Samsa with Lamb
Flaky triangular pastries filled with juicy lamb and onion, baked to a crisp crust in a tandoor or oven.
Samsa is one of the essential street-food and home snacks of Uzbek and broader Central Asian cuisine. Traditionally it's baked in a tandoor — a clay oven where the pastries stick to the hot inner walls and bake evenly on all sides, developing their signature crisp crust. The filling is primarily lamb, generously mixed with coarsely chopped onion: as it bakes, the onion releases juice, keeping the filling moist without any added broth or water. The dough is made flaky, often based on lavash-style layered dough or ready-made puff pastry, so it shatters into crisp layers after baking. The shape is a triangle or square with pinched edges, and the tops are always brushed with egg and sprinkled with sesame seeds or nigella (black cumin).
🧺 Ingredients
🍽 8 servings👩🍳 Method
- 1
Make the dough
Knead a dough from the flour, warm water, salt and oil into a smooth, elastic ball. Cover and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- 2
Layer the dough
Roll the dough into a thin rectangle, brush with melted fat, fold it accordion-style or roll it up, and let it rest another 15 minutes — this builds the flaky layers.
- 3
Make the filling
Mix the diced lamb with the coarsely chopped onion, cumin, salt and pepper. Add pieces of tail fat, distributing them evenly through the filling.
- 4
Shape the samsa
Divide the dough into pieces, roll each into a round, place filling in the center, and pinch the edges into a triangle or square, sealing the filling completely.
- 5
Bake
Brush the pastries with beaten egg, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and bake on a tray at 200°C (400°F) for 35–40 minutes until golden-brown and crisp.
💡 Tips
- 💡
Pinch the edges thoroughly — if filling leaks out during baking, the dough will get soggy instead of crisp.
- 💡
Let the samsa rest for 5 minutes after baking before serving — the juices inside settle a bit, making it easier to eat.
🔄 Swaps & variations
- 🔄
Pumpkin samsa (kovok somsa) with pumpkin and onion is a vegetarian version, popular in Uzbekistan in autumn.
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❓ Frequently asked questions
Can samsa be made without a tandoor?
Yes, at home samsa bakes beautifully in a regular oven on a tray at high heat — the crust will be slightly less smoky but just as crisp.
Why does the filling turn out dry?
Usually it's not enough fat, or the onion was chopped too finely. Tail fat or butter plus coarsely chopped onion are what keep the filling juicy.
What can replace the lamb?
Beef, or a mix of beef and pork, works well — just add a bit more fat, since these meats tend to be leaner than lamb.
Can samsa be frozen ahead of time?
Yes, shaped but unbaked pastries freeze well — bake them straight from the freezer, adding 10–15 minutes to the baking time.
