Easy Burek with Ground Beef

1. 1Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, then cook the onion for 6–8 minutes until soft and translucent. It should smell sweet rather than raw; keeping the heat moderate stops it catching before the beef goes in.
2. 2Add the beef mince and cook for 7–9 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no pink remains and a little fat has cooked out. Stir in the garlic, paprika, salt and pepper and cook for another minute, until fragrant rather than harsh.
3. 3Pour in the water and simmer for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is moist but not wet. The filling needs to be cool enough not to melt the filo, so spread it on a plate and leave it for 10 minutes while the oven heats to 200°C fan.
4. 4Brush a 23 cm round baking tin with some melted butter. Lay in one sheet of filo, leaving the edges overhanging, brush it lightly with butter, then repeat with three more sheets, turning them slightly each time so the base is well covered.
5. 5Spoon the cooled beef filling into the tin and level it gently. Fold the overhanging filo over the filling, then scrunch the remaining sheets loosely on top with butter between them; loose folds give you the crisp, craggy top that makes burek worth making.
6. 6Whisk the egg and yoghurt with a small pinch of salt, then drizzle it evenly over the pastry. It settles into the folds and helps the top brown, but do not flood the pastry or it will turn soggy.
7. 7Bake for 30–35 minutes until puffed and deeply golden, with bubbling filling visible at the edges. Rest for 10 minutes before slicing so the layers firm up instead of collapsing onto the plate.

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