Which countries are part of the Middle East varies depending on who you ask. From a food perspective, the flavours of Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine (the Levant), Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, The UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar (the countries of the Arabian Gulf), Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt (North Africa) all have a lot in common. The influences crosses borders to neighbouring Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Xinjjiang in China, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Sudan, Somalia, Zanzibar and Greece too; as well as the Middle Eastern/Arabic influence on Malaysian and Indonesian cuisines.
Burghul with Vermicelli Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Middle Eastern cooking class! Rice with vermicelli is a popular Lebanese side dish and I also love this version using burghul that’s packaged with fine vermicelli noodles already through it (Duru brand from Turkey, available at Middle Eastern grocers). You could also toast some vermicelli […]
Lebanese Vermicelli Rice Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Lebanese cooking class! Riz bi sh’arieh is one of my favourite rice dishes – so simple and so delicious. The fried vermicelli noodles add another dimension visually and texturally – especially if you toast them until they’re really dark golden – and the butter adds […]
Cacik Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Turkish cooking class inspired by Somer Sivrioğlu! Yoghurt is a great accompaniment to anything fried as the acid cuts through the richness. I especially love it mixed with garlic and cucumber to make cacik (çaçık in Turkish, pronounced jajuk). Cacik is similar to Greek tzatziki except that […]
Tzatziki Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Greek cooking class inspired by Janni Kyritsis! Yoghurt is served with just about everything in Greece and throughout the eastern Mediterranean – plain, drained as labne, or mixed with garlic and often cucumber. This combination is perhaps best known by its Greek name, tzatziki, while the Turks […]
Sabzi Khordan (Persian Fresh Herb Platter) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Persian cooking class! Persian food reminds me of Vietnamese with its love of fresh herb platters served at every meal. In Iran it’s any combination of mint, parsley, coriander, dill, tarragon, basil, chives, green onions and radishes; other wild or seasonal greens […]
Maast-O Khiar (Persian Yogurt Dip) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Persian cooking class! Yoghurt and rice are natural companions and, given that rice appears at virtually all Persian meals, so does yoghurt. At its simplest it’s a bowl of thick, tangy natural yoghurt, but it’s also often maast-o khiar, which is a little […]
Saffron Pilaf Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes There are many different styles of pilaf (or pilau) across India and the Middle East. What they have in common is cooking long grain rice by absorption – sometimes in water, sometimes in stock – and usually with some […]
Prawn Kebabs Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Lebanese cooking class! I like to leave the shells on when I’m grilling prawn kebabs as they protect the flesh and keep it juicy and tender. They’re a bit messy to eat this way so ensure you have large serviettes, finger bowls, plus bowls for the […]
Eggplant Fatteh Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Lebanese cooking class! Fatteh comes from the Arabic verb to ‘break up’ or ‘crumble’, which is what’s done to the stale flatbread in this eggplant fatteh recipe. Fatteh is one of those ingenious peasant dishes created to ensure nothing goes to waste and it’s a great […]
Tabbouleh Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Lebanese cooking class! Along with hummus, tabbouleh (tabouli) is perhaps the best-known Lebanese dish outside the Middle East. It was certainly part of my introduction to Lebanese food and I remember my sister’s mother-in-law – Teta as everyone called her – making it in huge metal bowls […]
