Lahmacun (Turkish Pizza)

Lahmacun is a crispy cheeseless pizza that’s very popular in Turkey. When I was in Istanbul I met a man who had a small street stall just outside the Spice Market. He had a wood-fired oven where he slid thin oval flatbreads covered in ground lamb and spices. As he handed out the hot lahmacun on paper plates, I mimicked the locals who folded them in half before taking a bite. At home I make lahmacun in my oven on a pizza stone. You can make the topping a day or two before assembling, saving time (and mess) the day you want to bake. 

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Ingredients

Serves 6-8

Lahmacun crust:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water

• 1 tablespoon instant yeast

• 2 tablespoons corn oil

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 3- 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Toppings:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 red bell pepper, diced

• 1/2 green bell pepper, diced

• 1 red onion, diced

• 1 pound ground beef or lamb

• 1 cup chopped tomatoes

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 tablespoon salt

• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

• 1/2 cup fresh mint, chopped

Process

Crust:

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except flour. Add 3 cups of flour and stir until a dough forms. You may need to add more flour to make it manageable. It should be sticky, though. Dust a board or countertop surface with flour. Knead the dough, adding as much flour as necessary to make a soft dough. Knead for five minutes. Place into a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise for 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.  

Preheat oven to 475 degrees and place a pizza stone in oven to preheat.  Divide dough into two pieces and roll each on a floured board until very thin.  They can be round or the shape of a “boat”. Place each dough on a pizza peel or the flat underside of a cookie sheet.  

Either should be dusted with flour or cornmeal to keep the dough from sticking. Add toppings and slide the pizzas onto the hot pizza stones in the oven. Bake 10-12 minutes until crust is golden. Serve warm.

Toppings:

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add peppers and onions and cook until softened. Add ground beef (or lamb) and cook until browned. Stir in tomatoes and tomato paste. Add paprika, cumin, black pepper, salt, parsley, and mint. Remove from heat and cool for ten minutes or more.  Spread on prepared pizza dough.