Somsa (Flaky Meat Pie)
A flaky pastry pie with mutton fat, filled with minced lamb, onions, and cumin, baked stuck to the blazing walls of a tandir oven. Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside.
A flaky pastry pie with mutton fat, filled with minced lamb, onions, and cumin, baked stuck to the blazing walls of a tandir oven. Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside.
When we struck camp to go from Samarkand to Kesh, my lord's birthplace, the cooks prepared somsa in quantity. They stuck them to the still-glowing walls of the tandir and we carried them wrapped in cloths. The dough must be thin as a willow leaf and the filling well peppered, with plenty of onions so the juice stays inside. Even cold, a good somsa sustains a rider for half a day's journey.
- •Wheat flour — plentiful (dough)
- •Sheep tail fat — a good piece (flakiness)
- •Minced mutton — a good portion (filling)
- •Onions — as much as the meat (juicy filling)
- •Cumin, black pepper, salt — to taste (seasoning)
- •Water — a little (dough)
Somsa (Flaky Meat Pie)
A flaky pastry pie with mutton fat, filled with minced lamb, onions, and cumin, baked stuck to the blazing walls of a tandir oven. Crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside.
Why this dish? Stuffed meat pies are a travel and campaign food attested throughout medieval Central Asia. Bibi Khanym sometimes accompanied Tamerlane on his journeys between Samarkand and Shakhrisabz (Kesh), his birthplace. Somsa, baked in the tandir ovens of caravanserais, are a compact and nourishing snack, ideal for the Silk Road.
When we struck camp to go from Samarkand to Kesh, my lord's birthplace, the cooks prepared somsa in quantity. They stuck them to the still-glowing walls of the tandir and we carried them wrapped in cloths. The dough must be thin as a willow leaf and the filling well peppered, with plenty of onions so the juice stays inside. Even cold, a good somsa sustains a rider for half a day's journey.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour — plentiful (dough)
- Sheep tail fat — a good piece (flakiness)
- Minced mutton — a good portion (filling)
- Onions — as much as the meat (juicy filling)
- Cumin, black pepper, salt — to taste (seasoning)
- Water — a little (dough)
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour — 400 g (dough)
- Cold butter — 150 g (flakiness)
- Cold water — 120 ml (dough)
- Salt — 1 tsp (dough)
- Minced lamb — 400 g (filling)
- Onions — 3 large (filling)
- Ground cumin — 1 tsp (spice)
- Ground black pepper — ½ tsp (spice)
- Salt — 1 tsp (filling seasoning)
- Egg yolk (for glaze) — 1 (finish)
- Sesame seeds — 2 tbsp (garnish)
Method
- Dough: mix flour and salt, rub in cold butter cut into cubes until crumbly. Gradually add cold water, form a ball. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Filling: finely chop onions by hand (not in a mixer). Mix with minced lamb, cumin, pepper, and salt. The filling should be juicy.
- Roll out the dough to 3 mm thickness. Cut circles 12-15 cm in diameter.
- Place 2 generous spoonfuls of filling in the center of each circle. Fold into a triangle or half-moon, pinching the edges tightly.
- Preheat oven to 220 °C. Arrange the somsa on a baking sheet, seam side up. Brush with egg yolk, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the dough is golden and crispy. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.
How it was made : Stuffed pies baked in a tandir are a fundamental food of Central Asia, attested in various forms since pre-Islamic times. The tandir (vertical clay oven) is the central cooking tool of sedentary Central Asians. The technique of sticking the dough to the blazing oven walls is still practiced in Samarkand's bazaars today. The traditional proportion of onions equal to meat ensures tenderness.
The contemporary twist : Shape the somsa into the characteristic triangular form of Samarkand and serve on a wooden board with a bowl of cumin yogurt for dipping.
Sources : Batmanglich, Najmieh. Silk Road Cooking (2004) · Mack, Glenn R. & Surina, Asele. Food Culture in Russia and Central Asia (2005)
Bibi Khanym · Charactorium
