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Potato Cakes Stuffed with Lamb and Pine Nuts

Potato cakes filled with spiced lamb and pine nuts, served with a garlic yogurt garnish.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 22 ingredients
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Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Potato Cakes Stuffed with Lamb and Pine Nuts

Ovena low oven

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the dough

  1. Boil the potatoes whole until cooked but not mushy.

  2. Drain the potatoes for 10 minutes, then while still warm, peel and mash them.

  3. Stir in the flour, season with salt and set the dough aside.

Make the lamb filling

  1. Melt the butter and olive oil together in a pan over medium-high heat.

  2. Add the onion and cook until it is soft.

  3. Add the spices and cook for a further minute.

  4. Add the lamb and cook for 5–8 minutes until browned.

  5. Stir in the pine nuts, tomato puree, water and parsley.

  6. Season with salt and pepper and set aside until cool enough to handle.

Shape the cakes

  1. Wash and dry your hands, then flour them.

  2. Divide the dough into four balls.

  3. On a well-floured surface, flatten one ball into a disc about 1 cm thick.

  4. Place two tablespoons of filling in the centre and bring up the sides of the dough to enclose the meat.

  5. Neaten the shape of the cake on a floured surface and patch up any cracks.

  6. Repeat with the remaining dough balls.

  7. (Optional) Keep the cakes in the fridge for 1–2 days, ensuring enough flour to prevent sticking.

Fry and serve

  1. Cover the bottom of a large frying pan with 3–4 mm of oil and heat over medium to high until nearly smoking.

  2. Gently lift the cakes and lower them into the oil one by one.

  3. Do not turn until they are dark, golden and crispy.

  4. Fry the other side, dab off excess oil, and keep warm in a low oven.

  5. Mix the yogurt with the garlic and salt.

  6. Serve the cakes with a salad and the yogurt garnish.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1679Calories
75 gProtein
77 gFat
177 gCarbs

Counts 18 of 20 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 18 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Lamb100g cooked294
Pine Nut1 oz (28g)191
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Yogurt170g plain Greek100
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Nutmeg1 tsp ground (2.2g)12
Cloves1 tsp ground (2g)7
Cinnamon1 tsp ground (2.6g)6
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Cardamom1 tsp ground (2g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Seednot in our table0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,023 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Potato + olivetop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,458 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

  3. Olive + oniontop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together29,779 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  4. Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,305 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Potato + lambtop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together520 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Potatoes
Starch from the cooked, mashed potato gives the dough its soft, mouldable body.
Flour
Binds the mashed potato so the dough holds together and can be shaped around the filling.
Lamb
Provides the savoury, browned meat that forms the main filling.
Pine nuts
Add a toasty, rich crunch that contrasts with the soft filling and dough.
Onion
Softens and sweetens as it cooks, forming the flavour base of the filling.
Tomato puree
Adds concentrated savoury depth and colour to the lamb filling.

The step that matters

Leave the cakes unturned until golden. The crust sets and browns against the hot oil, and it stays intact only if it has crisped. Turning early tears the dough and lets the filling escape into the oil.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, flour, lamb, butter, olive, cinnamon, pepper):

  1. Eggplantfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Capsicumfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against potato, flour, lamb, butter, olive, cinnamon, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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