country Essentials · 13 foods
Lebanon Essentials
A considered first route through Lebanon: the foods that carry its everyday habits, celebrations, ingredients, and memory.
Explore all Lebanon foods →THE
ESSENTIALS
The complete shortlist
13 foods to know.
Each selection includes the reason it belongs here—so this is a guide, not just a pile of names.
Lebanon
Tabbouleh
تبولة
Overwhelmingly parsley with only a scattering of bulgur — a grain-heavy version is the export mistake.
Aleppo, Lebanon
Kibbeh
كبة
Raw lamb pounded smooth with fine bulgur, made on slaughter day and eaten with oil, mint and onion.
Lebanon
Thyme Flatbread
منقوشة زعتر
Bought from the bakery before nine and folded in half over cucumber and mint on the way to work.
United Arab Emirates
Hummus
حمص
A well pressed into cold hummus and filled with hot fried lamb, pine nuts and browned butter.
Lebanon
Mutabbal
متبل
Aubergine burnt over an open flame, then beaten with tahini — the smoke is the whole dish.
Lebanon
Marinated Chicken Skewers
شيش طاووق
Yoghurt-marinated chicken off the coals, judged entirely by the fierce white garlic toum beside it.
Lebanon
Baalbek Meat Pies
صفيحة بعلبكية
Small open lamb pies sharpened with pomegranate molasses, ordered by the dozen and eaten hot.
Lebanon
Yoghurt and Chickpea Layers
فتة
Fried bread under warm chickpeas and garlic yoghurt, assembled at the last second before it softens.
Lebanon
Cheese Knefeh in Sesame Bread
كنافة بالجبنة
Eaten for breakfast, stuffed into a sesame bread roll, with the cheese still stretching.
Lebanon
Strained Yoghurt
لبنة
Yoghurt hung until it thickens enough to hold a well of olive oil, with mint and olives at breakfast.
Lebanon
Arak
عرق
Water first, then ice, or the aniseed emulsion breaks — and it is drunk through the mezze, not after.
Lebanon
Bekaa Valley Wine
نبيذ لبناني
Grown at a thousand metres on the plateau between two ranges, which is what keeps the acidity.
Lebanon
Fattoush
فتوش
Chipped pita over purslane, radish and sumac — the third salad of the Beirut table, finished the minute it is tossed.