Sfiha (Lebanese Meat Pies | Lahmacun | Lahm bi Ajeen)

Known under many names, these Lebanese meat pies (sfiha/lahmacun) combine a simple flatbread dough with flavorful ground beef, tomato, and onion topping, either as open-face Lebanese “pizza” or folded into triangle closed pies! Enjoy as an appetizer, mezze, side, or main!

Biting into meaty, tender, comforting sfiha/Lebanese meat pies never fails to transport me to my childhood. Now that I’ve finally learned how to make them myself, I needed to share these with you all immediately, so you can feel just as enamored with this simple but flavorful flatbread!

What is Sfiha/Sfeeha?

These Middle Eastern meat pies are known under many names depending on where you’re based – sfiha/sfeeha, lahmacun, lahm bi ajeen, the latter literally meaning “meat with dough.” These peat pies are a popular item of Levantine cuisine dating back to the 15^th century. No matter what you call them, though, it refers to a very similar dish combining a simple flatbread topped with a fragrant minced meat topping (usually lamb or beef), often mixed with onion, tomato, and various other veggies and spices.

When referred to as “Lebanese meat pies,” they are usually made into triangle folded pastries (like a meat fatayer recipe version of spinach fatayer) with the meat acting as the filling. In comparison, sfiha is usually open-faced, like a Middle Eastern pizza. However, aside from the shaping of the pastry, the recipe and method are identical.

Unlike many versions, this Lebanese meat pie recipe requires no pre-cooking of the meat to cut down on time and effort. Instead, simply prepare the 4-ingredient dough, mix the meat topping, and roll and top before baking to perfection.

Best of all, they’re also incredibly freezer-friendly and reheat well! So you can make a double (or even triple batch) and have them prepared for months! Make them snack-sized or double them up for a large pizza-sized version. Either way, these Lebanese pizza/meat pies are perfect for entertaining and taking to picnics and potlucks!

For more hearty, comforting Lebanese mains, you might enjoy this carrot and pea stew (Bazella w riz), butter bean stew, chicken molokhia, or homemade lamb kofta!

The Ingredients

This Lebanese meat pie recipe only requires a handful of ingredients, including:

• Simple dough: I used this simple homemade manakish flatbread dough. All you need is all-purpose flour, salt, yogurt, dry yeast, sugar, and water!
• Minced meat: you could use ground beef, 50/50 ground lamb-beef, or ground lamb for the sfiha recipe. I prefer to use a lean (5-10% fat) version to keep the pastries from becoming soggy (as it isn’t pre-cooked).
• Onion: use a yellow or white medium onion rather than red.
• Tomato: use ripe tomatoes for the best flavor. You could use 2-3 tablespoons of tomato paste instead, in a pinch.
• Green chili: adjust the type according to your spice preference and amount of seeds included.
• Seasonings: these Arabic meat pies use a simple combination of Lebanese 7-spice (allspice may work as a substitution) and salt and black pepper.

You’ll also need neutral cooking oil to lightly brush your baking tray with.

Optional Add-ins and Variations

• Pine nuts: feel free to sprinkle lightly toasted pine nuts over the lahm bi ajeen when serving for extra crunch and flavor.
• Spices: there are several additional spices you could use to add extra flavor to the ground meat mixture. These include paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, or sumac. For extra heat, you could also add some chili pepper. Shawarma seasoning could also work in place of 7-spice.
• Herbs: optionally garnish the freshly baked pies with finely chopped fresh parsley.
• Lemon: serve with lemon wedges to squeeze fresh lemon juice over the pastries when serving. The additional flavor is wonderful!
• Pomegranate molasses: a drizzle (1-2 Tbsp) of pomegranate molasses added to the ground meat mixture adds amazing depth.
• Red pepper: very finely chopped bell pepper is a popular addition to Turkish lahmacun and Palestinian-style meat pies, added to the ground meat mixture.
• Garlic: Feel free to add garlic to either the stuffed veggie filling OR the tomato sauce.
• Tahini: a spoonful or two of tahini added to the minced meat adds creamy depth and a slightly nutty flavor to the sfiha recipe.
• Feta: crumble some feta over the Lebanese “pizza” for added creamy, salty flavor.

How to Make Sfiha (Lebanese Meat Pies)?

First, prepare the simple Middle Eastern Bread Dough, according to this method, until the point of leaving it to rise (complete steps 1 and 2 of activating the yeast and mixing/kneading the dough). Then, as it rises/proves, it’s time to prepare the ground meat topping.

Step 1: Prepare the Meat Topping

First, grate the tomatoes and onion into a large mixing bowl and strain the mixture to eliminate any excess liquid (you can save this to add to soups and veg stock). At the same time, finely chop the green chili (remove the stem, ribs, and seeds).

Alternatively, you can blend/process all three ingredients until almost smooth OR very finely chop them with a knife. All three methods will yield slightly different textures.

Then, add the minced meat to the bowl along with all the seasonings and mix well until thoroughly combined.

Step 2: Assemble the Lebanese Meat Pies

Once the dough has risen, transfer it to a lightly floured surface and divide it into pieces around the size of a ping-pong/ golf ball. You should be able to divide the dough into at least 25-30 pieces.

Then, roll each out into a circle/oval shape around 4 in (10cm) wide and 0.8 in (2cm) thick.

Now it’s time to preheat the oven to 400ºF/200°C and place a rack in the center of the oven.

Then, add around one tablespoon of the ground sfiha meat mixture to the center of each dough circle, and spread it out, leaving a small ½-inch border around the edges.

You can then fold those edges up and over to shape the dough into circle open-faced Lebanese pizzas, pinch just the four corners to make a square shape, OR fold in the corner to make a triangle meat fatayer-style pie (as I do for spinach fatayer).

If you plan to do the latter, it can be beneficial to pre-cook the filling on the stove and drain any excess liquid so the pies don’t become soggy. First, sauté the onion until translucent. Then add the beef and tomatoes.

Step 3: Bake the Sfiha

Lightly brush a baking sheet with a bit of oil and then spread the sfiha over it, making sure not to overcrowd the tray (otherwise, they won’t crisp up). You can do this in batches if preferred.

Then, transfer to the oven and bake at 400ºF/200°C for 10 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown.

Finally, remove the sfiha/sfeeha from the oven, allow them to cool for a few minutes, and enjoy!

Serving Recommendations

You can enjoy sfiha warm, at room temperature, or chilled (though the first two are best). Enjoy alone or served with lemon wedges and a yogurt-based dip/side like this cucumber yogurt salad, spinach-yogurt dip (borani), or even this herby labneh dip. Alternatively, a tahini sauce would also taste nice.

You could also use the open-face version as wraps (popular with lahmacun in Turkey) and fill it with veggies like lettuce, tomato, peppers, and pickles. Or serve a few with a side salad, like this Middle Eastern chickpea salad or Fattoush salad and a refreshing glass of ayran!

They make for a great addition to a mezze platter, too, alongside:

• Kibbeh
• Dolma
• Hummus
• Baba ghanoush
• Tabbouleh
• Spinach fatayer
• Lebanese green bean stew
• Lentil tabbouleh

How to Make Ahead and Store?

Make ahead: you can prepare the flatbread dough up to 2 days in advance and store it, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator. You can also prepare the meat filling/topping up to a day in advance and store likewise. Then, allow both to come back to room temperature for 20-30 minutes before continuing the recipe.

Store: store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Freeze: you can store the lahm bi ajeen (either as the open-faced Lebanese “pizza” style or the closed fatayer-style Lebanese meat pies) for up to 3 months. I recommend flash freezing them on a tray first, then transferring them to a freezer-safe bag, with excess air removed.

You can also freeze the beef filling for between 3-4 months. Then, simply defrost and cook it as needed.

Reheat: my favorite way to reheat these are in the oven. Spread the sfeeha across a baking tray and reheat at 250ºF/120ºC until warmed through (10-15 minutes, usually from chilled of 20-25 from frozen).

Recipe Tips and FAQs

• Adapt the size: these small pastries are perfect for serving as an appetizer. However, double their size for a larger 8-inch “pizza-sized” version to serve as a main.
• Can I use store-bought dough? To save prep time and effort, you could use store-bought pizza dough or roll dough (like Rhodes roll dough) to prepare the Lebanese meat pies.
• Can I use 10-15% fat meat? Yes, though it may be a good idea to pre-cook the topping in that case, so you can drain the excess fat. Otherwise, the dough may end up soggy.
• Can I omit the chili? Absolutely! If you’d prefer these meat pies to be spice-free, then omit it entirely, you can also adjust the amount to personal preference.
• Press the meat slightly: press the meat mixture slightly into the dough so it doesn’t become loose while baking and easily fall off.
• For a crispier topping: use your fork to gently fluff up the topping slightly. This creates more areas to caramelize and crisp up while baking.

More Bread Based Recipes

• Easy Cheese Flatbread (Cheese Manakish)
• Zaatar Bread (Manakish Za’atar)
• No-Knead Turkish Bread
• Authentic Homemade Pita Bread
• Greek Pita (Gyro Bread)
• Turmeric Rosemary No-Knead Focaccia Bread
• No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread

If you try this Sfiha/Lebanese meat pies recipe, I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions below. Also, I’d appreciate a recipe card rating below, and tag me in your recipe recreations on Instagram @Alphafoodie!