Top 10 Foods and Drinks in the Middle Eastern Cuisine

The Middle East is a transcontinental region that includes Western Asia, Turkey, and Egypt.

The largest ethnic groups in the region are Arabs, Turks, Persians, and Kurds.

Countries: Iran, Iraq, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Yemen.

The Top Ten

  1. Shawarma

    Shawarma is a meat preparation on a vertical rotating spit (rotisserie). Many types of meat are placed on the spit (lamb, chicken, turkey, beef, veal). They may be grilled for as long as a day.

    Shawarma can be served on a plate, as a sandwich, or wrap.

  2. Dolma

    Dolma is a family of stuffed vegetable dishes. Common vegetables to stuff include tomato, pepper, onion, zucchini, eggplant, and garlic. The main ingredients of the filling are rice and ground meat, but rice can be replaced with grains or beans. The stuffing may not include meat.

    Also, there are similar dishes of cabbage or grape leaves wrapped around a filling.

  3. Baklava

    It's a rich, sweet dessert pastry made of layers of filo filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey. It originated in the Ottoman Empire.

    There are minor phonetic and spelling variations in several languages.

    This is also Greek. Very delicious and very sweet.

    Oh damn, these are amazing stuff.

  4. Hummus

    Hummus is widely available in Canadian grocery stores. I guess it's available in the US, too.

  5. Kebab

  6. Pita Bread

  7. Lamb

    Persian lamb is some of the best lamb.

  8. Tabbouleh

    (also tabouleh, tabbouli, tabouli, or taboulah) - it's a parsley-based salad with tomatoes and bulgur (or couscous instead of bulgur), and other ingredients.

    Tabbouleh is available in almost all Canadian grocery stores, but when it isn't fresh, it isn't very good.

  9. Figs

  10. Tulumba

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    Halva

  12. ?

    Floss Halva

    13. The Contenders

  13. Turkish Coffee

    Probably one of the best kinds of coffee.

  14. Shamali

  15. Tursu

    It's a mix of pickled vegetables and there are many varieties.

    Usually, it includes: cauliflower, carrots, cabbage, peppers, celery, pickles, beets, shallots, garlic, green tomatoes, and more.

  16. Meze

    Meze is a selection of small dishes served to accompany alcoholic drinks.

    Other versions of this word: mezze, mazzeh, mazze, and more (there are many languages and dialects in the region).

  17. Tea‎

  18. Dates

  19. Chickpeas

  20. Rice

  21. Lavash

    I like lavash. They're like tortillas, except thinner and not Mexican.

  22. Baladi Cheese

  23. Fasoulia

    It's a bean dish - stew or soup, with added vegetables (onion, tomato, carrot, and many other varieties).

  24. Falafel

    It's a deep-fried ball, doughnut, or patty made from ground chickpeas, fava beans, or both.

  25. Lentils

  26. Kofta

    Kofta is a family of meatball or meatloaf dishes - ground meat mixed with spices and/or onions, or other ingredients, such as rice, bulgur, vegetables, bread, or eggs. There are many varieties. Only in Turkey, there were 291 different kinds of kofta in 2005.

  27. Peppers

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