Lahmejun Baked & Raw Recipe
Ingredients
| 4 medium-size green bell peppers | ||
| 2 pounds ripe pear-shaped, Roma-type tomatoes | ||
| Lean ground lamb | 4 Pound | |
| Minced parsley | 3 1/2 Cup (16 tbs), lightly packed | |
| Garlic | 3 Clove (5gm), pressed | |
| Tomato Paste | 1 Can (10oz) | |
| 4 teaspoons each ground allspice, pepper, and paprika | ||
| Salt | To Taste | |
| 24 flour tortillas (about 8-inch diameter) | ||
| Condiments | ||
| Armenian cracker bread | ||
Directions
Stem and seed bell peppers and finely chop.
Core tomatoes and finely chop.
Put vegetables in a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium heat; stir often until vegetables are juicy.
Increase heat to high and stir frequently until almost all liquid has evaporated; when you draw spoon across pan bottom, there should be no liquid.
Take care not to scorch.
Set aside until cool.
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix cooked vegetables, lamb, parsley, garlic, tomato paste, allspice, pepper, and paprika.
Season to taste with salt.
For raw lahmejun, set aside 1 1/2 cups of the lamb mixture; cover and refrigerate for up to 12 hours.
Fill 1 or 2 lightly greased 12- by 15-inch rimmed baking pans with a single layer of tortillas.
Spoon 1/2 cup of the meat mixture onto each tortilla; with your fingers or a fork, evenly pat or spread meat in thin coating over tortilla, leaving a 1/2-inch rim all around.
Bake in a 500° oven, 1 or 2 pans of lahmejun at a time, until tortilla rims are well browned and meat looks dry, 8 to 10 minutes; alternate pan positions halfway through baking.
Slide a spatula under hot lahmejun to make sure they are not stuck to pan, then let cool for several minutes for bottoms to firm.
Transfer with a wide spatula to a flat surface; reuse pans until all lahmejun are cooked.
While filled pans are in oven, pat lamb on more tortillas, making enough to refill pans.
Put in oven and start another batch.
You may need to wash, dry, and grease pans occasionally.
The cooking process goes much faster if you have more than 1 oven.
Core tomatoes and finely chop.
Put vegetables in a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium heat; stir often until vegetables are juicy.
Increase heat to high and stir frequently until almost all liquid has evaporated; when you draw spoon across pan bottom, there should be no liquid.
Take care not to scorch.
Set aside until cool.
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix cooked vegetables, lamb, parsley, garlic, tomato paste, allspice, pepper, and paprika.
Season to taste with salt.
For raw lahmejun, set aside 1 1/2 cups of the lamb mixture; cover and refrigerate for up to 12 hours.
Fill 1 or 2 lightly greased 12- by 15-inch rimmed baking pans with a single layer of tortillas.
Spoon 1/2 cup of the meat mixture onto each tortilla; with your fingers or a fork, evenly pat or spread meat in thin coating over tortilla, leaving a 1/2-inch rim all around.
Bake in a 500° oven, 1 or 2 pans of lahmejun at a time, until tortilla rims are well browned and meat looks dry, 8 to 10 minutes; alternate pan positions halfway through baking.
Slide a spatula under hot lahmejun to make sure they are not stuck to pan, then let cool for several minutes for bottoms to firm.
Transfer with a wide spatula to a flat surface; reuse pans until all lahmejun are cooked.
While filled pans are in oven, pat lamb on more tortillas, making enough to refill pans.
Put in oven and start another batch.
You may need to wash, dry, and grease pans occasionally.
The cooking process goes much faster if you have more than 1 oven.
Chef
