Lahmacun

Lahmacun (Turkish Flatbread with Spiced Lamb)

A classic Turkish street food: paper-thin dough topped with minced lamb, tomato, pepper and herbs, baked at high heat until crisp at the edges. Roll it up with fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon for the traditional way to eat it.

Prep

30 min

Cook

10 min

Total

40 min

Serves

6 lahmacun (serves 3-4 as a meal)

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1 lb 2 oz) strong bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• •5 g (1 tsp) instant yeast
• •5 g (1 tsp) fine salt
• •300 ml (1¼ cups) lukewarm water
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• •400 g (14 oz) minced lamb, 20% fat; do not use extra-lean
• •2 whole medium tomatoes, finely grated, skin discarded
• •1 whole red bell pepper, Turkish charli pepper if available; finely chopped
• •1 whole small onion, finely grated
• •3 cloves garlic, crushed
• •20 g (¾ oz) flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, plus extra to serve
• •10 g (¼ oz) fresh mint, finely chopped, optional but traditional
• •15 g (¼ cup) tomato paste
• •5 g (2 tsp) Aleppo pepper (pul biber), substitute 1 tsp paprika + pinch of cayenne
• •3 g (1 tsp) ground cumin
• •2 g (½ tsp) ground coriander
• •1 g (¼ tsp) freshly ground black pepper
• •1 whole lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Steps

1. 1 Make the dough: mix flour, yeast and salt in a bowl. Add water and olive oil and bring together into a soft, slightly tacky dough. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover and rest for 30-45 minutes.
2. 2 Make the topping: in a wide bowl, combine the minced lamb, grated tomato, chopped pepper, grated onion, garlic, parsley, mint, tomato paste, Aleppo pepper, cumin, coriander and black pepper. Mix vigorously with your hand for 2-3 minutes, smearing against the bowl, until the mixture becomes a cohesive, spreadable paste that holds together. The lamb should look pale and sticky.
3. 3 Divide the rested dough into 6 equal pieces (about 115 g each) and shape into balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball out as thinly as you can into a round about 25-28 cm (10-11 in) across; lahmacun dough should be almost translucent at the edges. If it springs back, rest 5 minutes and continue.
4. 4 Place a baking stone or heavy upside-down baking tray on the middle rack and preheat the oven to its hottest setting, 250-270°C / 480-500°F, for at least 20 minutes.
5. 5 Lightly brush a rolled dough round with olive oil and lay it on parchment. Spread a thin, even layer of the lamb topping over the dough using your fingertips, pressing it out to the very edges — do not leave a border, the topping should cover the surface completely.
6. 6 Slide the lahmacun (with its parchment) onto the hot stone/tray. Bake for 7-9 minutes until the edges of the dough are blistered and golden-brown and the lamb topping is fully cooked through with no pink remaining; lamb mince must reach 71°C / 160°F internal temperature.
7. 7 Repeat with the remaining dough and topping, keeping the cooked lahmacun warm in a clean tea towel inside a lidded pot.
8. 8 Serve immediately, rolled up around a small bunch of fresh parsley with a wedge of lemon squeezed over the filling.