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Photograph of Quick and Easy Lahmacun – Flatbread cooked with minced meat and spices.

Quick and Easy Lahmacun – Flatbread cooked with minced meat and spices.

This incredibly tasty recipe is inspired by a Middle Eastern flatbread called Lahmacun. Thin bread bases are cooked with minced meat, which is mixed with a wonderful mix of spices, garlic, red pepper and parsley. Lamb would be the traditional meat to use, but it can be a very fatty meat, and I prefer to use a lean minced beef, ideally with only 5% fat. It is up to you though.

Makes 4 - 6

Course Any
Cuisine Middle Eastern
Keyword flatbreads, spicy meat topping
Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

Meat mixture:

  • 30g (3 – 4) spring onions, trimmed
  • 8g/2 plump cloves of garlic, peeled
  • 100g/1 red pepper, stem and seeds removed and roughly chopped
  • 10g fresh parsley, stalks and leaves. Or use coriander, or a mix of coriander and parsley.
  • 500g minced beef, preferably 5% fat. Alternatively, used minced lamb, or even chicken.
  • 1 tablespoon tomato puree
  • 1½ teaspoons cumin powder
  • 1 teaspoon coriander powder
  • 1 teaspoon Aleppo chilli powder – if you do not have any, replace it with ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes and ½ teaspoon paprika powder
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon fine salt

You will also need:

  • flatbread/wraps, home-made or shop bought. Either 4 x 26cms/10in in diameter or 6 x 18cms/7ins. You can use brown or white wraps.
  • pine nuts
  • olive oil

Suggested toppings:

  • toasted pine nuts
  • chopped parsley and/or dill or use chopped coriander
  • drizzle of plain, natural yoghurt or tzatziki – this needs to be a consistency you can drizzle. Add some milk, if necessary.
  • chopped salad vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumber, red onion
  • harissa, to taste – adds a delicious spicy kick
  • crumbled feta or goat’s cheese
  • lemon wedges
  • pomegranate seeds
  • drizzle of olive oil

Instructions

  1. Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Make the pizza topping: blitz the prepared spring onions, garlic, pepper and parsley in a food processor until finely chopped. Alternatively, finely chop by hand.

  3. Tip into a mixing bowl with the remaining topping ingredients and use your hands to mix thoroughly. For 18cms/7in flatbreads, divide the meat into 6 equal portions. For 26cms/10in flatbreads, divide into 4 equal portions.

  4. Top the bread: first make sure that the flatbreads can lie flat in your frying pan. If not, trim them to fit. Cover the top of each flat bread with a portion of the topping. Use your hands or a palette knife to spread it evenly and right to the edges of the wrap. The meat will shrink a little when cooking, so it is important to spread it out as much as possible.

  5. Cook pine nuts: heat your frying pan over a moderately high heat and add the pine nuts. Cook, for 30 – 60 seconds or until lightly browned. Stir regularly during this time. Tip out of the pan and set on one side.

  6. Add roughly 2 teaspoons olive oil to the pan and when it is hot, place the wrap in, meat side down, and cook for 90 seconds – 2 minutes. Use a spatula or kitchen slice to press down on it to help lightly caramelise the topping. Turn over after 90 seconds/2 minutes. The meat should stick to the bread, but if it looks like it is coming off, place a pate over the top of the pan and flip over. Slip the wrap back in the pan, bread side down and cook for a further 60  – 90 seconds.

  7. Serve immediately on warmed plates with your choice of toppings. I like to:

    - drizzle it with natural yoghurt

    - scatter over chopped tomatoes and fresh herb

    - stop with the pine nuts and drizzle over a little olive oil.

Recipe Notes

 

Equipment:

  • kitchen scales and measuring spoons
  • chopping board and knife
  • food processor
  • mixing bowl
  • frying pan

 

More details on ingredients and instructions:

Please see the ingredient list and the instructions in the post above, for further information.