Murtabak

Murtabak (Spicy Meat-Stuffed Griddled Bread)

Singapore is known for its fabulous Indian cooking. Indian coffee shops and
street hawkers serve an unbelievable assortment of griddled breads, known as
roti or chapati breads, that are light, flaky, and slightly chewy. Murtabak,
a very popular snack, is spicy ground meat encased in roti (bread) and
browned on a griddle until crisp. Murtabak served with a salad makes a great
luncheon entree.

Ingredients:

ROTI
3= cups flour, plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon salt
= cup plus 5 tablespoons melted ghee or margarine
1< cups warm milk
3 to 6 tablespoons vegetable oil

REMPAH
4 1-inch chunks fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
10 shallots (walnut size) or 2 large onions, peeled and sliced
6 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup Red Chile Paste
2= tablespoons fresh or frozen curry leaves
2= tablespoons Indian-style curry powder
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 stalks Chinese celery or regular celery, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
2 eggs
Ghee or vegetable oil for frying

Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add 5 tablespoons of ghee and stir
until the mixture looks crumbly. Slowly pour in the milk and mix with your
hands. The dough will feel soft, spongy, and almost too sticky. Knead the dough
without adding extra flour until it pulls away from the bowl and forms a smooth
ball. Continue kneading until the dough feels just slightly sticky, about 10
minutes. Cut the dough into 8 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, flatten it
slightly, and rub it with ghee. Place the flattened balls on a tray. Cover the
tray with a damp cloth and let the dough rest for at least 5 hours. (If you make
the dough the night before, cover the tray with plastic wrap and refrigerate
overnight.) Lightly oil a rolling pin and work surface with ghee. Roll out one
ball, stretching the dough into a paper-thin circle, about 9 inches in diameter.
Lightly brush the dough with ghee and lightly sprinkle it with flour. Starting
at the bottom edge, roll up the circle jelly-roll style until you have a long
rope. Gently pull the ends to stretch it an inch longer. Take one end and roll
it clockwise into a coil until it reaches the center of the rope. Roll the
opposite end clockwise until the two coils meet in the middle. Fold one coil
over on top of the other. Press the two coils gently together into one thick
round. Wrap it with plastic wrap and set it aside for 1 hour. Repeat with the
remaining balls.

To prepare the rempah, grind the ginger, shallots, and garlic to a smooth paste
in a blender or food processor. Add a tablespoon or more of water if needed to
facilitate the blending. Heat the oil in a wok or saucepan. When hot, carefully
add the Red Chile Paste and curry leaves; fry over medium heat for 2 minutes,
stirring frequently, until the rempah is fragrant and has a deep mahogany-red
colour and porridge-like consistency, about 8 minutes. It is ready when reddish
oil seeps out. Mix in the curry powder and onion. Lightly saute until the onion
is limp. Raise the heat and add the beef, salt, and sugar. Stir-fry, breaking up
the lumps, until the meat is cooked but tender, about 5 minutes; do not brown.
Add the celery and stir-fry for a few seconds. The mixture should be crumbly.
Transfer it to a bowl and set aside to cool. When cool, beat in the eggs. Place
one bread round on a flat surface. With your fingertips spread it into an 8-inch
circle. Put 3 heaping tablespoons of the meat mixture in the centre of the
circle, leaving 2 inches of dough all around. Fold two opposite sides of dough
into the centre, overlapping them by inch. Fold over the remaining two sides to
enclose the package. Press down gently to form a square. Lightly oil a griddle
or frying pan. Put a murtabak fold side down on the griddle and fry over low
heat until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining
dough and filling. Serve hot.

NOTE: Murtabak may be refrigerated; reheat in a 425 deg F oven for 10 minutes or
microwave at high power for 1 minute. They can also be frozen; thaw for 1 hour
before reheating.


Source:

rec.food.cooking, rec.food.recipes