Ingredients:
Dough:
• 400 g all-purpose flour
• 1½ tsp active dry yeast
• 200 ml warm water
• 1 tsp salt
• vegetable oil for frying
Filling:
• 450 g meat (traditionally minced lamb or ground beef with some fat)
• 300 g onions, very finely chopped or minced
• 50 ml vegetable oil
• 50 ml water
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt to taste
Directions:
Dough:
• In a medium bowl mix flour with active dry yeast.
• Stir the salt into the warm water.
• Add it to the flour.
• Pour the yeast mixture into the flour.
• Knead thoroughly for about 8–10 minutes until a soft, smooth dough forms.*
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour until it doubles in size.
Filling:
• In a large bowl, mix the meat, finely chopped onions, black pepper, cumin, and salt.
• Pour in the vegetable oil and water.
• Stir vigorously in one direction for 2–3 minutes until the meat completely absorbs the liquids to create a super juicy center.
Assembly:
• Punch down the risen dough. Cut the dough into 13 equal pieces and roll each piece into a neat little ball.
• Cover the balls with plastic wrap and let it rise for 5 minutes.
• Flatten a dough ball with your hand, then use a rolling pin to roll it into a circle (about 4–5 inches wide). Keep the center slightly thicker than the edges so the meat doesn’t burst through the bottom.
• Place a spoonful of filling in the center.
• Gather the edges of the dough upward over the meat and pinch them tightly together at the top, forming a gathered, pleated top.
• Gently press down on the top to flatten it slightly into a thick disc.
• Repeat for all 13 pies.**
Cooking:
• Pour a shallow layer of oil into your skillet and heat it over medium heat.
• Place the xoshangs in the hot oil (pleat-side down first) and fry for 2 to 3 minutes per side until both sides are beautifully golden and crisp.
• Remove them from the pan.
• Bring a large pot or wok of water to a rolling boil.
• Line your steam baskets with perforated parchment paper liners, cabbage leaves, or grease them lightly with oil so the dough won’t stick.
• Arrange your 13 seared hoshany inside the steam baskets, leaving about an inch of space between them so they have room to expand.
• Place the baskets over the boiling water, cover tightly with the lid, and steam on medium-high heat for a full 25 minutes.
• Carefully remove the lid and transfer them to a plate.
• Serve hot.
Tip:
You can prep Xoshang ahead of time.
*
• Instead of letting it rise on the counter, place the dough ball in a large greased bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and put it straight into the refrigerator overnight.
• Mix your meat, onions, spices, oil, and water in a bowl. Cover tightly and store it in the fridge overnight.
• Take the dough out of the fridge 30 minutes before you want to cook so it can lose its chill and soften up. Then simply divide, roll, pleat, fry, and steam!
**
• Place the raw, pleated xoshang on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Make sure they do not touch.
• Put the tray flat in the freezer for 2 hours until they are frozen solid.
• Transfer the frozen pies into a Ziploc freezer bag, squeeze out the air, and store for up to 2 months.
• Put xoshang straight from the freezer into a skillet with a shallow layer of medium-low oil.
• Fry them for 3 to 4 minutes per side just to get that golden sear on the dough.
• Transfer them directly into your steam basket and steam for 30 to 35 minutes (adding 5–10 minutes to the normal cooking time since the filling is completely frozen).
