Mutabbaq, meaning folded, is the great street snack of the Hejaz, Saudi Arabia's western region and the home of Jeddah. Vendors stretch a ball of oiled dough until it is thin enough to read through, fill it with minced meat cooked with garlic, beaten egg, leeks and green onion, fold it into a neat square and fry it on a broad griddle until crisp. It is cut into small squares and handed over with lemon and a fresh green chili. You will find it at roadside stalls and small griddle shops across the region, and it is a fixture of Jeddah's evening streets.

At home, ready made spring roll pastry or thin filo turns a skilled street craft into an easy snack. It is just the thing to eat with your hands under the floodlights of a night race on the Corniche.

The filling

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil
• 12 oz (340 g) ground beef or lamb
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 small leek
• 4 green onions
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
• 4 large eggs

Folding and frying

Ingredients

• 8 spring roll pastry sheets
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
• 1 lemon
• 2 fresh green chilies

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