Lahmacun (Turkish Beef Flatbread)
Crispy flatbread topped with spiced ground beef and fresh herbs, finished with a squeeze of lemon. A Middle Eastern street-food favorite that tastes restaurant-quality but comes together in under 45 minutes.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Servings
- 4
- Calories
- 520
- Protein
- 28g
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup warm water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ medium onion, finely minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1.5 teaspoons paprika, cumin, and red pepper flakes (mixed)
- ¼ cup fresh parsley and mint, chopped
- 1 whole lemon
Instructions
- 1
Combine 2 cups flour and 0.5 teaspoon salt in a large bowl, stirring together with a fork until evenly distributed.
- 2
Pour 0.75 cup warm water into the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms with no dry flour visible.
- 3
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, pushing it away from you with the heel of your hand, folding it back, and rotating it a quarter turn after each fold, until it becomes smooth and slightly elastic.
- 4
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each into a ball with your palms, pressing and turning it against the work surface.
- 5
Place 1 pound ground beef in a medium bowl and add 0.5 medium onion that you have minced into pieces smaller than a grain of rice.
- 6
Stir in 2 tablespoons tomato paste and 1.5 teaspoons of the paprika-cumin-pepper mixture until no red streaks remain and the beef is evenly coated.
- 7
Set the oven to 475°F and wait until the indicator light or beep tells you it has finished preheating, about 12 minutes.
- 8
Flatten each dough ball into a 6-inch round by hand directly on a parchment-lined baking sheet, working gently to avoid tears.
- 9
Spread 2 tablespoons of the beef mixture evenly over each dough round, leaving a 0.25-inch border of bare dough around the edges.
- 10
Bake on the middle oven rack until the edges are golden brown and the beef is no longer pink when you break up a bite with your finger, about 12 minutes.
- 11
Remove the lahmacun from the oven and scatter 1 tablespoon of the chopped fresh parsley and mint across the top of each flatbread.
- 12
Cut the lemon into 4 wedges and place one on the side of each plate; serve the lahmacun warm and squeeze lemon juice over it just before eating.
Tools you’ll need
- large mixing bowl
- wooden spoon
- cutting board
- chef's knife
- medium mixing bowl
- parchment paper
- baking sheet
- oven
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