Aleppo, Syria
Aleppo Pepper
فلفل حلبي
Halaby chilli sun-dried, deseeded and crushed with salt and a little oil into moist, deep red flakes with a slow, fruity heat.
western-asia
Syria
Explore 87 foods connected to Syria, from everyday staples to rare local specialties.
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Aleppo Essentials
7 editor-selected foods for understanding the place through what people eat.
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Traditional foods from Syria.
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Aleppo, Syria
Aleppo Sour Cherries
كرز
Small sour morello cherries from the hills around Aleppo, the basis of the city's cherry kebab.
Lebanon
Amar el Din
قمر الدين
A thick apricot drink made from dried apricot paste dissolved in water, served cold during Ramadan across Lebanon and the Levant.
Lebanon
Arak
عرق
A clear grape spirit twice or three times distilled with aniseed, diluted with water and ice so it turns milky white.
Lebanon
Ashta
قشطة
Thick clotted cream scented with orange blossom or rose water, used to fill nearly every Lebanese pastry and pudding.
Turkey
Ayran
Ajran
Ayran is a cold drink of yogurt, water and salt, whisked until lightly foamy. In Bulgaria it is a summer fountain and meal drink, never a sweet yogurt.
Lebanon
Baklava
بقلاوة
Layers of paper-thin phyllo brushed with butter and filled with chopped walnuts or pistachios, baked crisp then drenched in lemon- or rose-scented sugar syrup. One square, cut diamond-small, is the shared Ottoman dessert of the whole eastern Mediterranean.
Syria
Balah al-Sham
بلح الشام
Choux dough piped through a fluted nozzle into hot oil and soaked in cold sugar syrup while still hot.
Syria
Ballourieh
بلورية
Fine shredded kadaif pastry pressed flat around a thick pistachio layer, baked pale and soaked in syrup.
Syria
Balouza
بلوزة
A Syrian milk pudding thickened with rice starch, perfumed with orange blossom and served cold in small bowls.
Damascus, Syria
Booza
بوظة
Mastic and salep-stretched ice cream pounded with a wooden pestle in a chilled drum until elastic, then rolled in pistachio.
Lebanon
Bulgur
برغل
Wheat parboiled, dried and cracked to different grades, from the fine grain in tabbouleh to coarse pilaf bulgur.
Jordan
Burbara
برباره
Wheat berries boiled soft and sweetened with sugar, cinnamon and anise, topped with nuts, raisins and pomegranate seeds.
Aleppo, Syria
Cherry Kebab
كباب كرز
Small lamb meatballs cooked in a sauce of sour morello cherries and pomegranate molasses, served over flatbread with pine nuts.
United Arab Emirates
Dolmades
Ντολμάδες
Greek stuffed grape leaves with rice, herbs, and olive oil, rolled into small parcels. A meze and Clean Monday staple, tangy and herby, served cold with lemon, a national dish.
Egypt
Erk Sous (Licorice)
عرق سوس
Erk Sous is an Egyptian and Syrian Ramadan drink made from sweetened licorice root and served chilled.
Syria
Fatayer Jebneh
فطائر جبنة
Small Syrian pastry rounds hold brined white cheese and bake until the dough is crisp at the edge and tender inside.
Syria
Fattet Djaj
فتة دجاج
Fried bread layered with rice, shredded chicken, garlic yoghurt, toasted pine nuts and browned butter.
Lebanon
Fattoush
فتوش
Salad with crispy bread pieces, vegetables, and sumac dressing, fresh vegetables with crispy bread and tangy sumac dressing, well-balanced, a popular and refreshing Arabic salad in UAE, daily and beloved.
Lebanon
Garlic Paste
ثوم
Raw garlic emulsified with oil, lemon and salt into a stiff white paste, served with grilled chicken and in sandwiches.
Lebanon
Green Wheat
فريكة
Wheat harvested green, set alight so the chaff burns off, then dried and cracked, giving a smoky, chewy grain.
Lebanon
Grilled Meat-Stuffed Bread
عرايس
Flatbread split and packed with spiced minced lamb, then pressed on the grill until the bread crisps and the fat soaks into it.
Homs, Lebanon
Halawet el Jibn
حلاوة الجبن
Soft cheese dough rolled around ashta, cut into small pieces and drenched in orange-blossom syrup with pistachios; an Egyptian form of the Levantine sweet.
Damascus, Syria
Harak Osbao
حرق أصبعه
Lentils and small pasta squares cooked with pomegranate molasses, tamarind and coriander, topped with fried bread and crisp onion.
United Arab Emirates
Hummus
حمص
Chickpeas boiled soft and beaten with tahini, lemon and garlic into a smooth paste, swirled with olive oil — the shared Levantine staple claimed by every coast of the eastern Mediterranean, eaten with pita at any hour.
Damascus, Syria
Jazarieh
جزرية
Carrot cooked down with sugar into a firm paste, studded with pistachio and cut into squares rolled in coconut.
United Arab Emirates
Jellab
جلاب
Jellab is a sweet drink made from grape molasses, dates, and rose water, served with pine nuts and raisins during Ramadan; it has a deep burgundy color.
Syria
Ka'ak
كعك
Sesame-crusted bread rings sold from barrows, torn open and filled with za'atar or cheese.
Aleppo, Syria
Karabij Halab
كرابيج حلب
Semolina domes filled with pistachio or walnut, served buried in natef — a white foam whipped from soapwort root.
Aleppo, Syria
Kebab Halabi
كباب حلبي
Minced lamb kebabs grilled and finished in a spiced tomato and Aleppo pepper sauce with aubergine.
Aleppo, Syria
Kebab Khashkhash
كباب خشخاش
Minced lamb worked with red chilli paste, pine nuts and parsley, moulded onto skewers and grilled.
Aleppo, Lebanon
Kibbeh
كبة
Meat and bulgur croquettes, fried or baked, crispy exterior with well-seasoned meat and proper bulgur texture, a popular Arabic dish in UAE, traditional and beloved, festive and daily, versatile and hearty.
Syria
Kleijeh
كليجة
Small pastries filled with date paste, walnut or a sweet aniseed dough, baked for Eid.
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.
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.
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.