Brik

About This Recipe

Brik (بريك) is one of Tunisia's most celebrated street foods and a dish of great culinary elegance — a single whole egg, still runny, encased in a tissue-thin pastry wrapper with tuna, potato, capers and harissa, folded into a half-moon and fried in hot oil until the pastry is shatteringly crisp while the egg remains soft inside. Eating brik without breaking the yolk is considered an art, and tradition holds that an unmarried man who eats brik without spilling the yolk is ready to marry. The pastry used is malsouka (also called warka or dioul), an extraordinarily thin Tunisian pastry similar to brik pastry or Moroccan warka — at a pinch, filo pastry works as a substitute. Brik is eaten as a starter or snack, particularly during Ramadan and at celebrations.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 4 sheetsbrik pastry (malsouka) or filo pastry(sheets about 30cm diameter)
• 4eggs
• 160 gcanned tuna in olive oil(drained and flaked)
• 1 mediumpotato(boiled and mashed)
• 1 tablespooncapers(roughly chopped)
• 1 tablespoonharissa paste
• 2 tablespoonsfresh flat-leaf parsley(finely chopped)
• 0.5 teaspoonground cumin
• 1 teaspoonsalt
• 0.5 teaspoonblack pepper
• 500 mlneutral oil(for deep-frying)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the filling

   Combine the flaked tuna, mashed potato, capers, parsley, harissa, cumin, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix well. The mixture should be fairly dry and well seasoned.

2. 2

   Heat the oil

   Heat the oil in a wide, deep frying pan to 180°C (355°F). Have a slotted spoon, paper towels and a warm plate ready.

3. 3

   Assemble the brik

   Lay a pastry sheet on a work surface. Place a quarter of the tuna filling slightly off-centre. Make a well in the filling and carefully crack an egg into it. Season the egg with a pinch of salt.

   Work quickly once the egg is added — the longer it sits, the more likely the pastry will become soggy.

4. 4

   Fold and seal

   Carefully fold the pastry over the filling to form a half-moon, enclosing the egg. Press the edges together firmly to seal, or fold over twice. Handle very gently to keep the egg whole.

5. 5

   Fry the brik

   Carefully lower the brik into the hot oil using a spatula. Fry for 1.5–2 minutes on each side until deep golden and crispy. The egg inside should remain runny. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on paper towels.

6. 6

   Serve immediately

   Serve at once with lemon wedges and extra harissa on the side. Brik must be eaten very hot and crisp.

Variations

• •

  Some variations use minced meat (kafta) instead of tuna as the filling.

• •

  A popular Tunisian version replaces tuna with a mixture of cheese and harissa for a vegetarian brik.

Storage

Brik must be eaten immediately — it cannot be stored once fried. The filling can be prepared a day ahead.

Frequently Asked Questions