FermenteaWhere food goes to change
← Recipes

Modern adaptation

Sfiha

lahm bi‘ajeen · lahmacun

Loading ratings…

A yeast-raised 8-inch flatbread topped with an evenly spread onion, tomato, pepper and spiced ground-beef mixture. This version follows a Palestinian family recipe shared with Amira Ibrahim and adapted for home baking.

Suggest a correction
Illustrative Sfiha from the published Palestinian-family-recipe adaptation: open round yeast bread with an even baked beef, tomato, onion and pepper topping.

A Palestinian family recipe recorded by Amira Ibrahim

Amira Ibrahim presents this measured preparation as a recipe shared by a Palestinian friend. Her page describes sfiha broadly as a Levantine meat-topped bread and mentions versions in several neighboring countries. This record follows the particular eight-piece formula and open-disk method on her page; it does not treat sfiha, lahm bi‘ajeen and lahmacun as exact equivalents in every regional tradition.

The source names neither the friend nor a town, and it does not date the recipe's origin. The geography and history here therefore describe the source's attribution, not a birthplace or a universal definition.

Sources for this section

One dough and one measured topping

The dough combines active dry yeast, a little sugar, warm water, all-purpose flour, powdered milk, salt and olive oil. The author recommends the powdered milk for softness but says it can be left out. The dough rests until doubled; the recipe lists about an hour, with the time varying by kitchen temperature.

For this topping, onion, tomato and green pepper are pulsed until slightly chunky before the pastes, molasses, seasoning and oil are mixed in. Ground beef is folded through last. Amira's note allows lamb or a beef-and-lamb combination, but the listed 1-pound batch is beef. The mixture is spread thinly and evenly over eight 8-inch disks rather than piled in the centre.

Sources for this section

The source bake and the meat endpoint

The source uses a 400°F oven, first baking on the lower rack for 12–15 minutes until the bottoms lightly brown, then broiling on high for 2–3 minutes. Those times and the color cue describe the source method; they are not proof that ground beef is safe. USDA guidance sets 160°F for ground beef and allows an angled or sideways probe for thin burgers. Use a thin-probe thermometer to check the topping, then continue baking if needed.

Keep raw beef cold until mixing and assembly, avoid cross-contamination, and do not taste the raw filling or dough. Refrigerate cooked leftovers promptly and follow the cited cold-storage and reheating guidance.

Sources for this section

A separate Baalbeck market association

Lebanon Traveler's 2024 souk feature places sfiha among foods to try in Baalbeck's market, where it describes butcher shops, bakeries and spice sellers. It mentions tannour bread separately. This records a named Lebanese market setting for sfiha alongside the Palestinian family attribution of the recipe used here.

The market account supplies no matching ingredient list, size or cooking schedule. It therefore does not make this eight-inch, ground-beef home version a Baalbeck recipe or establish a shared origin for every regional form. The measured preparation remains Amira Ibrahim's adaptation.

Sources for this section

History

Amira Ibrahim describes this measured version as a Palestinian friend's recipe that she adapted for home baking. The source discusses several regional names and versions; it does not establish a single origin or make them equivalent in every community.

Ingredients

Yield 8 8-inch sfihas · Scaling: source batch only

Active dry yeast
9.9 mL2 tsp as recorded
Granulated sugar
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
Warm water
237 mL1 cup as recorded
Use ½ cup to bloom the yeast and add the remaining ½ cup gradually to the dough.
All-purpose flour
710 mL3 cup as recorded
405 g in the source.
Dry powdered milk (optional)
30 mL2 tbsp as recorded
The source recommends it for a softer dough but says it may be omitted.
Salt
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
Olive oil
59 mL¼ cup as recorded
For the dough.
OnionLarge; quartered.
1
About 300 g.
TomatoMedium; quartered.
2
About 280 g total.
Green bell pepperChopped.
1
About 200 g.
Tomato paste
15 mL1 tbsp as recorded
Red pepper paste
15 mL1 tbsp as recorded
The author describes the paste she used as mild.
Pomegranate molasses
30 mL2 tbsp as recorded
Salt
4.9 mL1 tsp as recorded
For the meat mixture.
Seven-spice blend
2.5 mL½ tsp as recorded
The source says another meat-spice blend or allspice may be substituted.
Black pepper
2.5 mL½ tsp as recorded
Olive oil
30 mL2 tbsp as recorded
For the meat mixture.
Ground beef
454 g1 lb as recorded
The source note also allows ground lamb or a beef-and-lamb combination; this measured batch uses beef.

Method

Risks and precautions · Standard risk
Raw ground beef

Ground meat can carry pathogens throughout the mixture; browning alone does not establish a safe endpoint.

Hazard source
Raw flour dough

Uncooked flour can carry germs and should not be tasted before baking.

Hazard source
Perishable meat topping and leftovers

Ground meat mixture and cooked meat pies need prompt chilling and cold storage.

Hazard source

Cook the ground beef topping to 160°F (71°C), checked with a food thermometer; for a thin meat layer, insert a thin probe from the side or at an angle. Continue baking if it has not reached the endpoint.

Control source

Keep raw ground beef at 40°F (4°C) or below. Refrigerate or freeze it promptly; if refrigerated, use within 1–2 days. Prevent raw-meat contact with ready-to-eat food and wash hands, utensils and surfaces after handling.

Control source

Do not taste unbaked dough. Bake it fully and wash hands, bowls, utensils and counters after handling flour and raw dough.

Control source

Refrigerate cooked leftovers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 90°F (32°C), keep the refrigerator at or below 40°F (4°C), use cooked meat leftovers within 3–4 days or freeze, and reheat to 165°F (74°C).

Control source

Contains wheat and ground beef; powdered milk is optional. The source permits ground lamb or a beef-and-lamb mixture as a variation.

  1. In a mixer bowl, stir together 2 teaspoons active dry yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ cup of the warm water. Leave for 10 minutes.
  2. In a separate bowl, combine 3 cups flour, the powdered milk if using, and 1 teaspoon salt. Add ¼ cup olive oil and the yeast mixture; knead while adding the remaining ½ cup water gradually until a consistent dough forms.
  3. Cover the bowl and let the dough rise on the counter until doubled, about 1 hour; the time varies with kitchen temperature.
  4. Keep the ground beef refrigerated until you are ready to make the topping. In a food processor pulse the onion, tomatoes and green pepper until slightly chunky. Add the tomato paste, pepper paste, pomegranate molasses, salt, seven-spice, black pepper and 2 tablespoons olive oil; pulse to combine. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the ground beef. Keep the raw meat and its juices away from ready-to-eat food; wash hands, utensils and work surfaces after handling it. Do not taste the raw mixture. If assembly is delayed, refrigerate it; keep it out of refrigeration no longer than 2 hours total, or 1 hour when the room is above 90°F (32°C).
  5. Heat the oven to 400°F (204°C), with racks in the lower and upper thirds. Line baking sheets with parchment. Divide the risen dough into 8 equal balls and keep the unused balls covered. Roll each into an 8-inch round, set on a lined sheet, and prick with a fork. Divide the meat mixture into 8 equal portions and spread one portion in a thin, even layer over each round.
  6. Bake each loaded sheet on the lower rack for 12–15 minutes, until the underside is lightly browned. Move it to the upper third and broil on high for 2–3 minutes. These are the source's cooking times, not a safety endpoint: check the meat topping with a food thermometer. For this thin topping, insert a thin probe from the side or at an angle; cook until the ground meat reaches 160°F (71°C). If it has not reached that temperature, return the sheet to the oven and continue baking, checking again before serving.
  7. Let the pies cool for about a minute so they can be handled. The source covers them while hot to keep them soft. Serve promptly; refrigerate cooked leftovers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if the room is above 90°F (32°C), and keep them at 40°F (4°C) or below. Use cooked meat leftovers within 3–4 days or freeze them. Reheat leftovers to 165°F (74°C).

Conditions

Yield8 8-inch sfihas
Active time30 min
Fermentationfrom 1 h
Temperature204°C

Places

Levant

Documented use · Region evidence

Amira Ibrahim describes sfiha as a Levantine dish and reports that this particular recipe came from a Palestinian friend. The source gives no town or place where the friend prepared it; names and regional versions are not treated as interchangeable.

See Levanton the mapLocation source 1 →

Related

Related in the family

  • Afghan naan

    A long oval Afghan wheat bread, leavened with yeast, grooved along its length and baked until crisp outside and chewy within.

  • Aish baladi (Egyptian whole-wheat pita)

    This home adaptation of Egyptian aish baladi uses a refrigerated yeast biga, whole-wheat dough, bran dusting and a very hot baking surface to make 16 pocketed rounds.

  • Ayacucho chapla (Thermomix Peru home method)

    A measured, yeast-raised Ayacucho chapla home method shared by Thermomix Peru presenter Roxanna Salaverry. It makes thin, anise-scented rounds baked at 240°C; the historic qunchu-leavened form is documented separately.

  • Baiji mo (Bai ji mo)

    This Shaanxi-associated yeast flatbread uses a simple water dough, coiled shaping and a skillet bake. It is the bread used in roujiamo, not the filled meat dish.

  • Batbout

    A Moroccan yeast-raised semolina pocket bread cooked on a dry pan or griddle; this measured batch makes about twenty 4-inch rounds.

  • Bazlama

    This Turkish bazlama uses yeast, plain yogurt and olive oil for a soft dough cooked in a skillet. Shape it into twelve small or six larger rounds, flip as bubbles appear, and wrap the breads to keep them soft.

  • Beijing Sesame-Paste Shaobing

    A Beijing-style yeast dough is layered with seasoned sesame paste, sealed into small buns, briefly pan-fried, seeded, and baked.

Community

No community contributions have been published for this entry yet.

Share what you made

Sign in to contribute. Published comments and photos are free to read.

Share a creation photoSuggest a correction

Sources