Lahmacun

Lahmacun, also known as Armenian or Turkish pizza, is a popular fast food in Turkish, Armenian and also Syrian and Libyan cuisines. It is a thin flatbread with a mince meat topping (usually lamb). It is supposed to be sprinkled with lemon juice before serving. This version is additionally served with yoghurt based lemon and parsley sauce.

You'll need:

 For the dough: (serves 2)

     350g flour

     250ml warm water

     2 spoons of olive oil

     2 spoons of instant yeast

     1 teaspoon of sugar

     1 teaspoon of salt

For the topping:

    250g lamb mince

    1/2 of a pepper

    1 medium onion

    fresh parsley

    4 garlic cloves

    pepper cayenne

    salt & pepper

For the sauce:

    4 spoons of natural yoghurt

    1 spoon of mayonaisse

    1 spoon lemon juice

    fresh parsley

1. Start off with preparing the dough: in a glass mix the yeast with a little bit of warm water and sugar and leave aside in a warm place for 10-15 minutes. Sieve the flour, add salt, warm water and yeast mixture once it's ready. Knead the dough for a few minutes adding olive oil in the process. Cover with a cloth and put aside for 1,5 - 2 hours, allowing the dough to rise.

2. Prepare the topping: very finely chop the garlic cloves, parsley, pepper and onions and mix with the mince. Season with salt & pepper, adding some pepper cayenne for an extra spice.

3. Once the dough has risen, separate it into two smaller portions and roll out very thinly. 

4. Add the meat and vegetable mixture on top and transfer into the oven preheated to 240 degrees. The best results will be achieved if using an oven stone. Baking time might vary a little depending on whether an oven stone or a tray is used, but should take around 10 minutes. It will be ready once the dough starts turning golden brown.

5. In the meantime prepare the sauce by chopping the parsley and then mixing all of the ingredients.

6. Remove the lahmacun from the oven, sprinkle with lemon juice, et voila!

Bon appétit!