Sambusa (Puff Pastry)

Another popular dish is sambusa. This triangle-shaped puff pastry dish with meat, herbs, or pumpkin has become a favorite dish in every Tajik family's dastarkhan (the place where food is served). "While eating one sambusa, the hand involuntarily reaches for the second," locals say.

The dough is the most important aspect of a successful sambusa. Each chef has their own method, but the majority agree that the dough should be flaky in order for the baked result to be crisp and light. A pack of butter or ghee is ground with flour, then added to water, salt, and eggs to make a lamb sambusa. It's kneaded until the dough is extremely tough, then refrigerated for an hour. Meanwhile, the mince is cooked with a couple of large chopped onions before being seasoned with pepper, salt, and cumin.

The chilled dough is rolled out to a thickness of a millimeter, oiled, and cut into circles. The minced meat is then spooned into each circle. The edges are molded into a triangle or crescent shape and baked at 160 degrees for 20 minutes. The sambusa is also ready.