Lahmacun is a type of thin and crispy round flatbread, which is spread with a delicate mixture of meat and vegetables. Lahmacun is, along with pide, one of my favorite Turkish dishes.
Sometimes this dish is called Turkish pizza, just like another Turkish dish called pide. However, this is inaccurate. A perfectly prepared lahmacun has a very thin and delicate dough that can almost be broken. Similarly, the filling is a very delicate paste with a high proportion of vegetables. Unlike the “real” Turkish pizza pide, there will never be cheese on a traditional lahmacun flatbread.
The dough for lahmacun is made from flour, yeast, water, and salt, then rolled out into thin and spread with a mixture of minced meat, onions, tomatoes, and various spices. It is baked in a traditional wood-fired oven, giving it a crispy texture and unique taste.
If you head to the Asian part of Istanbul, try stopping by the Üsküdar Simit Taşfırın bakery. This establishment specializes in the production of traditional simit pastries, but I have never eaten better lahmacun than right here. The dough is perhaps only a millimeter high, perfectly crispy, and the filling is wonderfully seasoned. Lahmacun will be placed in the oven right in front of you. One lahmacun here costs 15 lira, which is about 0.80 EUR.
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Accommodation in Istanbul
I wholeheartedly endorse the Mest Hotel located directly in the heart of Istanbul. The hotel is elegantly renovated, the breakfasts are incredible and the views are spectacular. I last stayed here in the fall of 2022 and will definitely be back again.
