Shish kebabs - Türkiye
According to Nevin Halici's Turkish Cookbook, kebabs first appeared in the Turkish dictionary in the 11th century. It can be assumed that the Ottoman Empire (the name of ancient Türkiye) popularized kebabs throughout the Middle East and now many countries in the world, including Vietnam.
Kebabs are the epitome of Turkish cuisine. Some of the best kebabs in the world come from the country's southern provinces.
Khobz - Lebanon (Lebanon)
Bread holds a sacred place in Muslim culture and it is considered a sin to waste it. Wheat was first cultivated around 12,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent.
The first breads in Lebanon were called saj (bread baked on a hot metal plate) and tannur (bread baked on the wall of a traditional oven). Pita bread came later with the development of front ovens.
B'stilla - Morocco
The caliphs of the Abbasid Caliphate loved the recipes of Persian chefs, who created a delicate combination of sweet and savory. B'stilla, the Moroccan pigeon pie, is the ultimate example of this combination.
A cake made of layers of ultra-thin pastry encasing stewed pigeon, omelet, and toasted almonds. B'stilla is decorated with cinnamon and powdered sugar and served at celebrations, both religious and secular.
Mansaf - Jordan
Popular among Jordanians and Palestinians, mansaf is a dish that combines two staples of the Muslim world – rice and bread. It features lamb cooked in a fermented dried yogurt sauce derived from jameed and served with rice or bulgur.
Traditionally, diners eat mansaf from a large platter. Mansaf is the national dish of Jordan and can also be found in Palestine, Iraq, southern Syria and Saudi Arabia.
Tharid - Bahrain
A favorite of the Prophet Mohammad, tharid is a thick crusty bread filled with stewed meat and vegetables. During Ramadan, families gather at sunset for a meal called iftar in Arabic.
Every Middle Eastern country has its own signature Ramadan dishes. Tharid is the iftar dish in Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
Bastani - Iran
The Persians are famous for making the world's first ice cream by pouring grape juice or syrup over ice they kept in underground chambers. Bastani is an ice cream made from milk, eggs, sugar, rose water, saffron, vanilla, and pistachios.
Sometimes bastani also contains salep (orchid root powder), the most expensive spice in the world. Bastani also contains chunks of frozen cream.
Kabab karaz
Kabab Karaz is featured in the first Arabic cookbook, Kitab al-Tabik, written in the 10th century by Abu Muhammad ibn Sayyar for the prince of Aleppo (a city considered the culinary capital of the Middle East). This meatball dish in cherry tomato sauce is a quintessential Aleppo dish. It is flavored with fresh cherries picked during the short season, in early June.
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