Turkish · Lunch · Dinner
Lahmacun
Crisp, paper-thin wholemeal flatbreads spread with a fragrant layer of lean spiced beef, tomato and pepper, then wrapped around fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon. A lighter take on the Turkish street-food favourite that still tastes like the real thing.
- Prep
- 90 min
- Cook
- 28 min
- Total
- 118 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 57% · Fat 22% · Protein 21%
Track it in BerryFit and see how it fits your own daily target. Get the app ›
Ingredients
For 4 servings- 1 1/4 cups150 gWhole wheat flour
- 1 1/4 cups, plus 1 tbsp for dusting160 gAll-purpose flour
- 1 tspInstant dried yeast
- 3/4 cup + 1 tbsp190 gWarm water
- 2 tsp9 gOlive oil
- 1 1/4 tsp, divided7 gSalt
- 300 gLean ground beef (90% lean)
- 1 medium110 gOnion
- 1 medium120 gTomato
- 1/2 medium75 gRed bell pepper
- 2 cloves6 gGarlic
- 2 tbsp32 gTomato paste
- 1 1/2 cups loosely packed, divided45 gFresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tspPaprika
- 1 tspGround cumin
- 1/2 tspRed pepper flakes (Aleppo or pul biber)
- 1/4 tspBlack pepper
- 1 large, cut into wedges100 gLemon
- 1/2 small, thinly sliced50 gRed onion (optional)
- 1 tspGround sumac (optional)
Steps
- 1
In a large bowl, mix the whole wheat flour, 150 g of the all-purpose flour, the yeast and 3/4 tsp of the salt.
- 2
Add the warm water and olive oil and stir into a shaggy dough.
- 3
Knead on a lightly floured surface for 8 minutes until smooth and slightly tacky.
- 4
Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, until roughly doubled.
- 5
Meanwhile, roughly chop the onion, tomato, red pepper and garlic, and set aside 30 g of the parsley for serving.
- 6
Pulse the chopped vegetables, garlic and remaining 15 g parsley in a food processor to a fine, moist paste.
- 7
Tip the paste into a sieve and press lightly to drain off excess juice so the bread stays crisp.
- 8
In a bowl, combine the vegetable paste with the ground beef, tomato paste, paprika, cumin, red pepper flakes, black pepper and the remaining 1/2 tsp salt; mix well with your hands.
- 9
Heat the oven to its highest setting, about 250 °C / 480 °F, with two baking trays inside.
- 10
Divide the dough into 8 balls.
- 11
Using the remaining flour for dusting, roll each ball into a very thin oval about 25 cm (10 in) long.
- 12
Spread about 1/8 of the meat mixture over each base in a thin, even layer right to the edges.
- 13
Carefully slide 2 flatbreads onto each hot tray, using baking paper if needed.
- 14
Bake for 6-7 minutes until the edges are crisp and the meat is browned with no pink remaining (ground beef should reach 71 °C / 160 °F).
- 15
Repeat with the remaining flatbreads, stacking the baked ones under a clean towel to keep them soft enough to roll.
- 16
Sprinkle each lahmacun with the reserved parsley, red onion and sumac if using.
- 17
Squeeze over lemon, roll up and eat warm.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use lean ground lamb instead of beef for a more traditional flavour.
- Swap the beef for finely chopped mushrooms mixed with cooked green lentils to make it vegan, as the dough and other toppings contain no animal products.
- Use all-purpose flour in place of the whole wheat flour if that is what you have, for a slightly softer, paler base.
- Replace the Aleppo pepper with a pinch of regular chilli flakes plus extra paprika if pul biber is hard to find.
Storage
Refrigerate leftover baked lahmacun in an airtight container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating in a hot oven or dry pan until steaming hot; add the fresh parsley, onion and lemon only when serving. They are best eaten fresh, as the bread loses its crispness on storing.
Make ahead
Make the meat topping up to 1 day ahead and keep it covered in the fridge, and the dough can rise slowly in the fridge overnight in a covered bowl; bring it to room temperature before rolling.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
Track this in BerryFit
Log Lahmacun in one tap and see how it fits your remaining calories for today.
Or ask Coach Berry to change it
Allergens and nutrition
Contains: Gluten
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (328 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 473 kcal | 144 kcal |
| Protein | 26.4 g | 8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 68.5 g | 20.9 g |
| of which sugars | 4.8 g | 1.5 g |
| Fiber | 8.3 g | 2.5 g |
| Fat | 11.7 g | 3.6 g |
| of which saturated | 3.6 g | 1.1 g |
| Sodium | 749 mg | 228 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
