Lebanese Cuisine Recipe

 Lebanese cuisine includes an abundance of starches, fruits, vegetables, fresh fish and seafood; animal fats are consumed sparingly. Poultry is eaten more often than red meat, and when red meat is eaten it is usually lamb on the coast and goat meat in the mountain regions. It also includes copious amounts of garlic and olive oil, often seasoned by lemon juice. Rarely a meal goes by in Lebanon that does not include these ingredients. Most often foods are either grilled, baked or sautéed in olive oil; butter or cream is rarely used other than in a few desserts. Vegetables are often eaten raw or pickled as well as cooked. While the cuisine of Lebanon doesn’t boast an entire repertoire of sauces, it focuses on herbs, spices and the freshness of ingredients; the assortment of dishes and combinations are almost limitless. The meals are full of robust, earthy flavors and, like most Mediterranean countries, much of what the Lebanese eat is dictated by the seasons.

In Lebanon, very rarely are drinks served without being accompanied by food. One of the more healthy aspects of Lebanese cuisine is the manner or custom in which their food is often served, it’s referred to as mezze. Similar to the tapas of Spain and antipasto of Italy, mezze is an array of small dishes placed before the guests creating an array of colors, flavors, textures and aromas. This style of serving food is less a part of family life than it is of entertaining and cafes. Mezze may be as simple as pickled vegetables, hummus and bread, or it may become an entire meal consisting of grilled marinated seafood, skewered meats, a variety of cooked and raw salads and an arrangement of desserts.

Although simple fresh fruits are often served towards the end of a Lebanese meal, there is also dessert and coffee. Baklava, which is usually associated with Greek cuisine, is also a popular Lebanese dessert. The main difference between the Lebanese variety and its Greek cousin, is Lebanese baklava often contains pistachio nuts and is drizzled with a rose-water syrup, the Greek variety usually contains walnuts and honey.

The Lebanese gastronomy is a rich mixture of various products and ingredients coming from the different Lebanese regions. Olive oil, herbs, spices, fresh fruits and vegetables are commonly used, as well as dairy products, cereals, fish and meat. The Lebanese cuisine is extremely rich in flavors and colors and yet often offers recipes easy to prepare and suitable for a healthy diet.

The Mezze, an elaborate variety of thirty hot and cold dishes, had made the Lebanese cuisine renowned worldwide. A typical Mezze may consist, of salads such as the Tabouleh and Fattoush, together with dip such as Hummus, Baba ghanoush or Moutabal, and some patties such as the Sambusacs and finally the stuffed grape leaves.

The family cuisine offers also a range of dishes, such as the stews or Yakhnehs, which can be cooked in many forms depending on the ingredients used and are usually served with meat and rice vermicelli.

The Lebanese flat pita bread is essential to every Lebanese meal, and can be used to replace the usage of the fork.

The Arak, an anise-flavored liqueur, is the Lebanese national alcoholic drink and is usually served with the traditional convivial Lebanese meals. Another Lebanese drink is the Lebanese wine, which is now enjoying a worldwide reputation.

Known among the great variety of Lebanese sweets, are pastries such as Baklava, and the Lebanese ice cream with its oriental flavors.

Social events play a significant role in the Lebanese gastronomy, as some dishes are particularly prepared on special occasions: the Meghli desert, for instance is served to celebrate a newborn baby in the family.

National cuisine

This is a selection of appetizers that can be eaten alone as in breakfast, as well as important ingredients of Lebanese dishes

• Ackawi – white cheese originating from the Palestinian town of Akka now called Acre or Akko
• Baba ghanouj – char-grilled aubergine (eggplant), tahina, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic puree — served as a dip.
• Baklava – a dessert of layered pastry filled with nuts and steeped in honey-lemon syrup, usually cut in a triangular or diamond shape.
• Balila – known as Cumin Chickpeas.
• Batata harra – literally “spicy potatoes”.
• Fattoush – salad of toasted croutons, cucumbers, tomatoes and mint.
• Falafel – small deep-fried patties made of highly-spiced ground chick-peas.
• Fried cauliflower
• Fried eggplant
• Fuul (Vicia faba) slow cooked mask of brown beans and red lentils dressed with lemon olive oil and cumin.
• Halva – sesame paste sweet, usually made in a slab and studded with fruit and nuts.
• Hummus – dip or spread made of blended chickpeas, sesame tahini, lemon juice, and garlic, and typically eaten with pita bread
• Kunafi – shoelace pastry dessert stuffed with sweet white cheese, nuts and syrup.
• Kibbeh – the national dish, mainly stuffed, can be made in different form like (fried,uncooked,cooked with yogurt)
• Kibbeh nayye – raw kibbeh eaten like steak tartar.
• Kofta or Kafta – fingers, stars or a flat cake of minced meat and spices that can be baked or charcoal-grilled on skewers.
• Kousa Mahshi- stuffed squash, many varieties are used
• Kubideh – served with pivaz (a mix of minced parsley, onions, ground cuminand sumac).
• Labneh- strained yogurt, spreadable and garnished with good olive oil and sea salt.
• Znood Es-sett – filo pastry cigars with various fillings
• Lahm bil ajĩn a pastry filled with minced meat, onions, and nuts.
• Ma’amoul – date cookies shaped in a wooden mould called a tabi made specially for Easter Holiday or Ramadan.
• Manaeesh – mini pizzas that are made in any number of local bakeries or Furns (Furn Assalam, Ain El Hilwe, Saida), traditionally garnished with cheese, Zaatar, or minced meat and onions. some bakeries allow you to bring your own toppings and build your own or buy the ones they sell there. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• Mujaddara (Imjaddarra) – cooked lentils together with wheat or rice, garnished with onions that have been sauteed in vegetable oil.
• Mutabbel – made from eggplant
• Pastirma or Bastirma
• Samkeh harra- literally translated to “hot fish”, grilled fish that has been marinated with chilis, citrus,and cilantro
• Shanklish
• Shawarma- marinated meat (either chicken or lamb) that is skewered on big rods and cooked slowly, then shaved and placed in a 10 inch pita roll with pickles, tomatoes, and other tangy condiments.
• Shish taouk- grilled chicken skewers that utilize only white meat, marinated in olive oil, lemon, parsley, and sumac
• Siyyadiyeh – delicately spiced fish served on a bed of rice. fish cooked in saffron and served on rice with onions, sumac, and a tahini sauce (the most important part of the dish) originated in Saida (saidon).
• Tabbouleh – diced parsley salad with burghul, tomato and mint.
• Tahini- sesame paste
• Wara’ Enab – stuffed grape leaves
• Za’atar – dried thyme and sumac that can differ from region to region and from family to family. Most are made in house, but can be bought at Lebanese larders.