Middle Eastern Recipes

Serious Eats' Halal Cart-Style Chicken and Rice With White Sauce 

Take the Halal cart home with you.

Traditional Toum (Lebanese Garlic Sauce)

A creamy and pungent garlic paste, perfect for grilled meats or in a traditional chicken shawarma.

The Best Baba Ganoush

A few simple tricks make this the richest, smokiest, creamiest baba ganoush in town.

Easy, Herb-Packed Falafel

For crisp-outside, light-and-fluffy-inside falafel, soak dried chickpeas, then grind them raw.

Israeli-Style Extra-Smooth Hummus

Puréeing garlic in lemon juice and blending chickpeas while they're hot = great hummus.

Zhug (Yemenite Hot Sauce With Cilantro and Parsley)

Olive oil soaks up flavor from pounded herbs, garlic, chilies, and spices in this fiery sauce.

Perfect Homemade Pita Bread

You'll never want to eat store-bought again.

Sabich Sandwiches (Pitas With Eggplant, Eggs, Hummus, and Tahini)

This Israeli sandwich of moist fried eggplant, crunchy pickles, hard-boiled egg, and creamy hummus has won our hearts.

Seekh Kebabs (Pakistani Spicy Grilled Ground Meat Skewers)

Spiced Pakistani beef or lamb kebabs, perfect for your next cookout.

Preserved Lemons

Preserved lemons are useful in all sorts of recipes, and they're easy to make.

Ful Mudammas (Egyptian Breakfast Fava Beans With Tahini)

An Egyptian breakfast dish of favas stewed with tahini and seasoned with garlic, cumin, and lemon.

Spicy Ful Mudammas (Fava Beans) With Olive Oil and Chili

Bean stew loaded with lemon, garlic, cumin, and chili powder.

The Best Tabbouleh Salad

The key to great tabbouleh salad is to control its moisture.

Hummus Masabacha (Hummus With Whole Chickpeas)

A saucy, chunky chickpea dip.

Grilled Turkish-Style Chicken Wings

A Turkish twist on the classic grilled wings of summer.

Kanafeh (Middle Eastern Cheese and Phyllo Dessert)

For the best of salty and sweet, kanafeh combines buttery phyllo and gooey cheese in a floral syrup-soaked pastry.

Grilled Flatbread With Olive Oil and Za'atar

A quick and easy flatbread made on the grill gets topped with za'atar.

Vegetarian Maqluba (Rice Layered With Tomatoes, Eggplant, and Cauliflower)

A tall, golden savory cake filled to bursting with tender vegetables and crowned with yielding rounds of tomatoes.

Seriously Meatless: Tahina

Grilling: Lebanese Kofta

Kofte Kebabs With Spicy Harissa Yogurt Sauce and Grilled Flatbread (Minc...

Kofte kebabs have seasoning built right into them.

Na'ama's Fattoush from 'Jerusalem'

Hummus Fries With Spicy Tahini Dip

Not fried hummus, but a crispy chickpea-flour snack paired with a spicy tahini dip.

Falafel With Black Olives and Harissa

Pair these moderately spicy falafel balls with a hot sauce like zhug for a real burn.