Book Chapters

This section is limited to fruit juices (sharbat), yogurt drink (shinina), tea and coffee; Iraqi beer, wine and alcoholic Arak are not included.

Iraqis drink tea all day. They use loose tea leaves imported from India, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and China. Coffee is drunk only once a day, in the afternoon when visitors come. The coffee beans are imported from Yemen, Ethiopia, India, Colombia and Brazil, and are bought from shops that specialize in selling and grinding coffee to order. Sometimes we ask the shop to grind cardamom seeds with the coffee to make the distinctive sweet Arabic coffee.

Shinina, a yogurt drink, is always served with lunch or dinner. It is a combination of yogurt, water and ice cubes, with a pinch of salt. It is a very refreshing drink during the summer, and is sold by street vendors.

Iraq produces carbonated sodas, and imported juices and drinks are available in the markets.

Appetizers are usually served with beer and arak alcoholic drinks. In Iraq, the liquor stores are usually owned by Christians, since drinking alcohol is forbidden in the Muslim society. But the majority of the public occasionally drink alcohol discreetly. Alcoholic drinks are served in clubs and cafes.
Appetizer menu consists of the following:
Boiled chickpeas
Boiled fava beans
Arabic salad or sliced tomatoes and cucumbers
Pickles
Boiled eggs
Basturma
Tikka-Lamb kabob chunks on skewers
Kabab-Ground lamb kakab
Pistachios and mixed nuts
Some heavy appetizers are also served like the potato chap and kibit halab as in the following recipes.

Soups are made with either lamb or chicken with some kind of a vegetable or grain, in either a clear or tomato base. Vegetarian soups and vegetable dishes are cooked during Lent. The variety of salads is limited, but lots of pickles and condiments are served with meals.

The Iraqi dishes can be grouped in four categories:
Meat, cooked with rice or grains, like bulgur and pearl barley.
Lamb, chicken and beef roast served with plain white rice or saffron rice.
Lamb or beef either ground or diced or with bone, cooked with vegetables and served with plain white rice.
Rice kibbi and bulgur kibbi cooked in tomato or white soup base.

In this section I have included recipes for breads that we bake at home, like saj and qosa, and recipes for the traditional desserts like halawi, baklawa, puddings and cookies that we prepare at home for holidays and special occasions.