The 20 most famous dishes of Jordan
Jordanian cooking comes from the desert and the villages, built on lamb, jameed, wheat and ghee, and led by mansaf, the emblem of generosity and hospitality.
1Mansaf
Jordan's national dish: lamb cooked in jameed (dried yoghurt) sauce, served over rice and shrak bread and…
2Zarb
Lamb, chicken and vegetables slow-cooked in a pit under the sand, the Bedouin way of Wadi Rum, emerging…
3Galayet Bandora
Tomatoes fried in olive oil with garlic and hot pepper — the simplest and tastiest of dishes, scooped up with…
4Rashoof
A thick winter soup of lentils, bulgur and jameed, eaten on cold days in Jordanian villages.
5Shrak Bread
Very thin bread baked on a domed saj, the base of mansaf and the companion of the Bedouin table.
6Qidra
Rice, lamb, chickpeas and whole garlic cooked in a copper pot in a wood oven — the dish of Hebron and…
7Sajieh
Lamb or chicken pieces with onion, peppers and tomatoes stir-fried on a hot saj and eaten with bread.
8Kofta bil Tahini
Kofta pressed into a tray with potatoes, covered with lemony tahini sauce and baked.
9Makmoura
Layers of dough, chicken and onions slow-cooked in olive oil, baked until golden — a dish of Irbid and…
10Khobeizeh
Wild mallow leaves cooked with onion, olive oil and lemon — the springtime dish of the villages.
11Fatteh Djaj
Toasted bread, rice and shredded chicken under a yoghurt-tahini sauce with fried nuts.
12Hummus bil Lahmeh
Smooth hummus topped with lamb fried in ghee and pine nuts — Friday breakfast in Amman.
13Amman-Style Falafel
Chickpea falafel the famous Amman way — crunchy outside, green inside — in a sandwich with tahini and pickles.
14Jordanian Ful
Fava beans mashed with garlic, lemon, chili and olive oil, garnished with tomato and parsley.
15Arayes
Pita stuffed with kofta mince and grilled until crisp, the juices soaking into the bread.
16Awameh
Crisp fried dough balls dipped in syrup — a Levantine winter and holiday sweet.
17Hareeseh
Semolina cake with ghee and syrup, scented with rose water, cut into diamonds and topped with almonds.
18Qatayef
Small pancakes filled with walnuts or cream, fried or served open, with syrup — queen of Ramadan sweets.
19Kalaj
Thin pastry sheets filled with cream or sweet cheese, fried and soaked in syrup on Ramadan nights.
20Muhallabia
A milk and cornflour pudding perfumed with rose or orange-blossom water, served cold with pistachios and…