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Discover the 47 most popular, traditional and authentic recipes from Iraq, and the history behind those delicious recipes.
Each section includes a sampling of themed recipes and descriptions of life in the city. Pope Francis, whose heritage is both Argentinian and Italian, enjoys dishes like "Argentine empanadas on pepper salad" and "colita de cuadril," or tri-tip in English.
In other words, he may be protected by the world's smallest army and be responsible for the spiritual governance of 1.2 billion people, but when it comes to eating, Pope Francis loves comfort food ...
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- Masgouf
- Quzi
- Kleicha
- Shorbat Rumman
- Tabbouleh
- Margat Bamia
- Maqluba
- Kanefah
- Sfiha
- Mujaddara
Masgouf dates right back to Mesopotamian times, perhaps 5,000 years ago. Often considered to be Iraq’s national dish as a result, it consists of whole grilled carp, traditionally fished from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Common in the restaurants of the capital, Baghdad, and in particular the Abu Nawas district, it has spread right across the co...
Also spelt qoozi and ghoozi, the word quzi can be traced back to the Turkish for lamb (kuzu). Slow-cooked lamb, roasted nuts such as almonds, and raisins are served with rice. Its most authentic versions consist of an entire lamb, which is stuffed with the remaining ingredients and range of local spices. These include cardamon, cinnamon, and bahara...
When it comes to snack foods, Iraqi cuisine may not have the range available in a European or North American bakery, but it does have kleicha. In their most usual form, kleicha are biscuits (cookies) that take the form of a slice of Swiss roll. Rather than cream, the dark spiral line of the filling is made from a date paste giving them a flavour th...
You might have already noticed a tendency to include sweet ingredients in savoury dishes in traditional Iraqi cuisine. Shorbat rumman is no different, although there is much debate over whether it originated in Iraq itself or in next door Iran. In English, shorbat rumman is usually known as pomegranate soup. Made using both the juice and the fleshy...
Tabbouleh is a popular mezza, or meze, starter to almost any meal in Iraq. Light on the stomach as any appetizer should be, but full of flavour, tabbouleh is eaten as far afield as Egypt and Turkey, demonstrating just how tasty the dish must be! A salad, the ingredients essential to the traditional flavour of tabbouleh are tomatoes, mint, red onion...
Margat bamia couldn’t be more different to tabbouleh, being a rich stew prepared with lamb, okra (also known as lady’s fingers), and tomatoes. Unlike many of Iraq’s traditional dishes, margat bamia is not heavily spiced, but instead the natural flavours of the lamb and okra are allowed to meld together and infuse the cooking sauce or gravy. That sa...
Like margat bamia, maqluba is generally made with lamb, as are most traditional Iraqi recipes. Its name more or less translates as ‘upside-down’, which is how the dish is served. Dating back at least 800 years, this dish combines the lamb already mentioned with rice and a variety of fried vegetables, most commonly aubergine and potato, but also cau...
Kanefah, or kadaif, is another dish that has what might seem to some like an unusual mix of ingredients, but is certainly worth trying if you discover it listed on the menu of a restaurant in the country or elsewhere around the world. Deliciously sweet (or sickly sweet depending on your own personal tastes) kanefah is most commonly served as a dess...
Sfiha can be thought of as half pizza and half open pie. The pizza-like base is made from a flatbread that will roughly fit into an adult’s hand, although it is much thicker than an Italian pizza dough. This is topped with minced (ground) mutton by tradition, although lamb is frequently now used because it is readily available, more tender, and les...
While mujaddara has lots of slightly different spellings, its ingredients remain pretty standard right across Iraq’s 18 provinces, despite the earliest existing recipe dating to 1226 AD. One of the country’s primary vegetarian dishes, it was therefore associated with poverty, although it is now enjoyed by all classes. When it comes to ingredients, ...
Dec 8, 2020 · The book, put together by the Pontifical Swiss Guard, is a collection of recipes from over 500 years in the Vatican City, with tributes to Pope Francis, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John...
Mar 5, 2021 · BAGHDAD — Pope Francis began the first-ever papal visit to Iraq on Friday with a plea for the country to protect its centuries-old diversity, urging Muslims to embrace their Christian neighbors ...
Mar 6, 2021 · By his fidelity to God, Abraham became a blessing for all peoples (cf. Gen 12:3); may our presence here today, in his footsteps, be a sign of blessing and hope for Iraq, for the Middle East and for the whole world. Heaven has not grown weary of the earth: God loves every people, every one of his daughters and sons!
