lahmacun
a recipe for flatbread topped with spiced beef and vegetables, sumac red onion salad, labneh and pickled chillies
Lahmacun
Serve: 6 flatbreads
Ingredients
Meat
500g minced beef
1 white onion
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
3 garlic cloves
2 tomatoes
a bunch of fresh parsley
30g tomato paste
10g paprika
10g sumac
10g cumin
5g turmeric
sea salt
black peppercorns
Dough
500g bread flour + some for dusting
250g water
sea salt
For serving
4 red onions
a bunch of fresh parsley
1 lemon
4 tomatoes
1 small head of lettuce
pickled green chillies
250g labneh
sumac
Extra note
If you prefer, you can substitute the beef mince with lamb or use a mix of both
Traditionally, less meat is put on the flatbread, but I like to pile it on a bit more
Isot, also known as Urfa biber, is a dark, smoky, and spicy chilli pepper often added to the meat mixture, but I couldn't find it anywhere. If you're lucky enough to come across it, definitely add it in
Method
Meat and vegetable mix
Roughly chop one red and one yellow bell pepper, two tomatoes, and one white onion. Thinly slice three garlic cloves. Finish by chopping a handful of fresh parsley leaves.
Place the vegetables in a food processor and pulse until they reach a paste-like consistency, with some pieces still slightly chopped, as shown below.
Add the minced beef to the mixture, along with tomato paste, paprika, sumac, cumin, and turmeric. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Stir the mixture to combine. Once seasoned, cook a small portion of the spiced meat in a pan and taste. Adjust with more salt if needed.
Dough
Set up your station with all the essentials: bread flour, water, and salt, along with your equipment - a wooden board (clean counter is fine too), a jug, a medium bowl, a sieve, and a fork.
Sift 500g of bread flour into a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Mix to combine.
Gradually add 250g of water, stirring with a fork as you go. Keep in mind, you might not need all the water, or you may need just a little more, depending on the texture.
Once the water and flour are combined with a fork and the dough becomes too stiff to mix, switch to using your hands to bring it together.
When it forms a rough ball, transfer the dough to the counter.
Knead the dough by pressing the heel of your palm into the centre, stretching it away from you. Fold it over, press it down, and rotate. Keep repeating this motion until the dough becomes more pliable.
Flatten the dough, place it in a plastic bag, and let it rest for about 30 minutes at room temperature. Before resting, the dough will not be smooth yet.
Salad
Thinly slice the red onions and place them in a bowl.
Cut the lemon into wedges (use about 2 wedges, saving the rest for later) and squeeze the juice over the onions. Season with salt and mix gently.
Pick the parsley leaves and add them to the onions, but don’t mix.
Sprinkle plenty of sumac on top. The salad will be mixed just before serving.
Finish the dough
Take a sheet of baking paper and cut out six rounds, each slightly smaller than your pan. This will make it easier to transfer the lahmacun onto the pan. Set the rounds aside.
Knead the rested dough for another 2 minutes.
Divide it into about 6 equal pieces, though you can adjust based on how large or small you want your lahmacun. I recommend checking the size of your pan first.
Knead each piece into a smooth ball. Wrap 5 balls in cling film, and start flattening one with a rolling pin. Dust flour under and over the dough to prevent sticking.
Shape the dough into a flat, round disc. To achieve a perfect circle, place the rolling pin in the centre and roll upwards, then return to the centre and roll down. Turn the dough and repeat the process.
Place the dough disc onto the baking paper, then spread the meat mixture evenly over the flatbread, all the way to the edges.
If you have any leftover meat, feel free to add more to your flatbread or save it for your next snack!
Serving
For the final prep before serving, cut the tomatoes into wedges and set aside.
Mix the red onion, parsley, and sumac salad.
Shred the lettuce into smaller pieces with your hands.
To cook the lahmacun, warm up a pan (without oil) and place the flatbread, still lined with baking paper, into the pan. Cover with a lid and cook for about 2 minutes. The lid helps create steam, allowing the meat to cook faster. After 2 minutes, remove the paper and continue cooking the lahmacun for another 5-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the flatbread and how much meat you've added. Repeat with the rest.
Once the lahmacun is thoroughly cooked, smear the centre with labneh, then top with shredded lettuce, the red onion-parsley-sumac salad, pickled chillies, and a generous squeeze of lemon. Serve immediately while hot.
