Mutabbaq Idlibi — Crispy Stuffed Flatbread

Thin dough stretched to near-translucency, filled with spiced ground meat and onion, then folded and pan-fried in ghee until the outside is shatteringly crispy and the filling is fragrant and juicy — the Idlib street food that exists nowhere else.

Ingredients

• 300 g bread flour
• 180 ml warm water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil for dough
• 300 g ground beef or lamb
• 1 large, finely diced yellow onion
• 3 tbsp, chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tsp seven spice
• 0.25 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 beaten eggs
• 60 g, for frying ghee or clarified butter
• 1 tsp salt for filling

Method

1. Mix flour, salt, water, and oil into a soft, smooth dough. Knead 8 minutes. Divide into 6 balls. Coat in oil. Cover and rest 30 minutes — the rest is essential for extensibility.
2. Make filling: mix raw ground meat with diced onion, parsley, seven spice, cinnamon, beaten eggs, and salt. The egg binds the filling when cooked.
3. On an oiled work surface, stretch one dough ball: use both hands and the backs of your fingers to stretch from the center outward. Rotate as you go. Work slowly and patiently until the dough is almost transparent — about 40cm diameter.
4. Place 3–4 tablespoons of filling in the center of the stretched dough.
5. Fold the dough over the filling in thirds, then fold again, forming a rough square.
6. Heat a cast-iron or heavy pan over medium heat. Add a generous knob of ghee.
7. Fry the mutabbaq package for 4–5 minutes per side until deep golden brown and crispy.
8. Serve immediately — mutabbaq loses its crispiness within 5 minutes.

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