Nablus, Palestine
Knafeh
كنافة
Sweet cheese pastry with vermicelli-like kataifi dough, soaked in sugar syrup, often topped with pistachios, crispy shredded dough with melted cheese center and proper syrup soaking, a beloved Arab dessert.
western-asia
Lebanon
Explore 95 foods connected to Lebanon, from everyday staples to rare local specialties.
95 foods12 leading categories1 Essentials guides
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Lebanon Essentials
13 editor-selected foods for understanding the place through what people eat.
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Traditional foods from Lebanon.
95 foods in this view. Filter by category, type, rarity, or search every recorded name.
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Lebanon
Lahmacun
Լահմաջո
A paper-thin round of flatbread topped with a savory mixture of finely minced lamb or beef, onions, tomatoes, and parsley, seasoned with cumin and chili flakes. Baked rapidly in a stone oven until the edges are charred and crisp. Eaten rolled up with parsley and a squeeze of lemon.
Lebanon
Lebanese Couscous
مغربية
Large hand-rolled semolina pearls steamed and served with chicken, chickpeas and small onions in a caraway-scented broth.
Lebanon
Lebanese Seven Spice
سبع بهارات
A warm ground blend of allspice, black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, coriander and ginger, used in almost every meat dish.
Lebanon
Lentil and Chard Soup
عدس بحامض
A tangy Lebanese soup of lentils, chard or silverbeet, potatoes and lemon, seasoned with cumin and garlic.
United Arab Emirates
Ma'amoul
معمول
Date-filled semolina cookies pressed into wooden molds with decorative patterns, dusted with icing sugar, an Eid favorite, crumbly yet firm texture with distinct mold patterns and generous date filling.
Lebanon
Maarouk
معروك
A soft, sweet brioche-like bread flavoured with mahleb and filled with date paste, traditionally baked for Ramadan in Lebanon and Syria.
Lebanon
Marinated Chicken Skewers
شيش طاووق
Chicken cubes marinated in yoghurt, lemon, garlic and spices and grilled, served with garlic paste and pickles.
Lebanon
Meatballs in Tomato and Pomegranate
داود باشا
Lamb meatballs browned and simmered in a tomato and onion sauce sharpened with pomegranate molasses, served with rice.
Lebanon
Meghli
مغلي
A dark pudding of ground rice, caraway, cinnamon and anise, set in bowls and covered with soaked nuts and coconut.
Lebanon
Milk Ring Biscuits
كعك بحليب
Small ring-shaped biscuits made with milk and mahleb, faintly sweet and dry, eaten with tea and coffee.
Lebanon
Molokhia
ملوخية
Jute mallow leaves cooked into a green stew with chicken or lamb, served over rice with vinegar, onion and toasted bread.
Lebanon
Muhallebi
Sakizli muhallebi
Muhallebi is the base Turkish milk pudding and the anchor of the muhallebici shop; it belongs in the catalog as the parent of the pudding family.
Lebanon
Mujaddara
مجدرة
Lentils and rice or bulgur cooked together and buried under deeply caramelised onions fried almost to black.
Lebanon
Mutabbal
متبل
Aubergine charred whole over a flame, peeled and mashed with tahini, lemon and garlic into a pale smoky purée.
Lebanon
Okra in Olive Oil
بامية بزيت
Small whole okra stewed with tomato, garlic and coriander in olive oil until soft, eaten cold with bread and lemon.
Lebanon
Osmaliyeh
عثملية
A Lebanese dessert of crisp kataifi threads layered with ashta cream and pistachios, soaked in sugar syrup and served chilled.
Kayseri, Lebanon
Pastırma
Բաստուրմա
A cured beef product made by salting, pressing, and air-drying whole muscle cuts, then coating them with çemen, a paste of fenugreek, garlic, and red pepper. Originating from nomadic Turkic meat-preservation traditions, pastırma is eaten thinly sliced at breakfast, in börek, or with eggs. Afyonkarahisar and Kayseri are renowned for their pastırma, with the Afyon version holding a GI.
Lebanon
Pickled Turnips
كبيس لفت
Turnips pickled in brine with a slice of beetroot, which stains the whole jar bright magenta.
Lebanon
Pine Nut
صنوبر
Long slim kernels from the stone pines of the mountain forests, fried in butter and scattered over rice, kibbeh and hummus.
Lebanon
Pistachio Cookies with Natef
كرابيج
Small semolina cookies filled with pistachio and served with natef, a white whipped cream made from soapwort root.
Israel
Pita Bread
Πίτα
Greek flatbread, soft and round, used for souvlaki and gyros wraps, or dipped in meze. A daily bread, baked in a pan or griddle, a national staple, slightly puffed and chewy.
Antakya, Lebanon
Pomegranate Molasses
دبس رمان
A thick, dark syrup made by boiling down pomegranate juice for hours until it reaches a tangy-sweet consistency. A staple of southeastern Turkish cooking, especially in Hatay (Antakya) province, nar ekşisi is used in salads, marinades, dips like muhammara, and alongside grilled meats. Authentic nar ekşisi contains nothing but pomegranate juice, with no added sugar or glucose.
Lebanon
Qatayef
قطايف
Small pancakes cooked on one side only, folded around walnut or clotted cream, then fried and soaked in syrup or served fresh.
Lebanon
Red Lentil and Bulgur Mash
مجدرة حمرا
Red lentils and coarse bulgur cooked to a soft mash with deeply caramelised onion, set in a dish and eaten cold in slices.
Antakya, Lebanon
Red Pepper and Walnut Dip
محمرة
Roasted red peppers pounded with walnuts, breadcrumbs, pomegranate molasses and chilli into a coarse, sweet-sour paste.
Lebanon
Rice with Chicken and Nuts
رز على دجاج
Spiced rice cooked with minced or shredded chicken and seven-spice, heaped on a platter and covered in fried almonds and pine nuts.
Kashan, United Arab Emirates
Rose Water
گلاب
Rose water distilled in Kashan each May from Damask roses, used in sweets, tea, stews and rice.
Lebanon
Saj Bread
خبز صاج
Thin flatbread cooked on hot metal saj griddle, light, golden, with pleasant aroma, used in fatteh, mansaf, and various pastries across Saudi, large thin almost transparent with golden color and light weight, a beloved daily staple.
Egypt
Salep
Салеп
A warm, creamy winter drink made from the powdered tubers of wild orchids, mixed with hot milk, sugar, and topped with cinnamon. Salep has been consumed since Ottoman times and is sold by street vendors during the cold months. The same orchid root powder is a key ingredient in Turkish dondurma ice cream.
Lebanon
Sambousek
سمبوسك
Half-moon pastries filled with minced lamb, onion and pine nuts, crimped shut and fried or baked.
Lebanon
Sayadiya
صيادية
White fish fried and laid on rice cooked in a stock darkened with deeply caramelised onion, topped with toasted pine nuts and a tahini sauce.
Lebanon
Semolina and Cream Sweet
مفروكة
Toasted semolina and butter worked into a crumbly base, topped with clotted cream, pistachio and syrup.
Damascus, Lebanon
Sesame and Pistachio Biscuits
برازق
Thin crisp biscuits coated with sesame seeds on one side and pressed with pistachio on the other.
Lebanon
Shanklish
شنكليش
Balls of aged, fermented cheese rolled in za'atar and chilli and left to develop a rind, sharply pungent and crumbly.
Lebanon
Shish Barak
شش برك
Tiny meat-filled dumplings simmered in a tangy garlic-and-mint yoghurt sauce, a Lebanese comfort dish of Ottoman origin.