We love food that you can build yourself! Whether it's tacos, burritos, parathas, or bao buns, every food culture has their own signature equivalent of a wrap, and these Lebanese Lamb Wraps are one of my favourites! They're easy to pull together in 30 minutes, and they're packed with really aromatic flavours that complement the lamb. They're also incredibly filling so they go a long way. The original recipe that inspired this was from a blog by Sylvia Fountaine.
There are a couple of more unusual ingredients in these that really elevate the dish but the most important one is sumac. It gives the meat a really tart and fruity flavour, and you really don't want to substitute it. It's readily available in most supermarkets (e.g Morrisons, Asda, Tesco) so should be easy to get hold of. The other ingredient that I use is Pul Biber or Aleppo chilli flakes. It's a very mild Turkish style chilli powder which is so tasty with lamb, but it can also be used as a topping or for a marinade with any other meats. This may be slightly harder to get hold of but you can easily substitute it with a pinch of regular chilli flakes instead. We tend to get ours from our local market in Cardiff, there's a fantastic food stall called 'Clancy's' that has every spice, dried chilli, herb, and tea you could possibly need, so if you are local I highly recommend! Hope you enjoy this one :)
INGREDIENTS (MAKES 5 WRAPS)
For the lamb filling:
500g lamb mince
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon sumac
Tiny pinch of cinnamon (less than 1/4 tsp)
1/4 teaspoon pul biber (or any other chilli flakes you have)
1 tablespoon of tomato puree mixed with a tbsp of water
handful of fresh mint, finely chopped
1 teaspoon of salt
For the wraps: These are all optional based on what you have and what you fancy. The beauty of assembling yourself is that everyone can add what works for them.
Pack of 5 Lebanese wraps
Fresh tomatoes, diced (either cherry tomatoes halved or salad tomatoes chopped up, whatever you have)
1/4 cucumber, diced into quarter pieces
Bag of wild rocket (or any other lettuce you would prefer)
Tzaziki: To make your own combine 60g plain yoghurt (low fat works fine), 1 clove garlic grated, shredded cucumber, salt, pepper, optional mint.
Hummus
Optional: Roasted sweet potato - x2 sweet potatoes (cubed) tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with salt, pepper and sumac. Even if you don't want to include these in your wrap they go really nicely on the side.
DIRECTIONS
If you're including the sweet potato cubes, preheat the oven to 180c fan. Peel and chop the sweet potato into cubes, and add to a roasting tin with a glug of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of sumac and season with salt and pepper. Roast them in the oven for 30 minutes.
Prep all your sides in advance. Chop the cucumber and tomato, and make the tzaziki then put it in the fridge to chill.
Heat a large pan on the hob with a tablespoon of rapeseed oil. Break up the lamb mince and add to the pan. Once partially cooked, add the onions and let them cook in the lamb fat. Wait until the meat is starting to brown then mix in the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. If there's a lot of fat in the pan, you may want to drain a little at this point.
Add the chilli flakes (Pul Biber), cumin seeds, cinnamon and sumac and cook for a few more minutes.
Mix the tomato puree and water together and add to the pan. Let the tomato puree cook out then mix in the freshly chopped mint then you're ready to go.
Dish up the sumac sweet potoatoes, warm the lebanese wraps in the microwave following instructions then it's time to assemble.These wraps can take a lot of filling so don't be polite, make sure they're packed full!
And it's as easy as that! Fillings wise, I always like to start with a base of hummus as it helps keep everything in place but then it's a free for all. I love including the sweet potato in the wrap but they do add a fair bit of sweetness so if you'd prefer to keep it very savoury tasting, I'd recommend keeping them on the side.
As ever if you give this one a try, do let me know, and don't forget to snap a picture and tag me on instagram or twitter. I love seeing people cooking these recipes, and making them their own. If you've got other ideas for fillings for these wraps then give it a try and let me know how they turn out. I'm always looking for new ideas and inspiration. Happy Cooking!