Cheburek[a] (plural: Chebureki) are deep-fried turnovers with a filling of ground or minced meat and onions.[2] A popular street dish, they are made with a single round piece of dough folded over the filling in a crescent shape.[3] They have become widespread in the former Soviet-aligned countries of Eastern Europe in the 20th century.
A cheburek is a half-round-shaped börek, filled with a very thin layer of ground beef or lamb which has been seasoned with ground onion and black pepper.
The dough is made of flour, water (usually of a baker percentage of ~50%), salt, and oil. It is soft and pliable, but not sticky. It is separated into small balls and each is rolled out with a thin rolling pin. Additional flour is added only as needed to prevent the dough from sticking.[5][6]
The meat fill is layered thinly enough that it will cook fully in the sealed half-moon pocket.
Finally, the whole is fried in oil (usually sunflower oil or corn oil) until the dough becomes golden.
Variations
Cheburek is called Çibörek ("börek" means pastry in Turkish language). It is very popular, especially in Eskişehir.[4]
^ abcKaren Evans-Romaine; Helena Goscilo; Tatiana Smorodinskaya, eds. (2013). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Russian Culture. Taylor & Francis. p. 100. ISBN978-1-136-78785-0. Retrieved November 5, 2016. Originally a Crimean Tatar dish, cheburerki became popular in other regions of the former USSR.