17 Lebanese Foods That Will Make You Gasp Gently

More like Middle Eats-tern, am I right, folks?

1. Lebanese Charcoal Chicken

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Butterflied and charred to perfection over coals, it's served with fries, pickles, hummus, tabbouleh, and toum (#3 on this list). This chicken is a Lebanese BBQ staple.

2. Lebanese Bread

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Arabic name: Khobz

Your gateway to any Lebanese meal. The pita can be your plate, your utensil, or both.

3. Lebanese Garlic Sauce

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Arabic name: Toum

Looks like glue, smells like heaven. Pretty much the MVP of the Lebanese dinner table. Slather it on grilled meats, and remember that it has real staying power, so absolutely DO NOT try to kiss anybody for hours after eating. Unless they're into the scent of second-hand garlic.

4. Chicken & Rice

Adam Moussa

Arabic name: Djaj a riz

Present at any and every celebration. Chicken, rice, pine nuts and diced lamb are cooked in chicken broth. If your host is real fancy, they'll serve it molded into a ring, topped with slivered almonds.

5. Rolled Vine Leaves

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Arabic name: Ma'hshi warak enib

Stuffed with rice and spiced lamb!

6. Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

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Arabic name: Ma'hshi malfouf

Rice and lamb rolled into cabbage leaves and steamed. No matter how many you eat, your Lebanese grandmother will be unhappy you didn't eat more (which is kind of true for everything on this list, tbh)

7. Stuffed Lebanese Zucchini

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Arabic name: Ma'hshi kousa

Sensing a theme? They really like stuffing things in Lebanon. These are Lebanese Zucchini, which are lighter in color, and cooked in a tomato sauce.

8. Tabbouleh

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Arabic name: Tabbouleh

Or "Tabouli", or "Tabbouli". However you spell it, this is absolutely the most iconic Lebanese dish. While it's become kind of ubiquitous across the world, good tabbouleh is always easy to spot. The parsley/tomato to cracked wheat ratio will be high, and you'll be hard-pressed to spot a stem in there; only the leaves make the cut.

9. Sambousik

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Arabic name: Sambousik

Meat and pine nuts, wrapped in pastry and fried. Kind of difficult to stop eating.

10. Fried Kibbee Balls

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Arabic name: Kbakeeb

Look a little closer - there's meat inside these balls of fried meat!

11. Za'atar Bread

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Arabic name: Za'atar Manousheh

Za'atar mixed with olive oil, and slathered on flat bread. It'll get stuck in your teeth, but it's seriously worth it.

12. Raw Kibbee

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Arabic name: Kibbee Nayeh

Super-fresh, specially prepared raw lamb mince, mixed with cracked wheat and spices. (NOTE: This dish is amazing, but don't try making it with mince from the grocery store; you'll need to get it fresh from a Lebanese butcher to ensure it's safe to eat)

13. Lamb & White Beans Over Rice

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Arabic name: Fasoulia

Cooked in a tomato sauce, this is pretty much the ultimate Lebanese comfort food.

14. Green Beans Over Rice

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Arabic name: Loubieh bi riz

The Lebanese really, really like cooking things in tomato sauce.

15. Knafeh

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Arabic name: Knafeh

A baked dessert, it's made with sweet cheese, semolina and cream, topped with crushed cornflakes and pistachio.

16. Easter Cookies

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Arabic name: Ma'amoul

Best enjoyed with a cup of Lebanese coffee.

17. Sweet Lady Fingers

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Arabic name: Znoud el sit

Filo pastry rolled up and stuffed with Lebanese cream and rose water, and served with a thick sugar syrup (attir). While they're pretty widely available, get one fresh if you can - that first bite is essentially a religious experience.

BONUS: Lebanese Coffee

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Arabic name: Ahawe

Brewed on the stovetop with finely ground coffee, caradom and a little sugar, coffee is embedded in Lebanese social culture. It's served up in small cups, without milk. Fair warning: it's easy to down a few cups of this intense brew and think nothing of it. Then the shaking starts.

*gentle gasp*

It's just... so beautiful.

Adam Moussa