The 20 most famous dishes of Palestine
Palestinian cooking is a cuisine of the land, olive oil and the taboon oven — from Galilee's musakhan and Jerusalem's maqluba to Nablus knafeh and Gaza's sumagiyyeh, every city has a dish it is proud of.
1Musakhan
Palestine's national dish: roast chicken on taboon bread soaked with onions cooked in olive oil and sumac,…
2Maqluba
Rice with meat or chicken and fried aubergine and cauliflower layered in a pot and flipped upside down to…
3Knafeh Nabulsiyeh
Nablus's famous knafeh with stretchy Nabulsi cheese under a fine orange pastry crust, soaked in syrup and…
4Maftoul
Palestinian hand-rolled large-grain couscous of bulgur and flour, steamed and served with chicken broth,…
5Sumagiyyeh
Gaza's signature dish: beef with chard, chickpeas and tahini in a tangy sumac sauce with dill, eaten cold…
6Rummaniyeh
Lentils and aubergine cooked with pomegranate molasses, tahini and garlic — a rustic Gaza dish of autumn.
7Gaza Dagga Salad
Tomatoes pounded in a clay mortar with dill, garlic, hot chili and lemon — fiery and fresh.
8Zibdieh (Gaza Clay-Pot Shrimp)
Shrimp baked in a clay bowl (zibdieh) with tomato, garlic, hot chili and dill.
9Malfouf (Cabbage Rolls)
Cabbage leaves rolled around rice and meat, cooked with garlic, lemon and mint.
10Waraq Dawali with Lamb
Vine leaves stuffed with rice and meat, layered over lamb chops, slow-cooked and turned out onto a platter.
11Ijjeh (Herb Omelette)
Egg fritters with parsley, spring onion, mint and a little flour, fried and eaten hot or in a sandwich.
12Fasoulia bi Lahmeh
White bean stew with lamb and tomato, served with vermicelli rice.
13Taboon Bread
Village bread baked on hot pebbles inside the clay taboon oven, giving a dimpled surface and smoky flavour.
14Jerusalem Ka'ak
Long oval sesame bread rings sold in the alleys of Jerusalem with za'atar and eggs.
15Gaza Sayadieh
Brown rice with caramelised onions and cumin and fried fish, served with tahini and dagga.
16Shorbet Adas
Red lentil soup with cumin and lemon, served with toasted bread — in every Palestinian home in winter.
17Mfarakeh
Diced potatoes fried with onion, egg and cumin — a simple country breakfast.
18Labneh
Yoghurt strained until thick and creamy, served with olive oil and za'atar, or rolled into balls and…
19Ka'ak bi Ajwa
Rings of ghee pastry with anise and mahlab filled with date paste, baked in every home before Eid.
20Sheikh el-Mahshi
Hollowed courgettes stuffed only with minced meat and pine nuts (no rice), cooked in yoghurt or tomato sauce…