For the dough: Pour the water and milk into a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and gently stir in the sugar, followed by the yeast. Let the yeast activate for 5 minutes or so – you will see the bubbles appear.
Once the yeast has activated, add the flour, salt, and the olive oil to the liquid yeast mixture and either knead in a stand mixer for 10 mins, or bring together with a large spoon and your hands, then flip onto a clean surface to knead by hand for around 10 minutes. Slap the dough on the surface a few times to enable to stretch a little more in order to really activate the gluten, or until the dough is soft, pliable and smooth.
Rub a little extra olive over the dough, tuck the sides under to form a smooth ball, place it back into the bowl, and cover the bowl with clingfilm and a tea towel and leave somewhere warm and cosy for an hour or so until the dough doubles in size (anything between 25-35C is a good cosy temperature – sometimes I preheat the oven to it’s lowest setting, turn off, then proof the dough in there with the door slightly ajar).
While the dough is proofing, make the topping mixture.
Place the tomatoes in a bowl of hot water, leave for a couple of minutes, then peel off the skins and roughly chop. Blitz tthe tomatoes, onions, peppers and parsley in a food processor until very finely chopped, pour into a large bowl and mix together well with all the remaining topping ingredients. Refrigerate until the dough has proofed.
Heat your outdoor / pizza oven to 400-450C.
Once the dough has risen and doubled in size, take it out of the bowl and gently punch it down a little then divide it into 12 equal sized pieces, roughly 70g each and roll into smooth balls on the surface. Cover them with a tea towel so that they don’t dry out and let them proof again for another 20 mins.
Flour the surface liberally and start rolling out one of the balls into a thin, circular disk, turning at a 45 degree angle each time to you roll, until it’s roughly the size of a dinner plate (approximately 25cm diameter). Gently spread roughly 3 dessert spoons of the topping across the whole of the base (you can either use your clean fingertips for this, or the back of a spoon but be gentle so not to tear the base). Carefully lift the uncooked Lahmacun onto your pizza peel and quickly place it into the oven. Cook for around 3-4 minutes, or until the topping is sizzling and the base of the dough is crispy, turning every 30 seconds or so, to ensure an even cook. Repeat until all the lahmacun are cook and serve loaded with the salad, pickles, and a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
TO OVEN BAKE:
Preheat your oven to the hottest setting and place an overturned baking tray in the bottom of the oven. This will provide the uncooked Lahmacun with a really hot base to crisp up on. Make sure the oven and the overturned tray are piping hot before you cook any of the Lahmacun in there.
Once you have rolled out the dough, place the thin base on a large piece of baking paper then gently spread 3 desert spoons of the topping across the whole of the base (you can either use your clean fingertips for this, or the back of a spoon but be gently so not to tear the base). Carefully lift the baking paper with the uncooked Lahmacun up and onto the overturned tray in the oven. Cook for a minute, then open the oven door and carefully and quickly slide the baking paper out from under the Lahmacun, close the oven door and cook for another 2-3 minutes or until the topping is sizzling and the edges are crispy. Repeat until all the lahmacun have been cooked.
For the Onion Sumac Salad:
In a small bowl, mix together the onion, sumac, olive oil and salt and rub together between your fingers to soften the onions. Add the parsley, rub together a little more then cover and leave to one side / refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the Pickled red cabbage:
Mix together the vinegar and sugar in a bowl and once dissolved, add the water. Add the cabbage to a large jar or Tupperware box, pour over the pickling liquid, then seal and pop in the fridge for at least a couple of hours before serving.
The dish is often served with a colourful salad plate (like the ones from my blog below – I’ll be making the larger sized ones on the left), and a glass of “ayran” (a salty yoghurt drink, a bit of a palate cleanser) so if the team would think that would look great on screen / for the pac shot then I’ll let you know the ingredients for that too or I can just bring them with me.
For the dough: Pour the water and milk into a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and gently stir in the sugar, followed by the yeast. Let the yeast activate for 5 minutes or so – you will see the bubbles appear.
Once the yeast has activated, add the flour, salt, and the olive oil to the liquid yeast mixture and either knead in a stand mixer for 10 mins, or bring together with a large spoon and your hands, then flip onto a clean surface to knead by hand for around 10 minutes. Slap the dough on the surface a few times to enable to stretch a little more in order to really activate the gluten, or until the dough is soft, pliable and smooth.
Rub a little extra olive over the dough, tuck the sides under to form a smooth ball, place it back into the bowl, and cover the bowl with clingfilm and a tea towel and leave somewhere warm and cosy for an hour or so until the dough doubles in size (anything between 25-35C is a good cosy temperature – sometimes I preheat the oven to it’s lowest setting, turn off, then proof the dough in there with the door slightly ajar).
While the dough is proofing, make the topping mixture.
Place the tomatoes in a bowl of hot water, leave for a couple of minutes, then peel off the skins and roughly chop. Blitz tthe tomatoes, onions, peppers and parsley in a food processor until very finely chopped, pour into a large bowl and mix together well with all the remaining topping ingredients. Refrigerate until the dough has proofed.
Heat your outdoor / pizza oven to 400-450C.
Once the dough has risen and doubled in size, take it out of the bowl and gently punch it down a little then divide it into 12 equal sized pieces, roughly 70g each and roll into smooth balls on the surface. Cover them with a tea towel so that they don’t dry out and let them proof again for another 20 mins.
Flour the surface liberally and start rolling out one of the balls into a thin, circular disk, turning at a 45 degree angle each time to you roll, until it’s roughly the size of a dinner plate (approximately 25cm diameter). Gently spread roughly 3 dessert spoons of the topping across the whole of the base (you can either use your clean fingertips for this, or the back of a spoon but be gentle so not to tear the base). Carefully lift the uncooked Lahmacun onto your pizza peel and quickly place it into the oven. Cook for around 3-4 minutes, or until the topping is sizzling and the base of the dough is crispy, turning every 30 seconds or so, to ensure an even cook. Repeat until all the lahmacun are cook and serve loaded with the salad, pickles, and a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
TO OVEN BAKE:
Preheat your oven to the hottest setting and place an overturned baking tray in the bottom of the oven. This will provide the uncooked Lahmacun with a really hot base to crisp up on. Make sure the oven and the overturned tray are piping hot before you cook any of the Lahmacun in there.
Once you have rolled out the dough, place the thin base on a large piece of baking paper then gently spread 3 desert spoons of the topping across the whole of the base (you can either use your clean fingertips for this, or the back of a spoon but be gently so not to tear the base). Carefully lift the baking paper with the uncooked Lahmacun up and onto the overturned tray in the oven. Cook for a minute, then open the oven door and carefully and quickly slide the baking paper out from under the Lahmacun, close the oven door and cook for another 2-3 minutes or until the topping is sizzling and the edges are crispy. Repeat until all the lahmacun have been cooked.
For the Onion Sumac Salad:
In a small bowl, mix together the onion, sumac, olive oil and salt and rub together between your fingers to soften the onions. Add the parsley, rub together a little more then cover and leave to one side / refrigerate until ready to serve.
For the Pickled red cabbage:
Mix together the vinegar and sugar in a bowl and once dissolved, add the water. Add the cabbage to a large jar or Tupperware box, pour over the pickling liquid, then seal and pop in the fridge for at least a couple of hours before serving.
The dish is often served with a colourful salad plate (like the ones from my blog below – I’ll be making the larger sized ones on the left), and a glass of “ayran” (a salty yoghurt drink, a bit of a palate cleanser) so if the team would think that would look great on screen / for the pac shot then I’ll let you know the ingredients for that too or I can just bring them with me.
