Jessica Holmes’ homemade arayes: Crispy stuffed pitas the whole family will love

If you haven’t already tried arayes at your local Middle Eastern restaurant, you may have seen them trending on TikTok.

“Basically, it’s a seasoned meat patty that’s stuffed inside a pita bread,” explained Jessica Holmes, the host of “California Cooking” at Nexstar’s KTLA. The meat-stuffed pitas are then baked — or grilled, or pan-fried — until the meat is cooked through and tender, and the pita is toasted and crispy.

Holmes said she was inspired by the version she tried at Avi Cue in Studio City, California.

“I am obsessed,” she admitted of the dish. 

Ready to try making arayes on your own? Watch the video above for Holmes’ technique, then check out the recipe below for the specifics.

Jessica’s homemade arayes

Yield: 6–8 arayes. Cook time: 45 minutes.

Ingredients

• Tahini sauce, hot sauce, lemon juice or pickles, for serving
• 2 pounds ground beef (80/20, preferably)
• 1 small bunch parsley
• 1 small bunch cilantro
• 1/2 large onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 large pinch each salt and pepper
• 4 pitas (medium to large)
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

1. Place ground beef in a large bowl. Roughly chop the parsley, cilantro, onion and garlic, and add to a food processor. Process until finely chopped.
2. Add the chopped herbs, onion and garlic to ground beef. Season with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, coriander, cumin and allspice, and mix.
3. Cut each pita in half. Carefully open the halves and stuff with the meat mixture.
4. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
5. In a shallow pan over low- to medium-heat, fry each of the stuffed pita halves in 1 tablespoon olive oil. (Use less oil if frying in batches.) Continue until both sides of each stuffed pita are slightly browned. The meat in the center will not be cooked through.
6. Transfer arayes to a parchment-lined cookie sheet with a rack. Bake for 10 minutes, of until the meat is cooked through and no longer pink. 
7. Remove from the oven and serve with tahini sauce, hot sauce, lemon juice, pickles, or any other condiment you desire.

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