Curious about the cuisines of the Middle East? Read our guides and essays to deepen your knowledge of Middle Eastern food history, cooking techniques, ingredients, and more.

Explore Middle Eastern Cuisines

All Armenian Cuisine Turkish Cuisine Middle Eastern
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A Visit to Dubai's Fish Souk
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Serious Entertaining: A Middle Eastern-Inspired Feast
Overhead view of a plate of labneh with zatar pita chips surrounded by a grocery store container of labneh, a bowl of zatar, and a plate of pita chips
All About Labaneh
Overhead view of rice pilaf on a pale plate
Armenian-Style Rice Pilaf
Overhead view of Ganach Lupia in a dutch ovenANACHLUPIA
Ganach Lupia (Armenian Braised Green Beans)
Lavash triangles on a serving platter with dipping sauce.
Lavash Triangles Recipe
Overhead view of harissa with pickled vegetables and lavash
Harissa (Armenian Wheat and Chicken Porridge)
Stack of baked lavash on a serving platter
Lavash (Armenian Flatbread)
an overhead shot of boreks on a marble surface
Borek (Armenian Spinach and Cheese Turnovers)
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Sini Manti (Armenian Baked Lamb Manti) Recipe
Armenian pizza being cut with a pizza cutter
"Armenian" Pizza With Spiced Lamb Sausage, Armenian String Cheese, and Sumac
A whole gatah (armenian coffee cake) cut into slices
Gata (Armenian Coffee Cake)
Platter of eetch served with herb salad, lettuces, and lavash.
Eetch (Armenian Bulgur, Tomato, and Herb Salad)
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Baklava and Beyond: 12 Turkish Sweets You Should Know
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How to Stock a Turkish Pantry: Flavorful Ingredients Worth Seeking Out
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A Tasting Tour of Sunnyside's Top-Notch Turkish and Lebanese Food
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Destination, Jersey: The Wonderful Turkish Food of Paterson, NJ
Pomegranate Anything
My 16 Favorite Foods in Istanbul
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Menemen (Turkish-Style Scrambled Eggs With Tomatoes, Onions, and Chilies) Recipe
Two adana kebabs on a plate with flatbread, sumac onions, parsley, tomatoes, and pickled peppers.
Adana Kebabs (Ground Lamb Kebabs) Recipe
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You Kanat Believe How Good These Turkish Chicken Wings Are
Bruce Aidells' Turkish Pomegranate-Glazed Lamb Shoulder Chops and Carrots
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Vegan Menemen: Turkish-Style Scrambled Eggs, Without the Eggs
Halal cart-style chicken and rice
Serious Eats' Halal Cart-Style Chicken and Rice With White Sauce 
A small bowl of toum, Lebanese garlic sauce, with a spoon next to it.
Traditional Toum (Lebanese Garlic Sauce) Recipe
Dipping pita bread into baba ganoush in a small bowl, drizzled with olive oil.
The Best Baba Ganoush Recipe
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Homemade Pita Bread Recipe
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Chicken and Lentil Stew With Tomatoes and Onions Recipe
Maqlubeh plated on a white dish with a bowl of sauce and a small salad next to it
Maqlubeh Recipe
Plated msakhan.
Msakhan (Palestinian Flatbreads With Onion, Sumac, and Spiced Roast Chicken)
Taboon breads in a cast-iron skillet on river pebbles and spread out across a white linen.
Taboon
Shurabet el eid in a white bowl
Shurabet el Eid (Holiday Soup) Recipe
North African Tuna Rice Salad
North African Tuna and Rice Salad Recipe
Labaniyeh bil Ruz in a black bowl with toasted pine nuts
Labaniyeh bil Ruz (Garlicky Yogurt and Rice Porridge) Recipe
Overhead view of finished dawali
Dawali
Hashweh with chicken served with a bowl of yogurt and farmers salad.
Hashweh
Overhead shot of Salata falahiyeh in a patterned blue bowl with crisp pita
Salata Falahiyeh (Palestinian or Farmers Salad) Recipe
A platter of falafel garnished with flat-leaf parsley, stacked on top of hummus with pickles and cucumber-tomato salad.
Easy, Herb-Packed Falafel Recipe
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8 Ways to Use Tahini
A sabich sandwich - pita stuffed with fried eggplant, eggs, hummus, and tahini.
Sabich Sandwiches (Pitas With Eggplant, Eggs, Hummus, and Tahini) Recipe
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Zhug (Yemenite Hot Sauce With Cilantro and Parsley) Recipe
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Kanafeh (Middle Eastern Cheese and Phyllo Dessert) Recipe
A pile of mejadra topped with freshly fried onions.
Mejadra From 'Jerusalem'
Basic Hummus Recipe from Ottolenghi's 'Jerusalem'
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Tahini Sauce With Garlic and Lemon Recipe
Extra-creamy Israeli-style hummus in a shallow wooden bowl, topped with cooked chickpeas, olive oil, za'atar, and paprika.
The Best Smooth Hummus Recipe
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Hummus Masabacha (Hummus With Whole Chickpeas) Recipe
A pile of falafel on top of hummus, on a plate with a tomato-cucumber salad, parsley, and some pickles.
The Secrets to the Best Easy Homemade Falafel | The Food Lab
Lemons layered with salt for preserving in clamp-lid glass jar
Preserved Lemons Recipe
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Spicy Ful Medames (Fava Beans) With Olive Oil and Chile Recipe
Stuffed Eggplant with Lamb and Pine Nuts from 'Jerusalem'
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Tabbouleh Salad Recipe
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Einat Admony's Chicken Soup With Gondi (Iranian Chicken and Chickpea Dumplings) Recipe
Na'ama's Fattoush from 'Jerusalem'
Turmeric Chicken with Sumac and Lime from 'The New Persian Kitchen'
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Apple-Ginger Tishpishti (Gluten-Free Almond and Walnut Cake) Recipe
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Grilled Flatbread With Olive Oil and Za'atar Recipe
cheese bourekas
Cheese Bourekas Recipe | Cook the Book