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Meat, Maghreb and Middle East

Lahmacun with sumac salad

Lahmacun is a very thin Turkish flatbread topped with spiced ground beef, served rolled up with a sumac, parsley and lemon salad. This recipe serves 4, takes 70 minutes, is rated medium difficulty, and costs €2.40 per serving. The key to success is spreading the dough thin right to the edges and baking it hot so it crisps without turning hard.

Tonight we're making lahmacun, thin Turkish flatbreads topped with spiced meat, rolled up with parsley and lemon.

Lahmacun with sumac salad
Total time
1 h 10
Difficulty
Medium
Cost per person
€2.40
Calories per person
640 kcalcalculated by Kiloach, your weight coach
Season
Summer, Fall, Spring
The kids
They generally like it

Lahmacun is an almost see through dough that crisps at the edges while staying soft in the center, topped with ground beef seasoned with paprika and tomato paste. You roll it up hot around a bright salad of sumac, parsley and lemon, which cuts through the richness of the meat and wakes up every bite.

This is a dish for an evening when you have a bit of time, since the dough needs to rise and each flatbread gets shaped by hand. Kids usually enjoy rolling up their own flatbread, which turns dinner into a bit of a game. It also works well for a casual dinner with friends, served as several small flatbreads to share.

The ingredients

4 people

Pantry

  • Flouroften in the pantry 400 g
  • Dry yeastoften in the pantry 1 packet
  • Olive oiloften in the pantry 3 tbsp
  • Tomato pasteoften in the pantry 2 tbsp
  • Paprikaoften in the pantry 1 tsp
  • Sumac 1 tbsp
  • Saltoften in the pantry 1 pinch
  • Pepperoften in the pantry 1 pinch

Butcher

  • Ground beef 400 g

Fruits and vegetables

  • Tomatoes 2
  • Red bell pepper 1
  • Onion 1
  • Parsley 2 bunch
  • Garlic 2 cloves
  • Red onion 1
  • Lemon 2

Allergens Gluten

The step by step recipe

  1. Mix the flour, yeast, salt, olive oil and 250 ml of warm water, knead for 8 minutes, then let rise under a towel. 30 min

    A soft, slightly sticky dough will give you thin flatbreads.

  2. Roughly blend the tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, garlic and half the parsley, then mix with the ground beef, tomato paste, paprika, salt and pepper.

    Drain the mixture in a colander so the topping doesn't make the dough soggy.

  3. Roll the dough into very thin flatbreads and spread the topping all the way to the edges.

    Spread the topping in such a thin layer that you can see the dough through it.

  4. Bake at 250°C on a preheated baking sheet. 10 min

    Keep an eye on them, the edges should stay flexible, not hard like chips.

  5. Thinly slice the red onion with the remaining parsley, the sumac and the juice of one lemon, then serve the lahmacun with the salad.

    Roll the flatbread around the salad, pressing a bit of lemon juice over it.

Our tips to get it right

  • Divide the dough into equal portions before rolling it out, that way your flatbreads bake evenly and come out the same size.
  • Make the topping and the salad while the dough rises, so you can shape and top the flatbreads right before baking while they're still thin.
  • If your baking sheet isn't hot enough, preheat it empty for longer, it's the sheet's heat that crisps the dough, not just the oven.

The variations

  • Swap the ground beef for ground lamb for a stronger flavor, closer to some traditional Turkish versions.
  • For a vegetarian version, replace the meat with cooked, mashed red lentils mixed with the same spices and vegetables.
  • For a faster version with kids in a hurry, spread the topping on ready made pita bread and finish under the broiler for a few minutes.

What to serve it with

  • Plain yogurt to cool the spices
  • Extra lemon wedges on the side
  • Strong black tea

Storage

Keep the raw dough and the topping separately in the fridge for up to 2 days in sealed containers. Reheat baked flatbreads for 5 minutes in a hot oven to bring back the crispness, but they lose texture if you freeze them.

Questions about this dish

Can you make the lahmacun dough ahead of time?

Yes, you can make the dough the day before and let it rise in the fridge overnight. Take it out an hour before shaping so it comes back to room temperature.

Can you replace the sumac in the salad?

If you don't have sumac, add a bit more lemon juice to get that same tangy note. The flavor will be slightly less distinctive, but the salad still stays fresh.

How do you keep the dough from getting soggy under the topping?

Drain the meat and vegetable mixture well in a colander before spreading it on the dough. That's the trick to keeping the flatbread thin and crisp once baked.

Can you bake lahmacun without a special pizza stone?

A regular oven baking sheet works fine as long as it's preheated until very hot before you add the dough. It's that intense heat that makes the edges crisp.

How long does it take to make lahmacun with a sumac salad?

Count 1 h 10 in total, prep and cooking included. The recipe is rated “medium”.

How many calories are in lahmacun with a sumac salad?

About 640 kcal per serving, for a recipe meant for 4 people. Calories are calculated by Kiloach, your weight coach, the app that partners with Mon Chou.

How much does lahmacun with a sumac salad cost?

About €2.40 per serving, or €9.60 for 4 people, based on average supermarket prices.

What allergens does this recipe contain?

This recipe contains gluten. Always check the labels of the products you buy.

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