Mongolian Filled Pockets (Khuushuur) with Homemade Fresh-Tomato Ketchup

If you’ve

ever been to a “Mongolian stir-fry” or “Mongolian barbecue” restaurant,

actually you haven’t. There’s no such thing. Stir-fries and barbecues are as

authentic to Mongolian cuisine as tofu tacos are to Mexican.

No offense

to chain restaurants or California, but when you want to prepare something

native to a certain culture or locale in your own kitchen, make the recipe as

real as possible—even from afar.

What I’ve

read, heard, studied, learned about true Mongolian cuisine is this:

It isn’t

Chinese.

It is very

meat-based, particularly fatty mutton and beef.

Fresh

vegetables don’t weigh heavily in homemade recipes. (It’s cold there.)

Onions,

garlic, and cabbage appear regularly.

Good bread

and other flour products are staples. Thus, dumplings and filled pockets.

“Khuushuur”

are only one of a few types of Mongolian pockets, distinguished mostly by shape

and preparation (others are steamed or boiled). Khuushuur are circles of dough filled and pinched into half-moon

shapes (think empanadas) then fried. And the filling is simple: ground mutton

or beef mixed with finely chopped onion and garlic, sometimes cabbage.

Spices are minimal: salt, pepper, sometimes caraway.

Khuushuur are

often eaten simply by themselves, but ketchup is a common accompaniment. For

this recipe, I decided to make my own ketchup, using fresh tomatoes and a few

other ingredients for a little spicy, sweet condiment to dunk the khuushuur

into.

The bottom

line for this Mongolian-style dinner is this: simple, fresh, and real. (At

• least as real as you can get stateside.)
• 1 lb large
• tomatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 3 tbsp
• tomato paste
• 1 tbsp
• white sugar
• 1 tbsp
• cider vinegar
• 1/4 tsp ground
• cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• powder
• sea salt
• Tomatoes for the Ketchup Chopped Tomatoes
• For the Khuushuur
• 1 1/2 cups
• flour, plus more for dusting and as needed
• 1/2 tsp
• fine salt
• 1 cup
• water
• 2/3 lb
• ground chuck (or mutton)
• 2 garlic
• cloves, finely chopped
• 1 very small
• onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup
• finely chopped cabbage
• 1/2 tsp
• caraway seeds, lightly crushed
• sea salt
• freshly
• ground black pepper
• peanut oil
• (enough to measure about 1/4-inch deep in a 12-inch skillet)

Preparation

Place all

the ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a slight simmer.

Reduce the heat to low and cook slowly until the tomatoes break down and the

mixture is fairly thick, 20-25 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool

completely.

Tomato Mixture Beginning to Cook Cooked Ketchup Place the

mixture in a food processor and process until pureed. Taste for salt, and stir

in more if needed. Place the ketchup in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate at least

1 hour. Use right away, or keep refrigerated 2-3 days.

Homemade Fresh-Tomato Ketchup

For the Khuushuur

Combine the

flour and salt in a bowl. Gradually add the water, mixing to form a pliable dough.

(Add a little more flour if the dough is too sticky.) Form into a ball and

cover with a bowl. Let rest 30 minutes.

Dough Ready to Rest While the

dough rests, place the meat, garlic, onion, cabbage, and caraway in a bowl and

season with salt and pepper. Combine well.

Ground Beef Mixture Cut the

rested dough in half. (Keep one half covered or wrapped while you work with the

first half.) On a floured surface, roll out the dough very thinly, to about 1/10-inch

thickness. Press a 4-1/4-inch-diameter bowl or saucer into the dough and run a

sharp knife around the edge to cut out a circle.

Place the

circle on a sheet of wax paper and continue with the remaining dough,

re-rolling the leftover dough until there’s not enough to place the saucer on.

(Stack the dough circles between sheets of wax paper to prevent sticking or

drying.)

Note: if you are making the circles a

day ahead, wrap the wax paper edges over them and place in a freezer bag.

Freeze overnight and thaw to room temperature before proceeding.

Thinly Rolled Dough

Dough Cut into Circles Dough Circles Layered on Sheets of Wax Paper Remove the

wax paper 1 sheet at a time, and spread 1/16 of the meat mixture (about 1 1/2

tablespoons) over 1 half of the dough circle, leaving enough edge for folding.

Fold the other half of the circle over the filling and pinch 1 edge closed.

Gather a tiny piece of the dough next to the closed edge and crimp it closed.

Continue gathering and crimping until you reach the other side of the half

circle.

Note: don’t worry if the crimped edges

are oddly shaped (mine were!). Just seal them well and they’ll be just as

delicious as “pretty” ones.)

Filling Spread onto the DoughFilled Pocket Preheat the

oven to its lowest temperature (to keep the finished kuushuur warm while the

rest fry).

Heat a

12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add enough oil to measure 1/4 inch.

(Test the heat by dropping a dot of dough into the oil. If it sizzles, you’re

ready.)

Place half

of the kuushuur pockets in the oil and fry until the meat is cooked through and

the dough is golden and crispy, 5 minutes on the first side and about 3 minutes

on the second side.

Remove the pockets

to a plate, letting excess oil drip off, and keep warm in the oven while frying

the other half.

Kuushuur Beginning to Fry Kuushuur after Turning

To serve,

stack the filled pockets on a platter with the bowl of homemade ketchup. Serve hot.