Brik bil Tunn, Algerian Savory Tuna Pastries, Brick au Thon

(Photo from the school buffet at The California School of Culinary Arts, Le Cordon Bleu Program where I teach)

The host for the 18th edition of IMBB Is my blog burning? is At Our Table.  The current edition's theme is "Summer's Flying, Let's Get frying!"

My contribution is Brik b'il Tunn.

The recipe is easy, but it's necessary to work very quickly. Warka leaves are very delicate, as are spring roll wrappers if you choose to substitute. Once the tuna mixture and egg are placed in the wrapper it must be fried immediately. It cannot be left to sit for any period of time.

These briks are addictively delicious. I can eat three to four, most people eat one. They make a nice light lunch with a salad or can be served as an appetizer.

Ingredients:

1 4 ounce can of tuna. I prefer the kind packed in oil.
1 canne de thon

1 small onion finely chopped
1 petit oignon hachee finement

1 piece of preserved lemon finely chopped
1 citron confit hachee finement

1 tablespoon of finely chopped flat leaf parsley or coriander leaf
1 cuillere de persil plat ou coriandre frais hachee finement

2 tablespoons of grated parmigiano reggiano or gruyere cheese.
2 cuilleres de parmagiano reggiano haches finement

1 tablespoon of capers, rinsed and coarsely chopped
1 cuillere de capres haches

4 hen eggs for stuffing
4 oeufs pour la farce

1lightly beaten hen egg for sealing the pastry
1 oeuf battu pour seller la pate

4-8 warka leaves, depending on the size (substitute 4 Chinese spring roll wrappers if you do not have warka).
Feuilles de brick

Oil for frying
Huile pour friture

Method :

1) Saute the onions in olive oil over medium heat until translucent.

2) Combine the tuna, herbs, cheese, capers, onions and preserved lemons in a bowl and divide into four equal portions.

3) Place a warka leaf (you might have to use two or double one depending on the size or a single spring roll wrapper in a bowl. Spoon a quarter of the tuna mixture into the center as shown, crack an egg into the center, brush sides with egg wash and seal.

4) Immediately cook in about an inch of hot oil, baste the top with oil a few times. When the underside is brown, turn and continue frying until brown. Do not overcook, the most delicious part of a brik with egg is the runny yolk.

Serve at once with lemon wedges if desired. If you squeeze lemon juice on the briks they will lose some of their crispness.

My wife came up with the idea of making miniature briks using quail eggs. I agree they would be cute for a party, but I'll let her make the fussy things. By the way, so far all the cooking except the school buffet photo of the finished brik you see is courtesy of my wife who is a very accomplished cook and also has professional restaurant experience.

Truc: The edges of spring roll wrappers sometimes don't seal together even with an egg wash for this preparation. Seal the edges as much as you and slip it into the oil, have a fork or spoon ready to press down the edges. The hot oil will immediately seal the edges.

Algeria Algerian Cuisine Algerian Recipes Algerian Food Algerian dishes Cuisine Algerienne Recettes  Algerienne North African cuisine Maghreb Cuisine

Comments

[Farid Zadi]

merci, BRIGITTE, l'Algerie est le pays dont on tombe amoureux, y aller et fouler cette terre et un souvenir que l'on garde dans son coeur pour la vie. a tres bientot sur mon blog pour de nouvelles aventures culinaires.
merci encore,farid

[brigitte]

j'arrive sur ton blog grâce a celui de Cocinalia.
Mon mari et moi avons vécu enfants, en Algérie, Oran, Alger, Boufarik, j'ai gardé la nostalgie de ce si beau pays où j'ai appris à nager, a faire de la bicyclette etc... je vais 'dévorer " ton blog et te mettre dans mes favoris.

[Farid Zadi]

Thank you Joey. Comments are most welcome and I'm finding many interesting blogs like yours. It's fascinating to see how people cook allover the world.

[joey]

These look very delicious! Actually, was looking through your recipes here and they all look and sound so appetizing! Great blog, I'll be dropping by again :-)

[Farid Zadi]

Salut Carolyn. Yes I am aware of blog appetit. My first participation was with a recipe of moules & oignons.

Yes, there are many tuaregs in Algeria. Tuaregs are also in Niger, Mali, Libya and Burkina Faso.

[fallenangel]

this is really a great recipe... i enjoy cooking with sheets of brick, this is perfectly crunchy and tastefull !

[Carolyn]

Are you aware of blog actu for French bloggers? http://www.blog-appetit.com/web_appetit/food-blog-news.asp

[Carolyn]

Thank you so much for joining thr blogsphere--your pictures of your country and your food are wonderful. And I was particularly just looking for a recipe for preserved lemons. I shall come back often. Are there any Tauregs in your land?

[Farid Zadi]

Salaam Aleikum Jilal,

Shukran

[Jilal]

Bravo pour ce blog ..bientot le ramadhan ca va me servire ..
amicalement.