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Tamriyeh

The semolina filling is set firm and chilled before it is wrapped, or it bursts out in the oil.

Vegetarian, but not vegan — contains dairy (whole milk).

Ingredients

the filling

the pastry

to fry and finish

Method

  1. THE SEMOLINA FILLING IS SET FIRM AND CHILLED BEFORE IT IS WRAPPED, or it bursts out in the oil. The filling is cooked much thicker than a pudding -- until a spoon leaves a trench that holds and the mixture pulls from the pan sides -- then spread in a shallow tray, chilled for at least three hours, and cut into small blocks. Those cold firm blocks are what get wrapped. A soft or warm filling turns to liquid in 180°C oil within seconds, the steam has nowhere to go, and the parcel splits and empties into the pan. Chilled, it holds long enough for the pastry to crisp around it and only then softens.
  2. THE PARCELS ARE SQUARE AND FOLDED, NOT ROLLED. A block of filling on a square of doubled filo, the sides folded in like an envelope, and the seam underneath. Flat parcels fry evenly on both faces; a rolled cylinder has a thick seam that stays pale and a thin opposite side that burns.
  3. THE FILO IS DOUBLED AND DUSTED WITH CORNFLOUR BETWEEN THE SHEETS. Two layers for strength, with cornflour rather than butter between them. Butter would fry out and the layers would weld; cornflour keeps them separate so the fried parcel is flaky, and it also seals the seam as it cooks.
  4. THE SEAM IS SEALED WITH A DAB OF WATER AND PRESSED, AND IT MUST BE AIRTIGHT. One gap and that parcel empties. Each one is checked by holding it up before it goes near the oil.
  5. THEY ARE FRIED AT 180°C AND ONLY A FEW AT A TIME. Hot enough to crisp the pastry in two or three minutes, before the filling has time to melt through. Cooler oil gives a pastry that soaks and a filling that liquefies -- both at once.
  6. THE ICING SUGAR GOES ON THICK AND IMMEDIATELY. Straight from the oil onto paper and dusted heavily while still hot, so it partly melts and adheres. There is no syrup on this pastry at all -- the icing sugar is the whole sweetening of the outside.
  7. THEY ARE EATEN WITHIN MINUTES. The filling softens and the pastry goes limp as it stands. This is made to order and does not keep for an hour, let alone a day.
  8. The milk brought to the boil with the sugar, the semolina rained in while whisking.
  9. Cooked, STIRRING CONSTANTLY, 8 to 10 MINUTES until a spoon leaves a TRENCH THAT HOLDS and it pulls from the pan sides.
  10. The blossom water stirred in off the heat.
  11. Spread in a shallow tray to about 1.5 cm and CHILLED at least 3 HOURS until FIRM.
  12. Cut into small blocks about 4 cm square.
  13. The filo cut into squares, DOUBLED, with CORNFLOUR dusted between the two sheets.
  14. A cold block of filling on each, the sides FOLDED IN like an envelope, the seam dabbed with water, PRESSED and checked airtight.
  15. The oil heated to 180°C and the parcels DEEP-FRIED a few at a time, 2 to 3 MINUTES, until golden and crisp.
  16. Drained on paper and dusted HEAVILY with icing sugar while still HOT.
  17. TESTED: none should have split, and the filling should be soft but contained. Splits mean the filling was not cold enough.
  18. Eaten within minutes.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Egypt · All recipes