Burek (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Cooking the Meat

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, and add 2 tbsp of olive oil. When the oil is heated, add the garlic. Cook for about two minutes, until fragrant.
2. Add the chopped onion. Cook for about five minutes, until the onions turn translucent.
3. Add the lamb into the pan. Use your spatula to break apart the meat, so that it begins to brown in smaller chunks. As the meat begins to brown, add the salt, pepper, paprika, and allspice. Continue cooking until the meat browns all the way through.
4. Drain the excess liquid from the browned meat. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and place in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes to bring the meat to room temperature.

Assembling the Burek

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Once the meat is cooled, it is time to begin assembling your Burek. Very carefully lay three sheets of filo dough short edge to short edge on the counter. Place the sheets so that they line up in one long sheet. Make sure to overlap the ends slightly.
3. Once the first layer of dough is on the counter, repeat the process with two more layers of dough. Place the next 3 sheets directly over each of the first three sheets. Repeat one more time. By the end, your filo dough should be three sheets long and three layers high.
4. Melt the butter and use a pastry brush to brush a layer of butter over the top layer of dough.
5. Take handfuls of meat, and lay it along the long edge of the buttered pastry sheets. Very carefully roll the long edge of the sheets over the meat, and keep rolling until one long tube is formed. Work carefully, but it is okay if your dough rips. Keep rolling!
6. Fold one edge of the long coil in on itself and continue coiling until the long tube of dough ends up in a spiral shape.
7. Using your pastry brush again, brush a layer of the whisked egg on the top of your Burek. Then sprinkle the top with a generous layer of sesame seeds.
8. Transfer your Burek to a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and place in the oven for 25-30 minutes. You will know your Burek is done when the egg wash on the top begins to brown.

Serving

1. To serve your Burek, cut it the same way you’d cut a pizza or a cake: into triangular slices. You can serve your Burek with plain, non-flavored yogurt as a dipping sauce! Enjoy!
2. If you want more clarification on these assembly instructions, watch the Youtube video at the top of this blog post.
3. Leave a review/comment on this post telling me about your experience cooking your Burek.