Meat Arayes
Arabic bread stuffed with seasoned meat and grilled or baked until the bread is crisp and the filling remains tender.
Bread stuffed with seasoned meat and grilled or baked until the outside is crisp and the filling stays juicy.
Like a meat-filled pita pocket.
Arayes are a popular Levantine street food and home dish. The bread usually turns crisp while the meat inside stays soft and flavorful.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo ground meat
- 2 medium onions onions
- 2 green bell peppers
- ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
- ¼ cup pomegranate molasses
- 1 tablespoon salt
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ tablespoon paprika [chili pepper]
- ½ tablespoon black pepper
- ¼ finjan vegetable oil, for brushing
- Arabic bread
- ½ teaspoon seven-spice blend or Aleppo spice blend
- ½ teaspoon hot or sweet chili pepper
- a little oil
Instructions
- Finely chop the onions by hand with a knife on a cutting board; the chef noted that chopping the onions by hand is better than using a machine.
- Finely chop the green bell peppers on a cutting board.
- Place the ground meat in a mixing bowl.
- Add the salt, black pepper, allspice or seven-spice blend, parsley, chopped onions, green bell peppers, and pomegranate molasses to the mixing bowl.
- Mix the filling ingredients in the mixing bowl until well combined.
- Open each loaf of Arabic bread into two halves to prepare it for filling.
- Brush the inside of the bread with a little vegetable oil.
- Spread a thin layer of the meat filling inside the bread, without using too much meat so that it does not become too thick.
- Turn on the gas under the frying pan over medium heat.
- Lightly grease the frying pan with oil.
- Place the stuffed arayes in the frying pan.
- Lightly brush the outer surface of the bread with oil in the frying pan.
- Place a weight on top of the bread in the frying pan, such as another frying pan or a heavy plate, so the meat cooks inside the bread and develops a nice color.
- Turn the arayes over in the frying pan when the first side is browned.
- Continue cooking in the frying pan until both sides are golden and the meat is cooked inside.
- Repeat the same method in the frying pan with the remaining loaves.
- Serve the arayes hot once cooked.