GregaIvancic
Essential Ingredients
For serving
For the topping
For the dough
Equipment
Step by Step Instructions
1
Dough Preparation
- Activate the yeast: Dissolve the yeast and sugar in warm water. Let it rest for 5 minutes until it bubbles. Knead the dough: Combine flour, salt, and olive oil in a bowl. Add the yeast mixture and knead into a smooth, elastic dough (8–10 minutes). Rest the dough: Cover and let it rise in a warm place for about 2 hours, until doubled in size. Shape the dough: Divide the dough into 3 equal portions about 300g.
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Preparation with dough mixer
Use a proper spiral mixer, with a dough hook attachment. Dissolve yeast in the water and put all water in the mixer. You mix the salt with flour and add half flour in to the water and start mixing. Gradually add flour until you finish and continue mixing on low speed. When the dough starts to form switch to high speed (if you have it) and mix for few more min until the dough becomes smooth on the touch. Be careful not to overmix it! You can control the temperature of the dough with the temperature of water. At the end you add the oil (we need to add the oil because we will bake the dough on low temperature).
2
Shaping the Dough
- To prepare Turkish pizza, we begin by dividing pizza dough into four equal balls. We shape each ball on a lightly floured surface into a thin, 8-10 inch (25 cm) circle.
3
Cooking and Serving Lahmacun
- When dough is rolled into thin 8-10 inch (25 cm) circles, we spread 3-4 tablespoons of meat mixture evenly to the edges, and we add chopper bellpeper and onions while keeping the topping layer thin.
- To cook, we either bake in a 450°F (230°C) oven for 5-7 minutes until crispy and golden or heat in a covered non-stick skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
- We top the baked Lahmacun fresh parsley. We serve lahmacun with lemon wedges, onions, mint leaves, radishes, and tahini sauce on the side.
- Eat it wrapped up burrito-style with toppings or sliced like pizza. For a full meal, we pair it with a Mediterranean salad and hummus.
Toppings
Meat Topping
The meat topping for lahmacun is a blend of ground lamb or beef, and aromatic spices like smoked paprika, allspice, cumin, Aleppo pepper, cinnamon, and cayenne.
We mix these ingredients with tomato paste and olive oil until well combined.
To make the perfect meat topping, we use room temperature meat, chop all vegetables very finely, generously add spices, and keep the mixture slightly wet with tomato paste.
When spreading the topping, we use 3-4 tablespoons per flatbread, working from the center outward and leaving a tiny border. This will ensure even cooking and a crispy texture.
Spices
The key spices we use to make traditional lahmacun are smoked paprika, cumin and Aleppo pepper. This blend creates the distinctive Middle Eastern flavor profile we want.
Mix all the spices thoroughly with the ground meat before spreading it on the dough. Adjust the cayenne to make it milder or spicier to your liking.
Vegetables
We recommend using fresh red peppers, shallots, garlic, and parsley as the key vegetables for authentic lahmacun. Cut everything small for even cooking and spreading on the thin dough.
For serving, slice red onions thinly, cut radishes, and tear fresh mint leaves to add crunch and brightness.
If making a vegan version, try roasted red peppers instead of fresh for a more intense flavor.
Pairing Lahmacun with Sides
Wine and Beverage Pairings
