Lahmajoun (or Lahmacun)
I got a new Milk Street magazine this week. This is the second Milk Street magazine I’ve gotten. Lara and I decided that for the coming year, whenever we get one of the magazines we have to make at least 2 or 3 recipes. I starred several recipes for the future, but not surprisingly this recipe for Lahmajoun is the first thing we ended up making! It’s basically a twist on a pizza. From my quick online search, lahmajoun (also spelled lahmacun) is a Turkish or Armenian flatbread typically topped with a minced meat mixture. Another take on pizza? Yes please!
You start with making a yogurt flatbread dough in a food processor. I did change up this recipe a little in order to use up some leftover sourdough starter. (if interested, I used 185 grams of flour, 112 grams of leftover sourdough starter, 3/4 teaspoons instant yeast, 1¾ teaspoons kosher salt, 21 grams honey, and NO additional water since it’s in the sourdough starter).
Let the dough do it’s thing while you make the topping which is a minced meat mixture with roasted red peppers, ground lamb, a little tomato paste and then some smoked paprika and cumin. Easy to blitz up in the food processor. Once everything is ready to go you shape the dough and top with the raw meat mixture. Into a 500 degree oven for 10-12 minutes and it’s done.
The recipe calls for you to drizzle with a little thinned out Greek yogurt which I thought needed a little jazzing up so I added a nice squeeze of fresh lemon juice and lemon zest as well as a hefty dose of sumac, a little salt and a drizzle of olive oil. I highly recommend these additions! I didn’t have any arugula for topping but think that would be a great way to finish it off.
I only made half of the recipe (one of two flatbreads) the first night. The second night I changed it up a bit and topping it with a mix of za-atar and olive oil with a little salt. I did not hold back on the spices and it was great! Then added a bit of goat cheese at the end. A very simple and delicious option!
I think any variation on this recipe would be fun to make for a get-together or party as an appetizer or a little snack. It would be just as good hot, warm, or room temperature. If you want to serve it fresh from the oven it would be easy to have everything ready to go and finish putting it together in just a few minutes whenever you’re ready.
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Lahmajoun (or Lahmacun)
From 177 Milk Street
Ingredients
For the flatbreads:
241 grams (1¾ cups) bread flour, plus more for dusting
1½ teaspoons instant yeast
1¾ teaspoons kosher salt
¾ cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt (my homemade Greek yogurt weighed in at 180 grams)
1 tablespoon (21 grams) honey
¼ cup (57 grams) water
For the topping:
1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
¼ cup chopped drained roasted red peppers
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
8 ounces ground beef or ground lamb
¼ cup plain whole-milk Greek yogurt
Semolina flour, for dusting the pizza peel
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 cups (1 ounce) lightly packed baby arugula
Directions
To make the dough, in a food processor, combine the flour, yeast and salt; process until combined, about 5 seconds. Add the yogurt, honey and ¼ cup water. Process until the mixture forms a ball, about 30 seconds; the dough should be tacky to the touch and should stick slightly to the sides of the bowl. If it feels too dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and process until incorporated. Continue to process until the dough is shiny and elastic, about 1 minute.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter. Flour your hands and knead a few times to form a smooth ball. Divide the dough in half and form each half into a taut ball by rolling it against the counter in a circular motion under a cupped hand. Space the balls about 6 inches apart on a lightly floured counter, then cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in volume, 1 to 1½ hours.
Meanwhile, to make the topping, in a food processor, pulse the onion until finely chopped, about 5 pulses. Add the roasted peppers, tomato paste, paprika, cumin, pepper flakes and 1 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Process until smooth, about 10 seconds, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the beef and pulse just until incorporated, 3 or 4 pulses. Transfer to a medium bowl. In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt and 1 tablespoon water, adding more water as needed to thin to drizzling consistency. Cover both bowls and refrigerate until needed.
About 1 hour before shaping the dough, heat the oven to 500°F with a baking steel or stone on the upper-middle rack. Working one at a time, gently stretch each dough ball on a lightly floured counter to an oval approximately 6 inches wide and 12 inches long.
Dust a baking peel, inverted baking sheet or rimless cookie sheet with semolina. Transfer one shaped dough to the peel and, if needed, reshape into an oval. Brush the entire surface with 1 tablespoon of oil. Using a spatula, spread half the meat mixture on the dough, leaving a ½-inch border around the edge. Slide the dough onto the the baking steel and bake until well browned, 9 to 12 minutes.
Using the peel, transfer the flatbread to a wire rack. Repeat with the remaining dough, oil and meat mixture. After the second flatbread has cooled on the rack for a couple minutes, top both with the arugula. Drizzle with yogurt, then serve.