Ashak
aushak
Afghan dumplings filled with leeks or scallions and topped with garlicky yogurt, lentils, and often a meat sauce.
About this dish
Afghan dumplings filled with leeks or scallions and topped with garlicky yogurt, lentils, and often a meat sauce. The recipe here chooses one named variation from that wider tradition; household fillings, shapes and serving styles may differ.
Recipe
Afghan chive ashak with lamb sauce and yogurt
Dough
- 300 g all-purpose flour
- 165 ml warm water
- 2 tsp sunflower oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
Filling
- 350 g garlic chives, finely chopped
- 20 g cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 tsp salt
Sauce
- 250 g ground lamb
- 1 onion (120 g), minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 300 g chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 150 ml water
- 40 g chana dal
Finish
- 200 g plain yogurt
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 tsp dried mint
- 1
Dough: 300 g all-purpose flour; 165 ml warm water; 2 tsp sunflower oil; plus the remaining ingredients listed for this component. Knead dough ingredients and rest covered 30 minutes. Boil dal separately until tender, 25-40 minutes; drain. Knead until smooth and cover. Rinse dal and cook separately until it crushes easily before draining.
- 2
Sauce: 250 g ground lamb; 1 onion (120 g), minced; 1 garlic clove, minced; plus the remaining ingredients listed for this component. For sauce, soften onion and minced garlic in oil, add lamb and brown thoroughly. Stir in tomatoes, paste, spices, sauce salt and water; simmer 20 minutes and fold in dal. Use medium heat, break lamb into crumbs and cook to 71°C/160°F. Reduce sauce until it spoons without watery runoff.
- 3
Filling: 350 g garlic chives, finely chopped; 20 g cilantro, chopped; 1/4 tsp salt. Mix chives with cilantro and filling salt. Roll dough thin, cut 8 cm circles and enclose 2 tsp chive filling in each sealed crescent. Chop chives short enough not to puncture dough. Keep wrappers covered, rims clean and seams fully shut.
- 4
Finish: 200 g plain yogurt; 1 garlic clove, crushed; 1 tsp dried mint. Mix yogurt with crushed garlic. Boil dumplings gently 5-7 minutes until skins and chives are tender. Drain. Keep yogurt cold until serving. Cook in roomy water and time from the return to a gentle boil; check tender skins and chives.
- 5
Spread half the yogurt on a platter, add dumplings, top with remaining yogurt, lamb sauce and dried mint. Spoon toppings over gently rather than vigorously tossing fragile wrappers; add mint at the end.
Note
The meat belongs in the topping, not inside these chive-filled dumplings. Dal cooking time varies; cook until tender rather than using a fixed short time.