Turkish Lamb Pitas With Tomato Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• For the dough, mix the yeast, sugar and 175ml lukewarm water in a small bowl. Stir to dissolve the yeast, then set aside for 10 mins, or until the liquid starts to froth.
• Mix the flour with ½ tsp salt in a big bowl. Make a well in the centre, pour in the yeasty mixture and olive oil, and mix to a dough. Knead for 10 mins, then put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with oiled cling film. Leave somewhere quite warm until doubled in size.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the mince and fry, breaking up lumps as you go, until well browned. Stir in the garlic, spices and raisins, and fry for a few more mins, then turn off the heat and stir in the lemon zest, spring onions, pine nuts and seasoning. Set aside to cool a little.
• Divide the dough into 4. Working a piece at a time, roll out on a lightly floured surface to 25 x 30cm, without the dough splitting. With a long edge of the pastry laying in front of you, spoon ¼ of the mince on the bottom half - leaving a 2cm border all round. Crumble over ¼ of the feta. Fold the other half of the dough over the filling, folding in and pinching the edges to seal in the lamb. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
• Heat a large frying pan over a high heat and brush the gozleme all over with oil.
• Cook in batches for 3-5 mins on each side, or until golden and heated through. Quickly mix the tomato ketchup, pomegranate and onion, and serve with the hot, crispy gozleme.

Steps:

• Select saute or browning setting on a 6-qt. electric pressure cooker. Adjust for medium heat; add oil. When oil is hot, brown lamb in batches. Add wine to pressure cooker. Cook 30 seconds, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan. Press cancel. Add onion, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, oregano and basil. Return lamb to pressure cooker., Lock lid; close pressure-release valve. Adjust to pressure-cook on high for 15 minutes. Let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes; quick-release any remaining pressure. Press cancel., Select saute setting; adjust for low heat. Add tomato paste; simmer, uncovered, until mixture is slightly thickened, 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Press cancel., To serve, dice enough cucumber to measure 1 cup; thinly slice remaining cucumber. Combine diced cucumber with yogurt and remaining salt. Fill pitas with lamb mixture, tomatoes, sliced cucumbers and yogurt mixture. Freeze option: Freeze cooled lamb mixture in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally and adding a little broth or water if necessary.

Steps:

• For lamb:
• Combine first 13 ingredients and 2 tablespoons oil in large bowl; mix to blend thoroughly. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Using moistened hands and 1/4 cup for each, shape lamb mixture into about 20 oval patties measuring approximately 3x1 1/2x1/2 inches. Arrange patties on sheet of foil.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties; cook until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Using slotted spoon, return patties to foil. Reserve drippings in skillet.
• For sauce:
• Heat drippings in skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, lemon juice, and allspice. Bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Stir in pomegranate molasses. Return patties to skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until patties are cooked through and tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer patties to bowl. Tilt skillet and spoon fat off top of sauce. Simmer sauce until slightly thickened, mashing tomatoes with back of fork, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Return patties to sauce. Remove from heat.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F. Wrap pitas in foil; bake 12 minutes to heat.
• Simmer patties in sauce until heated through; mix in green onions. Cut pitas in half; gently open each half. Place 1 or 2 patties and some sauce into each pita half and top with dollop of yogurt.
• *A thick pomegranate syrup that is available at Middle Eastern markets and some supermarkets.

Steps:

• Add the coriander, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of salt to a small mixing bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the spice mixture to the lamb stew meat and use tongs to coat the meat in the spices. Set aside.
• Heat an electric pressure cooker to the sauté setting and add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to the pot. Once the oil is shimmering, add the stew meat in batches, being sure not to overcrowd the pot. Brown the meat on all sides, about 4 minutes, then remove to a plate. Add an additional tablespoon of oil, if needed, before adding another batch of meat. Once all the meat has been browned and removed from the pot, add the red wine to deglaze, stirring and scraping the bottom to release any brown bits stuck to the base of the pot. Once the alcohol smell has burned off, 1 to 2 minutes, add the canned diced tomatoes and the browned meat. Stir to combine.
• Place the lid on the pressure cooker and seal. Set to high pressure according to the manufacturer's instructions. Once at high pressure cook for 15 minutes then allow the pressure cooker to naturally release for 10 minutes before manually venting the rest.
• While the lamb cooks, add the fresh chopped tomatoes, cucumber, onion, parsley, dill, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper to a medium bowl. Toss to combine and set aside until ready to assemble.
• To assemble, slice each pita in half and open to create a pocket. Slather each side of the pocket with hummus, then add in a few pieces of romaine lettuce, covering the hummus. Next add a few spoonfuls of the cucumber-onion mixture and top with a few pieces of cooked lamb. Continue the process with the remaining ingredients.

Steps:

• Prepare the lamb:
• Combine the Turkish red pepper, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, and cumin seeds in a small bowl. Heat a small skillet over medium-low heat, add the spice mixture, and toast until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the mixture into a mortar or spice grinder, add the salt and black pepper, and either pound or briefly grind until you get a coarse-textured spice mix. Don't overdo it if you've gone electric here-the coarse texture is an essential part of the dish.
• Pat the spice mixture all over the lamb chops, and let them marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or uncovered in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
• Make the tahini sauce:
• While the lamb is marinating, in a food processor, blend the lemon juice, garlic, and salt. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. Then add the tahini and ground cumin, and blend until a thick paste forms. With the processor running, gradually add the ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the sauce is smooth enough to drizzle.
• Heat a grill or broiler to high.
• Drizzle the chops lightly with olive oil. Grill the chops until they are charred on the outside and cooked to taste within (or broil the chops on a broiler pan or rimmed baking sheet). Cooking time will depend on how thick your chops are, so watch them carefully: 2-inch-thick bone-in chops will take at least 3 to 5 minutes per side for rare. You'll need less time for thinner chops, and more time if you like them cooked medium rare or beyond. Let the lamb rest for 5 minutes before serving.
• To serve, drizzle the tahini sauce over the chops, and garnish them with the dill sprigs. Add a dusting of the red sumac if you like.

Steps:

• Combine first 8 ingredients in medium bowl; blend well. Shape lamb mixture into four 1/4-inch-thick patties. Heat heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb patties and sauté until brown and just cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Cut each pita bread in half; fill each half with lamb patty.

Steps:

• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat; brown lamb in batches. Transfer lamb to a 3- or 4-qt. slow cooker, reserving drippings in skillet., In drippings, saute onion over medium heat until tender, 4-6 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste; cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in wine, 1 teaspoon salt, oregano and basil. Add to lamb. Cook, covered, on low until lamb is tender, 6-8 hours., To serve, dice enough cucumber to measure 1 cup; thinly slice remaining cucumber. Combine diced cucumber with yogurt and remaining salt. Fill pita halves with lamb mixture, tomatoes, sliced cucumbers and yogurt mixture. Freeze option: Freeze cooled lamb mixture in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally; add a little broth or water if necessary.

Steps:

• Cook the onions in the oil over medium heat, stirring until very soft, about 20 minutes. Add the thyme, garlic, pepper flakes, lamb juice and tomatoes and cook, stirring, until saucy, about 20 minutes.
• Stir in the meat and continue to cook, seasoning as necessary, until flavors meld, at least 15 minutes. Cook the pasta and serve with the sauce; garnish with cheese.