Lebanese Meat Pizza (Lahembajin)

There are so many Middle Eastern recipes I was brought up eating and which hold lots of memories for me.  At our grand family gatherings, a great effort was always to entertain warmly and joyously, and always with lots of food!

Lahembajin (Middle Eastern meat pizza) is one of those foods which signify gathering together to me and reminds me of the weekly parties my parents and relatives would hold when they migrated to Australia. There was always an abundance of food, music, and dancing!

These meat pizzas are easy to serve and share with family and friends so I decided to recreate them and boy, did they go like hotcakes!

Don’t be fooled by the length of the recipe below, it really is simple to make. It looks long because I’ve included Thermomix instructions as well as traditional instructions for the pizza dough.  Noting, I just used a basic pizza dough recipe for the base which can be found in the Everyday Thermomix Cookbook

Lebanese Meat Pizza (Lahembajin)

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Prep Time 1 hr

Cook Time 15 mins

Servings 9

Ingredients

  

Dough Ingredients

• 500 grams white all-purpose flour or unbleached plain flour
• 280 grams warm water
• 2 teaspoons dry instant yeast
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Meat Topping Ingredients

• 250 grams lamb mince
• 250 grams beef mince
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 large red capsicum, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 500 grams passatta
• 100 grams tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
• 1.5 teaspoons thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano or dried mint

Instructions

 

Dough Instructions

• In a small bowl, mix together yeast with 1 cup warm water and allow to proove for 5 minutes until it becomes frothy.
• In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, oil and remaining warm water plus the yeast preparation. Mix together with your hands and knead until a smooth, soft dough forms, adding more water or flour if needed. Form it into a ball and place into a bowl. Cover with a clean towel and place in a warm location until dough rises to double the size (can take 1-2hrs).
• Once the dough is ready, on a lightly floured surface, form the dough into golf ball size balls (approxiately 9 in total) Roll out balls thinly into circles (mine are never perfect!) should be around 19 cm in diameter. Place on baking tray.

Thermomix Dough Instructions

• Place water and yeast in the mixing bowl and heat 1min/37/speed 1.
• Add all remaining ingredients and mix 6 sec/speed 6 then knead for one and a half minutes.
• Form a ball out of the dough and transfer it to a bowl. Cover with a tea towel and allow to prove for 1-2 hours in a warm place if possible.
• Once the dough is ready, on a lightly floured surface, form the dough into golf ball size balls (approximately 9 in total) Roll out balls thinly into circles (mine are never perfect!) should be around 19 cm in diameter. Place on baking tray.

Meat Topping Instructions

• Line 2 baking trays with baking paper and preheat oven to 220 degrees celcisus.
• In a medium bowl mix the meat toppings together and pop into the fridge until the dough is ready.
• Place 1.5-2 tablespoons meat mixture on top of the dough circles and spread it evenly across the whole surface.
• Bake for 10-15minutes or until meat is cooked and dough is slightly golden.

If you make this recipe and share on Instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek.

Otherwise, feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook.

While you’re here you may like to check out my recipe ebook, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes.

It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar-free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved! 

Other Middle Eastern recipes you might like are…

Mjaddra (lentils and rice)

Middle Eastern Spiced Chickpea Rice

Bren x