I am as puzzled as you might be, because the recipe does not seem like Goulash to me, and I cannot even be sure it is truly from Egypt. But if you rather call it Phyllo Meat Pie, go right ahead. It is not going to sound nearly as sexy, though…

EGYPTIAN GOULASH
(adapted from several sources)

16 ounce package of frozen phyllo dough
1/2 egg, whisked in 1/2 cup of milk
salt and pepper
olive oil spray

For the filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, minced
3/4 pound ground turkey
3/4 pound ground bison
1 + ½ teaspoons baharat
1 cup red bell pepper, roasted (I used store-bought, 12 oz jar)
1/3 cup tomato passata
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick pan. Saute the shallots. Add the two kinds of ground meat. Cook until fully browned, tossing regularly. Add the red bell pepper cut in small pieces. Saute a couple of minutes, add the tomato passata and the baharat. Season with salt and pepper. Heat everything together and remove to a bow to cool slightly before using. You can also do this step a day in advance.

Now, to assemble the phyllo pie, lay five sheets of phyllo dough on the bottom of a lightly greased 9 ½ x 13 x 2 ¼ inch baking pan. Spray a little olive oil between each sheet of phyllo as you lay them on the baking dish. Spray the top phyllo sheet generously with olive oil (or oil and butter mixture). Add the cooled meat mixture. Top with five or six more sheets of phyllo, always spraying with olive oil in between sheets. Tuck the edges in, spray a good amount of olive oil on top, and use a super sharp knife (ceramic is great) to cut the pie in squares, all the way to the bottom.

Whisk the egg and milk mixture well, season lightly with salt and pepper and pour it all over the pie, shaking the baking dish a bit to make sure the liquid is well dispersed.

Bake for about 40 minutes, until the phyllo is crispy and golden brown. Remove from the oven, let it rest for about 10 minutes and serve.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the mixture of ground turkey and bison because the turkey helps with moisture and texture for the ground bison, which can be a bit dry. If bison is hard for you to find, use ground beef instead, and you can even skip the ground turkey and go for 1.5 pounds of ground beef. I would then drain the excess fat after sautéing the meat just to make the whole dish lighter. Baharat is such a great spice mix, the delicate cinnamon flavor goes super well with this savory preparation.

This will definitely be in our rotation, and it is a nice option for a dinner party too. All you need is a little salad to go with it.

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