Lahmucan – Turkish Flatbread

Cooking is like reading a book. If you have the wanderlust bug, but are confined by the Lockdown, the only ways out is to binge-watch a bunch of travel shows, read a book ( preferably with far-off idyllic settings) or get your hands dirty in the kitchen. The other day I was craving one of my favorites, Lahmucan ( pronounced La-mah-choon) and it turns out it’s not too difficult to make. In the process, I also perfected my Naan recipe ( which I secretly confess, I’m addicted to because it’s so fast and simple!) If you are a lover of Qeema naan or Qeema paratha, you will love this version too! Essentially it is a meat pizza on a thin crust without any cheese.

Ingredients:

2 lbs mince ( I mixed 1 lb each of chicken and beef lean mince)
Handful of baby carrots (original recipe calls for red bell peppers. I improvised with carrots)
1 small onion
Parsley or cilantro
1 green chilli ( deseeded if you don’t want it too spicy)
1 tsp red chilli powder ( original calls for a special Turkish berry – Aleppo peppers)
½ tsp red chille flakes ( optional for extra heat)
2 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 heaped teaspoon cumin powder
½ tsp garam masala powder
1 ½ tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp sumac and 2 tsp pomegranate molasses
1 tomato
2 heaped tsps. Tomato paste

Naan/Pita dough:
2 cups all purpose flour
4 heaped teaspoons yogurt
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp vegetable oil
Less than ¼ cup warm water

Directions:

1. Put the carrots, onions, tomatos, green chillies and parsley in the food processor and grind.
2. Add in the beef and chicken mince with the tomato paste and remaining spices. Grind. It should resemble a pate consistency.
3. Test fry a teaspoon of the mince mixture in a pan with some oil to check for spices and adjust salt and spiciness as per your taste.
4. Set mince mix aside while you prepare dough.
5. For the dough, mix salt and sugar to the flour.
6. Make a well in the center of the dough and add in the yogurt.
7. Sprinkle the baking soda on the yogurt and gently mix it in with only the yogurt. Leave for a minute while it starts reacting to the acid.
8. Drizzle oil on the mix and start mixing the whole dough. Slowly add in warm water as needed. Do not dump all the water in at once because even though the dough will feel sticky at first, it will come together after 10 mins of kneading.
9. Kneading the dough will make it softer, so do the roll over and push back with palm of heel method. Knead for at least 10 mins.
10. Slightly oil the container. Form the dough into a ball. Cover the bowl with a towel and set aside for at least 30 mins – 1 hr.
11. After the resting, make 8 small dough balls . Flatten into a disc and then roll out with a rolling pin. I find not dusting with flour actually made it roll easier.
12. Naan: If you were making plain Naans, you can just put this rolled out dough on a pan on med-high heat and wait for bubbles to form. For garlic naan, you can press some pieces of chopped garlic and cilantro on top of the dough as well. Then you can just use tongs and flip the Naan over on direct flame and let some spots brown up. This whole process takes about 3 mins to cook so don’t overcook it. Once off the heat, brush some butter on it and set aside.
13. Back to making Lahmucans: At step 11, once the dough is rolled out, take 2-3 teaspoons of the mince mixture and spread it in a thin layer over the dough. Then place the dough on the pan. Cover with a lid and let it cook on med heat for about 3 mins. Meanwhile, set your broiler on high 500F.
14. Use tongs and transfer the Lahmucan to the closest rack right under the broiler. Broil for about 2 minutes. The meat mix has already steamed on the pan and now will just brown slightly under the broiler.
15. Transfer to a plate and enjoy your Lahmucan with some fresh tomato, lettuce or just plain, rolled up like a burrito!

My boys literally gobbled these up! There was enough of the mince mix left over so I did another round of dough and 16 Lahmucans later, we were all a satisfied bunch!
If you enjoy the meat and bread combo, check out my video for Qeema parathas as well. It’s delightful to see the similarities across different cuisines while still appreciating the subtle differences!

PIN IT FOR LATER!