Fatayer

Fatayer
TypePie
Place of originLevant
Region or state
Associated cuisineLevantine cuisine
Main ingredientsMeat, spinach, cheese or za'atar

Fatayer (Standard Arabic: فطائر, romanized: faṭāʾir; Levantine Arabic: فطاير, romanized: faṭāyir; sing. فطيرة, faṭīra) are filled pies, typically stuffed with spinach, meat, or cheese such as feta or akkawi. They are part of Arab and Levantine cuisine and are eaten in Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, israel. Fatayer are also popular in Argentina, where they are considered a variety of empanada under the name empanadas árabes (singular form empanada árabe), and in Brazil, where they are known as esfihas fechadas ("closed sfihas", singular form esfiha fechada).

Some fatayer are commonly frozen and reheated prior to eating.

History and etymology

The word fatayer is derived from the Arabic word faṭīrah (فطيرة), whose plural form is faṭayīr. The word fatayir is attested in English as early as 1882 in an Arabic-English dictionary by Francis Joseph Steingass, where its translated as "pastry", and equated with sambusaq.

The name fatayer is sometimes used interchangeably with sambusak; referring to the baked or fried Arab turnovers. Sambusak descends from the medieval samosa, which is attested as early as the 9th-century in Persia. According to food historian Nawal Nasrallah, sambusak can be considered a variety of fatayir.

Fatayer originally referred to unleavened flatbreads, but eventually came to refer to filled pastries made with said unleavened bread. Triangular filled pastries filled with cheese called mujabbanat (Arabic: مجبنات) can be found in a 13th-century augmented version of Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq's 10th century cookbook Kitab al-Tabikh. She also describes the medieval sambusak as a variety of fatayir.

An early description is found in Arbeit und Sitte in Palaestina ("Work and customs in Palestine"); a 1935 book by German Orientalist Gustaf Dalman. In the book, he describes folded unleavened breads called "faṭāir" being baked, among those described is "fatira bisbankha", made triangular or round with a spinach and onion filling, and "fatira blebene", filled with "lebene", which he likened to quark.

Regional variations

Levant

Different combinations of fillings and shapes are used for fatayer. Common fillings include:

  • Cheese (such as feta, akkawi or halloumi) with nigella seeds
  • Spinach, commonly with sumac and onions; this variant is popular in the Levant and is known as fatayer sabanekh (Levantine Arabic: فطاير سبانخ). Other greens are common fillings as well, like fresh Origanum syriacum, in fatayer made during the winter by Palestinians.
  • Minced lamb meat and nuts
  • Eggs
  • Kashk and meat, popular in some Syrian cities
  • Labneh, popular in Lebanon

A variety of spices may also be used for each variant. The shapes also vary; some are fully enclosed triangles, while other are shaped like boats with part of the filling exposed. The dough is sometimes unleavened, and can be flavored with spices like mahleb. The different shapes may denote different fillings, for instances, triangles for spinach, and boats for cheese.

Latin America

Empanadas árabes, open-faced like sfiha and served with lemons

Empanadas árabes, or fatay, are a variation of fatayer popular in some Latin American countries, such as Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Colombia, and Venezuela.

Fatay are triangular, with a filling typically consisting of tomato, onion, and minced meat, and topped with lemon juice. They are sometimes open-faced and sometimes closed; they closely resemble sfiha.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Labensky, Steven; Ingram, Gaye G.; Labensky, Sarah R. (2001). Webster's New World Dictionary of Culinary Arts. Prentice Hall. p. 166. ISBN 9780130264305.
  2. 1 2 Anissa Helou (6 May 2019). "How to make Lebanese fatayer with spinach and labneh fillings". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Marks, Gil (17 November 2010). "Sambusak". Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. HMH. ISBN 978-0-544-18631-6. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Nasrallah, Nawal (2013). Delights from the Garden of Eden: A Cookbook and History of the Iraqi Cuisine. Equinox Pub. p. 102. ISBN 978-1-84553-457-8. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  5. ↑ רביע, בלקיס אבו. "מתכון לפאטייר - מאפים במילוי תרד בר". Haaretz הארץ (in Hebrew). Archived from the original on 2022-06-29. Retrieved 2026-11-12.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Tamimi, Sami; Wigley, Tara (26 March 2020). "Snacks, Spreads and Sauces". Falastin: A Cookbook. Ebury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4735-5775-8.
  7. 1 2 Khayr al-Din al-Asadi (1981). موسوعة حلب المقارنة [Comparative Encyclopedia of Aleppo] (in Arabic). pp. 2220–2222. Retrieved 12 Jan 2025.
  8. 1 2 "سيدات يقتصدن في تحضير "الكشك".. مؤونة غير معتادة باللاذقية" [Women are frugal in preparing "kishk," an unusual staple food in Latakia.]. Enab Baladi (in Arabic). 27 August 2024. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  9. ↑ Steingass, Francis Joseph (1882). English-Arabic Dictionary: For the Use of Both Travellers and Students (in Arabic and English). W.H. Allen. p. 277. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  10. ↑ Goldstein, Joyce (12 April 2016). The New Mediterranean Jewish Table: Old World Recipes for the Modern Home. Univ of California Press. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-520-96061-9. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  11. ↑ Dalman, Gustaf (1964). Brot, Ol und Wein [Bread, Oil and Wine] (in German). G. Olms. pp. 114–115. Retrieved 10 Oct 2026. y) fatīra bis-sbānih: Eine Mischung aus Spinat (sbānih), Zwiebeln, Pfeffer und Salz wird auf den Kuchen gelegt, den man dann entweder rund als fatīra mudawwara oder dreieckig als fatīra musallasa faltet und mit einem Loch versieht, aber nicht auf den Armen dehnt. d) fatīra bi-labana: In Öl gelegter Quark (labana), mit Zwiebel und Pfeffer gemengt, bildet hier die Füllung; sonst wie y.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Helou, Anissa (4 October 2018). Feast: Food of the Islamic World. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5266-0556-6. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  13. ↑ "Fatayer Jibneh (Cheese fatayer)". Middle East Monitor. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  14. ↑ Choufan, Matan; Bishara, Muzna (17 February 2022). "For Muzna Bishara, Za'atar Is the Scent of Winter". Asif. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  15. ↑ ""الفطاير".. وليمة العيد الموروثة في حوران" ["Fatayer" is the traditional Eid feast in Hauran.]. Enab Baladi (in Arabic). 28 June 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
  16. ↑ Kalla, Joudie (18 October 2018). "The Bakery". Baladi: Palestine a celebration of food from land and sea. Jacqui Small. ISBN 978-1-911127-86-4.
  17. ↑ "Cook this: Spinach turnovers — fatayer sbenegh — from Forever Beirut". National Post. Retrieved 20 April 2025.
  18. ↑ Senater, Len (5 March 2024). The Depanneur Cookbook. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-6680-0273-5. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  19. 1 2 "Día Mundial de la Empanada: recetas infalibles para celebrar un clásico de la cocina" [World Empanada Day: foolproof recipes to celebrate a culinary classic]. Nuevo Diario Web (in Spanish). 8 April 2025. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
  20. 1 2 "Empanadas árabes: Receta de Fatay original - Paulina Cocina" [Arabic empanadas: traditional Fatay recipe]. www.paulinacocina.net (in Spanish). 26 March 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
  21. ↑ "El restaurante de Buenos Aires que prepara "la fatay más famosa"" [The Buenos Aires restaurant that prepares "the most famous fatay"]. www.c5n.com (in Spanish). 1 October 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2025.