Lahmacun

Cook it at home: Lahmacun (Turkish flatbread with spiced lamb)

The topping goes on raw and very thin, and cooks in a few minutes on a very hot stone. Pulse the topping in a food processor so it spreads like paste.

Pans and tools

• Food processor
• Baking steel or pizza stone
• Rolling pin
• Pizza peel or rimless sheet

You’ll need

• For the dough: 3 1/4 cups (420 g) bread flour, 1 tsp instant yeast, 1 tsp sugar, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) warm water, 1 tbsp olive oil
• For the topping: 10 oz (280 g) ground lamb (20 percent fat), or half lamb and half beef
• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 long green pepper or jalapeño, seeded
• 2 ripe tomatoes, cored and chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 cup (20 g) flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 2 tbsp Turkish red pepper paste (biber salçası)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp pul biber (Aleppo pepper), 1 tsp sweet paprika, 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper
• To serve: a big bunch of parsley, 1 red onion thinly sliced with sumac, lemon wedges

Steps

1. Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt, then add the water and oil. Knead 8 minutes until smooth. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
2. Divide into 8 balls (about 3 oz / 85 g each), cover and rest 30 minutes.
3. Put a baking steel or stone on the lowest rack and heat the oven to its maximum, 500 to 550F (260 to 290C), for at least 45 minutes.
4. Pulse the onion, peppers, tomatoes, garlic and parsley in a food processor until finely chopped. Drain in a sieve 10 minutes, pressing out the juice; too wet and the bread turns soggy.
5. Put the vegetables back in the processor with the meat, both pastes, the spices, salt and pepper, and pulse to a smooth, spreadable paste.
6. On a floured counter, roll a ball into a very thin oval, about 10 by 7 inches (25 by 18 cm), until you can almost see through it.
7. Spread about 1/3 cup of the topping thinly over the dough with your fingers, right to the edges.
8. Slide onto the hot steel and bake 5 to 7 minutes, until the edges are crisp and lightly charred and the meat is cooked.
9. Stack the baked lahmacun on a plate, topping sides together, to keep them soft. To eat, scatter with parsley and sumac onions, squeeze lemon over, and roll up tightly.

Contains: Wheat.