By Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff | Published on October 3, 2026

Beef Bourekas

Name: Beef Bourekas
Cuisine: Jewish
Ingredients: 2 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil; 1 lb Ground beef; 1 small Small onion, finely chopped; 2 clove Garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1 tsp Sweet paprika; ¼ tsp Ground cinnamon; 1 tsp Kosher salt; 2 tbsp Matzo meal; ¼ cup Toasted pine nuts, coarsely chopped; ¼ cup Fresh Italian parsley, chopped; 2 tbsp All-purpose flour, for dusting; 2 sheet Dairy-free puff pastry sheets, thawed if frozen; 1 large Large egg, beaten, for egg wash; 1 tbsp Sesame seeds

Recipe GLPR36dfca1b4641e3

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Jewish

Appetizer

Oven

Stovetop

SNAP eligible

Golden, crispy triangular pastry pockets filled with seasoned ground beef, pine nuts, and fresh parsley. These Middle Eastern-inspired bourekas feature a savory filling infused with warming spices like cinnamon and paprika, wrapped in buttery puff pastry and finished with sesame seeds. Perfect for appetizers, lunch, or a light dinner.

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Ingredients

2 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil

1 lb Ground beef

1 small Small onion, finely chopped

2 clove Garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tsp Sweet paprika

¼ tsp Ground cinnamon

1 tsp Kosher salt

2 tbsp Matzo meal

¼ cup Toasted pine nuts, coarsely chopped

¼ cup Fresh Italian parsley, chopped

2 tbsp All-purpose flour, for dusting

2 sheet Dairy-free puff pastry sheets, thawed if frozen

1 large Large egg, beaten, for egg wash

1 tbsp Sesame seeds

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the ground beef and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the chopped onion and garlic, cooking until softened, approximately 3 minutes. Stir in the paprika, cinnamon, and kosher salt until fully combined. Pour in 1/2 cup water and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer gently until most of the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes.
Sprinkle the matzo meal over the beef mixture and stir thoroughly, allowing the meal to absorb any remaining liquid and thicken the filling. Remove from heat and fold in the chopped pine nuts and fresh parsley. Transfer the filling to a bowl and allow it to cool completely, approximately 20 minutes.
While the filling cools, preheat your oven to 400°F, positioning racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour. Roll out one sheet of puff pastry into a 12-inch square. Using a sharp knife, cut the square into a 3-by-3 grid to create 9 smaller 4-inch squares. Brush the edges of one square with beaten egg wash and place approximately 2 heaping tablespoons of filling in the center. Fold the square diagonally to form a triangle and press the edges firmly with a fork to seal. Make a small vent hole in the top with the fork tines. Arrange the filled triangle on a prepared baking sheet. Repeat this process with the remaining squares from the first pastry sheet, then repeat with the second pastry sheet and remaining filling to create 18 bourekas total.
Brush all the bourekas generously with beaten egg wash and sprinkle each with sesame seeds. Bake for 22 to 24 minutes, rotating the baking sheets from the top rack to the bottom rack halfway through baking, until the pastries are deep golden brown and very crisp. Transfer the finished bourekas to a cooling rack and let rest briefly before serving warm or at room temperature.

Comments

Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff4

Beef bourekas work well in Charlotte with ingredients broadly available at Harris Teeter or Walmart, though pine nuts may require a specialty stop at a global or kosher section if you want quality. The filling is straightforward—seasoned ground beef with warming spices—but the laminated pastry and egg wash demand real attention and chill time, stretching a weeknight project into 90 minutes including rest. Budget roughly $2.50–$3.00 per boureka depending on puff pastry brand and whether you buy premium beef; the pine nuts are the main cost driver. These hold and reheat reasonably well, though they lose their crisp shell if left uncovered, making them better suited to planned leftovers than flexible weeknight dinners.