Lahmacun – Turkish pizza/flatbread – Caroline’s Cooking
Lahmacun or Turkish pizza (flatbread) is an easy and tasty dish – a thin base topped with a deliciously seasoned meaty topping. Perfect finger food.
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I’m not quite sure when I first had lahmacun, but I definitely remember one of the more memorable times I had it was on a work visit to Cyprus a few years ago. Some colleagues from the office in Nicosia very kindly took me out for some food and drinks after work one evening, after a long day.
I think the host had already eaten and assumed myself and our other colleague had too since it was pretty late, and so had chosen a place that didn’t really serve meals but they did have homemade lahmacun.
As soon as I took a bite I loved it.
What is the origin of lahmacun?
Lahmacun is often called Turkish flatbread or Turkish pizza, though it’s a dish you’ll find across the Levant region of the Eastern Mediterranean. You’ll see slight variations in the name such as lahmajoon or for example in Armernia, it’s lahmajo.
While the exact origins are unknown, it’s likely it existed during the Ottoman empire as a street food. The name comes from Arabic “lahma bi’ajeen” which means “meat and dough”. Which are really the core parts of this dish.
It’s a very simple, thin dough base with a seasoned meat, tomato and onion topping. It’s a fantastic finger food whether you enjoy it as you watch football or any other excuse to eat it.
The topping is really pretty simple but a great mix of flavors. You can spice it up or down as you prefer with a few more chili flakes to taste.
For a cheese-loving family like ours the idea of a flatbread/pizza without any cheese is a little tough at first. But believe me, the taste soon wins you over.
Steps to make lahmacun
It’s really easy to make:
- Mix the dough, knead and leave to rise.
- Form the dough into small balls then roll out really thin.
- Blend up the topping ingredients in the food processor.
- Spread the mixture on your bases.
- Bake until golden around the edges and the meat is cooked.
Here I’ve made the base as it’s definitely worth doing if you can, but you’d be forgiven for cheating with ready-made if you like. Lavash bread as the base is a common variation, or tortillas when lavash is less easy to find.
It’s pretty common to put some salad inside the lahmacun, roll it up and eat it, as we did, and you can always add some grilled halloumi in there if you want to get that bit of a cheese fix.
Variations on lahmacun
The meat mixture on top is a mix of onion, tomato and either lamb or beef (I believe more traditionally lamb which is my preference but you can use beef instead).
You typically season this with bell pepper, parsley and sometimes a few spices such as some cumin and Aleppo pepper or chili flakes. Aleppo pepper has a bit of spice, but is on the milder end and has more depth of flavor that pure heat. You can miss out or cut back on the chili and let people add at the end as well, if you like.
Although not as traditional, I seem to remember when I had it that time in Cyprus there were pine nuts on top as well. These are often combined with lamb in dishes in the region and being another favorite, I sometimes add some here as well.
This makes a great appetizer, since it’s very much finger food, but you can also have a couple each as a main. Especially with a few sides like some salad or mezze dishes, it makes a great meal. We like it with a simple salad of tomato, cucumber and parsley dressed with lemon juice and olive oil.
You can also add some slices of tomato, parsley leaves and optionally some slices of red onion inside the lahmacun to get a nice bite of freshness with the richer lamb filling as you eat.
However you decide to eat it, lahmacun is a great dish to enjoy for many an occasion. So mix up some topping, make or buy your base and pop them in the oven for a delicious meal.
Looking for dishes to serve with this? Try these!
If you’re looking for other cultural takes on pizza, try my Catalan coca (Spanish pizza with peppers and onion) or flammekueche (pizza/flatbread from France/Germany with bacon, onion and creme fraiche).
Lahmacun – Turkish pizza/flatbread
The topping for this flatbread/pizza might be a bit unusual but it’s deliciously packed with flavor.
Servings: 8 pieces
Calories: 259kcal
Ingredients
For dough base
- 2 cups all purpose flour plain flour, or bread flour
- 1 teaspoon fast acting instant yeast
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- ⅔ cup lukewarm water or a little more/less as needed
For the topping
- 2 shallots or ½ red onion
- 2 cloves garlic or one if large
- 1 tomato large or 2 small
- ½ red pepper
- ½ lb ground lamb lamb mince, can use beef
- 1 cup parsley leaves lightly packed
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon Aleppo pepper if available, or use some red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon pine nuts optional
Instructions
To prepare dough
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To make the base, mix together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl.
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Drizzle in the oil and add most of the water and mix to bring the dough together. It’s often easiest to mix by hand, at least towards the end. Add more water, as needed, so everything comes together but is not too sticky.
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Tip the mixture out onto a floured surface and knead for around 5 minutes. It should stop feeling sticky and be smooth and more elastic. Clean out your mixing bowl, gently brush with a little oil then put the dough back in, and put it in a warm place, covered with a cloth or cling wrap.film, for around 1 hour to 90 minutes, depending how warm, to rise and roughly double.
To mix topping
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Roughly chop the shallots/onion, garlic, tomato and pepper. Remove parsley leaves from stems (thin stems are fine) and measure out. Place the onion, pepper, garlic and parsley in food processor and blend together to break everything up. If needed, scrape down and blend again. You want the mixture to be relatively small pieces.
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Add the lamb, tomato, spices (allspice, cumin, paprika, Apello pepper and salt) as well as the tomato paste and oil. Blend until all well combined. Refrigerate if not ready to make up the lahmacun yet.
To make and cook lahmacun
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Pre-heat the oven to 425F/220C. If you have a pizza stone, pre-heat it or you can warm baking sheets/trays to then place parchment on top of them.
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Knock back the dough and divide into eight balls. Let sit for around five minutes to rest. Cover the ones you are not using until ready to use them. Roll out a ball of dough into a thin circle or oval, around 6 – 8 inches (15 – 20 cm) in diameter (really just as thin as you can make them).
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Transfer to a piece of parchment to place on the pizza stone/baking sheet and spread a spoonful of the topping mixture over the top, carefully spreading it into a thin layer (it’s often easiest to finish by hand and press it out).
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Optionally, sprinkle over a few pine nuts on the top of each (this is less traditional, but I had it this way once in Cyprus and it pairs well). Repeat with the other pieces of dough and topping mixture.
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Bake in the oven for around 12-15min until browning around the edges and the topping is cooked. You may want to start them at the bottom of the oven, then move up and turn part way through. It’s often easiest to cook one or two at a time, then prepare others as they are baking and switch over.
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Serve eg rolled with slices of tomato, a squeeze of lemon, or add some slices of red onion or chopped salad as you prefer.
Notes
Note photos and video show making a half portion but same process applies.
Nutrition
Calories: 259kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 336mg | Potassium: 274mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1192IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 3mg
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This post was first shared in January 2016 and has been updated, primarily with new photos and added video.
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