Turkish cuisine
Lahmacun: The Flatbread Wrongly Nicknamed “Turkish Pizza”
Country of origin: Turkey, with a closely contested claim from Armenian culinary tradition Lahmacun – an extremely thin,…
Levantine cuisine
Çiğ Köfte: The Raw Dish That Became Meatless By Law
Country of origin: Turkey (Şanlıurfa region), with strong ties across the Levant as well Today’s random pick lands…
Turkish cuisine
İskender Kebab: The Only Kebab Named After Its Inventor
Country of origin: Turkey (Bursa) Today’s random pick lands on İskender kebab — thin-sliced döner meat laid over…
Egyptian cuisine
Bamia: The Okra Stew That Splits Opinion Along Texture Lines
Country of origin: Widely shared across the Levant, Egypt, Iraq, and the Gulf Bamia is a tomato-based stew…
Lebanese cuisine
Sfiha: The Open-Faced Meat Pie of the Levant
Country of origin: Levant (Syria and Lebanon in particular) Today’s random pick lands on sfiha (also spelled sfeeha…
Jordanian cuisine
Fattoush: The Salad Built to Waste Nothing
Country of origin: Levant (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine) Today’s random pick lands on fattoush — a bright, tangy…
Bahrain
Luqaimat: The Gulf’s Golden Fried Dumplings
Country of origin: Gulf region (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman) Today’s random pick lands on luqaimat…
Jordanian cuisine
Freekeh: The Grain That Was Invented By Accident
Country of origin: Levant (widely eaten across Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine) Today’s random pick lands on freekeh…
Egyptian cuisine
Qatayef: The Dessert That Only Shows Up Once a Year
Country of origin: Levant and Egypt (widely eaten across the Arab Middle East) Today’s random pick lands on…
Turkish cuisine
Halloumi: The Cheese That Refuses to Melt
Country of origin: Cyprus (with a long shared history across the Eastern Mediterranean and Levant) A firm, salty,…