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Lena, thank you so much for this amazing recipe. We loved it and so did the guys at our church construction site (see more about that below). They were easy and tasted amazing!
I ended up grinding my own pork and beef but you may use pre-ground. I prefer ground chuck or ground sirloin (“beef” sounds like mystery meat to me!). This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Ingredients for Chebureki:
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
½ medium bunch of cilantro, chopped
½ medium bunch of parsley, chopped
1 large bunch of green onion (1 cup chopped)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp milk
15 raw tortillas
How to Make the Meat Mix for Chebureki:
1. I ground my own meat with the KitchenAid attachment. I used boneless pork top loin and boneless beef country store ribs, Fresh is best and there’s no mystery about what’s in it. Mix ground pork and ground beef together (I use my KitchenAid with my paddle attachment to spare my fingers from freezing).
2.Stir in the cilantro, parsley and green onion. Add salt, ground pepper and milk.
Assembling Lena’s Amazing Cherubeki:
1. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add enough canola to cover bottom of pan. Use two skillets to speed up the process.
2. Place a heaping tablespoon over 1/2 of the tortilla.
Spread the meat over 1/2 of the tortilla, leaving about a 1-inch border.
3. Brush water on the entire border of the tortilla; enough so you can see that it’s wet, otherwise it won’t seal.
4. Press the sides together and seal with a fork. Flip the tortilla over and seal the other side with the fork as well to make sure they don’t open while frying.
This is the result of little fingers that really, really wanted to help (and mom turning away for a split second).
5. Saute 3 minutes on each side over medium heat. You may need to adjust your heat settings (not all ranges are created equal), but they do need about 3 minutes per side to cook through. Place them between paper towels when done.
They can get a little juicy inside so be careful that you don’t get a lap-full of juice when taking a bite.
I took a double batch of these to our construction site (we are building a church you know) and the guys loved ’em! They gobbled them up so fast, with ooh’s and ahh’s galore. I only wish I had made more! I love this picture; it looks like my Dad is running to get some chebureky.
Lena's Chebureki Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb ground pork
- ½ medium bunch of cilantro, chopped
- ½ medium bunch of parsley, chopped
- 1 large bunch of green onion, 1 cup chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 3 Tbsp milk
- 15 raw tortillas
Instructions
- Mix ground pork and ground beef together using Kitchen Aid with paddle attachment or by hand.
- Stir in the cilantro, parsley and green onion. Add salt, ground pepper and milk.
Assembling Cherubeki:
- Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add enough canola to cover bottom of pan. Use two skillets to speed up the process.
- Place a heaping tablespoon over 1/2 of the tortilla. Spread the meat over 1/2 of the tortilla, leaving about a 1-inch border.
- Brush water on the entire border of the tortilla; enough so you can see that it's wet, otherwise it won't seal.
- Press the sides together and seal with a fork. Flip the tortilla over and seal the other side with the fork as well to make sure they don't open while frying.
- Saute 3 minutes on each side over medium heat. You may need to adjust your heat settings (not all ranges are created equal), but they do need about 3 minutes per side to cook through. Place them between paper towels when done.
- They can get a little juicy inside so be careful that you don't get a lap-full of juice when taking a bite.
Made this by swapping ground beyond beef for the meat and soy milk in place of regular milk. With this already being a higher calorie treat, I fried these on a dry nonstick pan and it worked out great (using the raw tortillas from Costco). Thank you so much for the delicious recipe- growing up we only added salt, pepper, and onion to the meat. This was a step up for sure!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me.
Thank you very much for the recipe! How do you prevent hot oil from splattering all over the oven top?
Hi Nellie! You could use a deeper pan with taller edges or look into getting a splatter guard. That may help.
Would these pair well with one of your borscht recipes for a soup and sandwich-type meal?
Hi Karen, I think these can be paired with any soup! I hope you love it.
Hi Natasha,
We really love all of your recipes. They always turn out so fine dining and impress my whole family. Thanks so much for sharing.
Thanks,
Rachel
You’re very welcome, Rachel! Thank you for the wonderful feedback. I’m glad you enjoy my recipes.
thank you for your detailed step-by-step, with pictures recipes! I’m a big fan of yours!
You’re welcome, Natalie. Glad you appreciate that!
Can I precook the beef mixture, cool and stuff. I am sure these are delicious.
Thank you.
Hi Tish, I think that will work just fine.
These were very good! I did add a couple more ingredients that made it so flavorful! 1 grated onion, 2 cloves minced garlic, some garlic powder, and an additional half tsp salt as we like it a little more salty. Delicious!
Nice to hear that, Victoria. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Hi. What’s your suggestion for keeping them warm for transport, like u did when you brought them to the church for example.. how did u keep them warm? I want to make them as an appetizer for a small get together, but want them to keep their crispiness and warmth. Suggestions? Thanks
Hi EP! You may try wrapping them in a warm clean towel and then in foil. You can also wrap them in a towel and transport them in crock pot or disposable foil tin. The towel will help absorb the moisture. They also reheat great in the oven on a baking sheet, or on a skillet over the stovetop, or even an air fryer would work great. I hope that helps! Let us know how it works. 🙂
Has anyone tried to cook these in an air fryer? Just wondering what settings to use, temperature and time-wise..
Hi Esther, I think it will work but I haven’t personally tested it yet to advise of the temperature and timing.
I only cook mine in an air fryer! Typically I’ll do 350 degrees for 15(ish) minutes.
The real trick is to keep an eye on them and flip them when the top starts to get golden brown throughout. Should take 7-8 minutes. That way you don’t burn the top trying to cook the bottom.
Natasha,
I’ve searched through the comments, but couldn’t find answers- perhaps you could help?
1) is there a non-dairy milk substitute that would work?
2) any update on freezing these raw? Cooked?
3) I will have to make them ahead of dinner; to reheat them, tray in an oven? Or maybe cookie rack in the oven?
Appreciate any help
SvetKa
Hi, I haven’t tried any non-dairy options, but coconut or almond milk may work fine. I haven’t tried freezing these so I’m not sure about that, but I think it would work to freeze raw or cooked. They would reheat great in the oven on a baking sheet, or on a skillet over the stovetop, or even an airfryer would work great.
Hi I’d like to make these for dinner, why could I serve with them? Also is there a traditional type of dip or garnish? Looking forward to trying them tonight!
This can be a nice appetizer or main dish. You can dip it in sweet & sour sauce or any sauce that you prefer.
They go great with something like tzatziki (Greek cucumber/yogurt dip!) Also love them with Hungarian style cucumber salad (thin sliced cucumbers with vinaigrette)–this seems to counteract the fried deliciousness!) Yummy!
I love your precipices, chebureki turned out really good
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Oksana!
OK, I tried this the other day. I had been asking my wife for chebureki for years. She would never make them because 1: too much work, and 2: too much fat.
This recipe addresses both of those issues. The raw tortillas are genius; I didn’t know such a thing existed!
So we got a pound of beef, and a pound of pork. Carefully carved the fat off the pork. Dug out our old Soviet meat grinder and went to town.
Results – they came out sort of dry. The cilantro taste was overpowering – didn’t taste
Russian or Georgian at all. Not squirt-out-of-your-mouth juicy like I remember them.
Just for yuks, I dug out my canonical resource for such things – the “Book of Tasty and Healthy Food”, published in 1951, with its forward praising Comrade Stalin and the success of the latest Five Year Plan.
Chebureki are on page 241. They specify 400 grams of mutton ( baranina ), and
also 100 grams of mutton-fat. Yee-hah! Going for the gusto there. Also 50 grams of boiled rice. They also advised to seal the edges with beaten egg.
We pan fried most of them – but I also made a couple in an air fryer, with a light spray of olive oil. Those came out pretty nice, and I see no reason not to do them all that way.
Thank you so much for sharing that with us, Jerry!
Natasha, these are SOOO good!! Thank you so much for the recipe!
And to anyone who’s been wondering if you can bake these instead, yes you can! 🙂
I used the uncooked flour tortillas from Costco. I brushed both sides with a little bit of oil right before putting them in the oven and then baked them at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. They were absolutely delicious!!!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!!
These are amazing! Just wondering if I could make in advance and leave uncooked in fridge? I want to cook them at the last minute but don’t want to make them at the last minute(I like a clean kitchen when company comes over!) Also wondering if I could freeze the raw ones so I can reheat 2 or 3 at a time?
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes!
Hi MJ, I haven’t tried storing it uncooked in the fridge. I imagine the dough will absorb moisture and splatter all over once hitting a hot pan. Several of our readers have mentioned freezing left over raw Chebureki.
Hi natasha. I made this before per your receipe, and these are great. I want to make them again but healthier version. I was wondering what you think about me baking these? Do you know at what temperature would work best and duration? Thanks so much
Hi Anna! 🙂 I haven’t tested these in the oven and I think it might have to be a different dough for that. Has anyone else tried baking these?
Natasha in 3 minutes it cooks all the way, meat looks uncooked to me? By the way where do you live, i get my tortillas from meijer too?
Hi Holy, make sure to cook them 3 minutes per side and if they are browning too quickly, turn the heat down so they have a full 6 minutes of cooking time. The raw tortillas are thin so they allow for quick cooking of the filling, but if you find it is taking you longer to cook them (possibly you are on too low of heat?), definitely cook 1-2 minutes longer to be sure :). I purchase raw tortillas at Fred Meyer, Walmart and Costco.
I had a bit of a raw problem as well and realized I was filling them way too much. Not as much meat and lower heat definitely helped! I also love to get them more charred and crispy mmm mmm mmm! Best recipe for Chebureki for sure and so easy. Loving it!!
where did you buy the tortillas?
Hi Viktoriya, in our local stores, they are sold in Fred Meyer (refrigerator section next to the cheeses and tortellini), in Costco refrigerator section and I’ve also seen them at Walmart.
this is a good recipe.
i was wondering what do you think if i used puff pastry dough instead if the tortillas ?
I have never tried that but I suspect it might be too flaky and may absorb too much oil. Again, I haven’t tested it to say for sure.
Hello Natasha I am very pleased to have found your website. A young lady who lives in Tartarstan will be visiting me in a few weeks and I wish to serve her something other than typical American dishes at least some of the time while she is here. This will definitely be one of them. For the tortillas in this dish, I will be making my own. (The best tortillas are made with lard. 😉 )
Thank you for sharing your recipes.
You’re welcome Michael! Please let me know what you think of the recipe! 🙂
I made it twice last week, they are so good ! was not sure about cilantro in it, but decided to try your recipe as it is, Natasha. omg ! it turned out so yumi!
Anya, thank you for such a nice review on the recipe! 😁