Hawashi / Egyptian Meat Sandwich

Hawashi - I still remember the first time I bit into it. I was just 3 days old in Cairo and whatever I tasted till then was so bland (when compared to Our Indian non veg food, ofcourse :) so when my hubby told me this is something you have to try, i wasn't so sure. (He had already been to Cairo a couple of times back then) . Well, it was different and tasted good and this was the only local dish I could have without having to think twice. From then on, whenever we ordered in Egyptian food, Hawashi was sure to be included.

And since ordering in Egyptian food was sooooooooooooooooo cheap, I never bothered to make it when I was there. But I did get the recipe from one of my friends who was my neighbour too, Nancy Nazir. So the recipe I followed here is basically what she told me but ofcourse, I tweaked a whole lot of ingredients to make it more spicy... but still not as spicy as our desi food. so u can call this Indianized Egyptian Hawashi (the Indian part being 10 percent ;) )

This is made with minced meat stuffed inside Pita Bread  and grilled/baked.  Make Pita Bread by following the recipe Ive posted earlier and then continue to make the Hawashi

Pita Bread : 6

For the filling:

Beef: 500 gms minced (raw ofcourse... just for the few who might be wodering if it is cooked..NO NO, USE RAW MINCED BEEF)
Onion: 1 diced fine
Ginger: 1 inch grated
Garlic: 4 cloves minced
Green Chillies: 10 thinly sliced (My Egyptian friends will have their eyes popped out if they see this, they use just half a green chilly, and even my addition of 10 is not enuf for hubby dear)
Tomato: 1 grated
Salt and Pepper: as needed
Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder: 1 tsp
Cumin Powder: 3/4 tsp
Garam Masala: 1/2 tsp (optional)
Coriander leaves or Parsley: 2 tbsp

Preheat Oven 180 C
Cut your pita breads into two halves, so that you can fill the beef in the pockets.
Mix all the ingredients and fill in the pockets all the way till the edges.
Spread butter on both sides of the bread and bake it till it is browned well and inside is cooked.
Turn it once and again bake for a few more minutes.
Have it immediately with salad.