Grilled Pitas Stuffed with Meat aka Arayes

Try my take on Arayes. A yummy lunch, snack, or appetizer recipe made with grilled pitas stuffed with beef, Middle Eastern seasonings, and pine nuts.

My Lebanese grandmother used to make these delicious meat pies. They are a sort of beef or lamb savory pastry dish. The filling is pretty easy but the dough takes some time. I've used this same filling in my stuffed acorn squash recipe and today I'm using it again.

Technically, Arayes are made with Kafta, a sort of Lebanese hamburger kebab made with beef or ground lamb, onion, garlic, fresh parsley, and spices. They even stuff the pitas with raw kafta meat and then cook the Arayes on a grill and sometimes bake them in the oven. I've also seen it called Abaric street food.

Looking at them I decided to marry my love for meat pie filling and the idea of stuffing and grilling pita pockets.

These stuffed pitas are pretty simple and can be eaten as a meal, a snack, or a party appetizer.

I used an indoor grill but you could certainly use your outdoor grill for this recipe.

It's no surprise that I loved them. I already loved the filling and stuffing it into pita bread and then grilling it was just extra deliciousness. I hope you give them a try and enjoy them as much as I did.

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Lebanese Arayes - Grilled Pitas with Meat

Enjoy these easy grilled pita sandwiches called Arayes stuffed with ground beef, pine nuts, sour cream, and spices.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Appetizers and Snacks

Cuisine Lebanese

Servings 6

Calories 526 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 3 pita pockets 6 inches
• 1 pound ground beef or lamb
• 1/2 onion chopped 1 cup
• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/2 cup pine nuts - toasted
• 1.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Saute the onions in 2 tablespoons of olive oil for 3 - 5 minutes or until soft and slightly translucent.
• Add a pinch of salt and black pepper.
• Add ground beef and brown well.
• Remove from heat and add toasted pine nuts and sour cream. Mix well.
• Cut pitas in half then brush olive oil on the outside.
• Fill each one with the meat mixture.
• Place on the grill pan and cook for about 5 minutes on each side using a spatula to press the pita on the pan.
• Remove and cut into wedges.

Notes

You can serve these with yogurt for dipping if you wish.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 526kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 31gFat: 35gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 22gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 88mgSodium: 303mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2g

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although attempts have been made to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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