Cuisine of Syria

The term Syrian cuisine refers to the style or method of cooking in Syria.

Pita bread ("khubz"), which is round flat bread, and "hummus", a dip made of ground chickpeas, sesame tahini, lemon juice, and garlic, are two popular Syrian foods. "Baba ghanoush", or eggplant spread, is also a dish made by Syrians.

Popular Syrian salads include small diced "tabbouleh", the national dish of Syria, and "fattoush".

The Syrian cuisine includes other dishes like stuffed zucchini ("mahshe"), dolma, kebab, "kibbeh", "kibbeh nayyeh", "mujaddara", shawarma, and "shanklish". Syrians often serve selections of appetizers, known as "meze", before the main course. "Za'atar", minced beef, and cheese manakish are popular hors d'oeuvre. Syrians are also well-known for their "cheese". The very popular string cheese "Jibbneh Mashallale" is make of curd cheese and is pulled and twisted together. Syrians also make cookies to usually accomany their cheese called "ka'ak". These are made of farina and other ingredients, rolled out, shapped into rings and baked. Another form of a similar cookie is to fill with crushed dates mixed with butter to eat with their "jibbneh mashallale". Another way to eat "jibbneh mashallale" is to toast some "khubz"(Arabic for bread) and top with cheese. The Syrian alcoholic drink is the "arak" beverage. One of the popular "dessert"s made by Syrians is the "ba'lawa", which is made of "filo" pastry filled with chopped nuts and soaked in honey.

A spice mixture called "baharat mshakale'" is widely used in Syrian cooking.

ee also

*Arab cuisine
*Palestinian cuisine

External links

* [http://www.cp-pc.ca/english/syria/eating.html Eating the Syrian way]
* [http://www.syrialive.net/food/food.htm Syrian food]
* [http://www.americansephardifederation.org/PDF/articles/Syrian%20Food%20and%20Culture.pdf Syrian food and culture]