'll need two long layers; if using thick phyllo dough, one long layer may be sufficient; if using spring roll paper, one 2 x 8 inch strip of dough should be enough.

Brush the Dough with Butter and Add the Filling

ake a long strip of warqa and brush butter on the bottom two-thirds. Add a large spoonful of filling about one inch from the bottom of the dough.

If you're using phyllo or your strips of warqa are short, layer two strips of dough. If using large spring roll wrappers, one layer is enough.

Fold Up the Bottom of the Dough

Fold up the bottom edge of the dough to enclose the filling. In this and the following step, be sure to scrunch the dough securely around the filling so that the filling won't come into direct contact with the oil during frying.

Begin Forming a Triangle

Fold the bottom left corner of the dough upwards and to the right, until it meets the right edge of the dough. Use your fingers to mold the dough around the filling to keep it enclosed as you fold.

A Triangle Begins to Form

Now you have your first "triangle."

Fold Triangle Up and to the Left

Hold the top right top corner of the triangle in place to keep the filling inside, and flip the bottom right corner up and to the left, until the triangle is aligned with the left edge of the strip of dough.

Continue Folding the Dough to the End of the Strip

Now you should have a nice triangle.

Continue folding the triangle – right and then left – until you reach the end of the dough. Each time you fold, you'll be flipping the bottom corner of the triangle up to the opposite edge of the dough.

Trim the End of the Dough and Tuck It In

When you've reached the end of the dough, trim the end of the dough to make a flap and dot the flap with a little egg yolk. Fold the flap and tuck it into the "pocket" formed by the open edge of dough.

I use a dull knife or the tips of scissors to help tuck in the flap without breaking the warqa dough. If a little bit does tear, don't worry about it.

Folded Briouat

Here's what the folded briouat should look like. If you look carefully at the front briouat, you can see how the flap you trimmed in the previous step is tucked in.

Proceed with either frying or cover the briouats with plastic and refrigerate until ready to fry. If not cooking until the next day or later, freeze the briouats in a plastic container or plastic freezer bag.