Mercimek Koftesi

Rinse the red lentils and tip them into a saucepan with the water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are soft and the water is mostly absorbed, about 15 minutes.

Stir the bulgur wheat into the hot lentils, cover the pan and leave off the heat for about 10 minutes until the bulgur has absorbed the remaining moisture.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the onion and garlic for 6 minutes until softened.

Stir the tomato paste, ground cumin and Aleppo pepper into the softened onion and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Tip the onion mixture into the lentil and bulgur mixture and mix well with a spoon until fully combined.

Leave the mixture to cool until just warm enough to handle, then stir through the spring onions, parsley, lemon juice and fine sea salt.

With damp hands, shape the mixture into oval patties, pressing each one firmly so it holds together.

Arrange the patties on a platter lined with romaine lettuce leaves and serve with lemon wedges.