Middle East Food

Boilied Cauliflower

2010-01-03T20:55:00.000-08:00

One of my readers asked me to blog about a vegetarian Middle-Eastern meal. Although the majority of Arabic food involves some type of meat, there are various vegetarian starters/appetizers such as hummus, baba ghanoush, fatoush and taboola. There are also some main vegetarian Arabic dishes that are cooked by Middle East families when they are sick of eating meat. Personally, I love meat so I

Shish Barak (Meat Dumplings)

2009-12-25T19:11:00.000-08:00

Shish barak is a very interesting Middle Eastern dish that seems to be cooked rarely by households. It's certainly not as popular as your traditional maklooba and mansaf dishes but it's a delicious meal that's loved in the Middle East. I think some Syrians might be offended when reading this post because they love shish barak. Let me just say that I used to hate when my made shish barak

Yellow Rice with Chicken (Oozi)

2009-12-13T17:05:00.000-08:00

Another popular Arabic dish is yellow rice with chicken or otherwise known as Oozi. Oozi can be made in different ways depending on the Middle Eastern country you're in. I am going to talk about how the Palestinian version of Oozi is prepared. Very similar to Kabsa, the main ingredients in Oozi are basmati rice and roasted chicken. The chicken can be roasted as a whole or in pieces. The roasted

Maftoul (Couscous)

2009-12-02T19:11:00.000-08:00

If anyone is thinking to themselves, "do people in the middle east eat any food that doesn't include rice?" The answer is um, "sometimes."Maftoul,also known as couscous, is one of the few main Arabic dishes that doesn't include rice. Maftoul or couscous consists of wheat granules that are rolled up into small pellets. A special two-in-one steamer is used to prepare this dish. The bottom steamer

Kabsa

2009-11-26T15:52:00.001-08:00

As you can read from my previous posts, I love writing about food, especially Arabic food. There is nothing more delicious than a warm home-made Arabic dish. The family is all gathered around kitchen or dining room table, everyone says bismallah al-rahman al Rahim (In the name of God, the most gracious, most merciful) and then everyone just starts digging in and conversing about the current day

Mlukhiyah

2009-11-22T16:20:00.000-08:00

Another popular Arabic dish is the healthy dish of Mlukhiyah. Mlukhiyah consists of a spinach like herb stew with rice. Of course, you can't serve Mlukhiyah without chicken, which is cooked in the spinach stew. Some people cook mlukhiyah with rabbit instead of chicken. The spinach-like herb used to prepare Mlukhiyah is only found in hot climates with abundant rain. This herb needs lots of

Musakhan

2009-11-08T19:52:00.000-08:00

Musakhan is one of the rare Middle Eastern dishes that doesn't include rice. Musakhan consists of flat bread cooked in a traditional arabic oven (taboon). Onions are fried in a rich olive oil in a deep pan and the cooked onions are spread over the flat bread. Almonds and the popular spice of sumac are also spread over the flat bread. Finally, roasted chicken is placed over the flat bread.

Mansaf

2009-11-08T19:04:00.000-08:00

Mansaf is another arabic dish that is a favorite for Middle East households. I rate this meal as my second favorite arabic dish. Typically,like most arabic dishes, this meal's main ingredient is rice but it's the yogurt-like product called jameed (khishik) that makes this meal delicious. Lamb is another main ingredient for this dish as the chopped pieces of lamb are spread over the cooked rice. A

Maklooba

2009-11-07T19:20:00.000-08:00

Like I mentioned in my first article, Maklooba (upside down) is truly my favorite meal ever. I have tried various types of foods including of course, Arabic, American, Indian, Mexican, Thai, Chinese and so many other food types but nothing comes close to maklooba. I would even challenge anyone to try my Mom's maklooba and compare it to a nice juicy porterhouse house steak from Morton's.

About This Blog

2009-11-07T19:15:00.000-08:00

This is my first blog post so I would like to introduce the purpose of this blog as I believe various people from different ethnicities, cultures, and races would appreciate the delicious information discussed in this blog. As a Palestinian growing up in a traditional arabic family, I have lived in a household where food plays an important role in our daily lives. My mom and my sisters spend