“You have to really mix the bulgur and the meat,” my grandfather said as he combined finely ground bulgur wheat and minced ground beef into a paste-like combination.  “You can’t have clumps of meat with no bulgur and clumps of bulgur with no meat.”  My grandfather was 95 years old at the time.  He was teaching me how to make Kibbeh, the national dish of Lebanon.  “Every Lebanese woman has to know how to make Kibbeh, poppy.”  Poppy was my grandfather’s nickname for me.  He passed away in 2019.

Kibbeh is a mixture of meat and bulgur wheat.  The meat can be ground beef, ground lamb, or ground goat, depending on what is available, according to Professor Graham Pitts who studied famine in Lebanon.  In fact, there are many recipes for Kibbeh because everyone does it a little differently.  The Kibbeh that my family makes is formed into “layers” with ground beef and bulgur being on the bottom.  

The next layer consists of a combination of onions, toasted pine nuts, and any spices that the chef desires.  Spices might include “cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and allspice” according to Shi Daniel, a popular Lebanese food blogger. Then another layer of meat and bulgur wheat goes on top.  After refrigerating this mixture for one hour, it is time to cook the Kibbeh.

   “Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray the stuffed kibbeh with olive oil, and arrange them in a single layer, spaced out, on a large baking sheet. Bake until deep golden brown,” said Suzy Karadsheh, a famous Lebanese cook.  This will yield a meat pie that is a bit crusty on the outside with an inside that is juicy.  The toasted pine nuts and onions provide a nutty flavor and different textures to the dish. 

Kibbeh originated in the mountains of Lebanon where people grazed animals and grew grains.  People used the animals that they had for their Kibbeh including cows, sheep, and goats.  When meat was scarce and the wheat crop was more plentiful, the Kibbeh mixture emphasized bulgur wheat.  When the reverse was true, meat was emphasized.  

   What makes Kibbeh culturally significant is that even today it is cooked in communal village ovens.  “Wherever you go in Zgharta they make good kibbeh, we are known for it. It’s because of these special ovens. It's our secret, the heb [heat] is different,” Boulos Ashana who operates a communal oven in Zgharta.  Every village had communal ovens and people talked and gossiped while they prepared and cooked their Kibbeh. 

   “The preparation process was often a communal activity where families would gather together to handcraft these delicious morsels. Over time, Kibbeh evolved into more than just sustenance; it became an integral part of celebrations and gatherings. It symbolizes hospitality and generosity in Lebanese culture, an offering made with love and care.” (Shi Daniel)  Sadly, these communal ovens are now disappearing from Lebanese villages.  

Kibbeh can also be made in different forms.  Most commonly, it is shaped into balls and baked or deep fried.  As mentioned, my family bakes Kibbeh into a tiered meat pie.  Some Lebanese will even eat Kibbeh raw.  Ashana, an elder from a Lebanese village offers a possible historical explanation for this odd practice, “They say that nayyeh (raw kibbeh), is from the times of the Ottomans. When they came to Ehden, [the Christians] escaped to the mountains and they had goats. They couldn’t start fires [for cooking] so they don’t get caught. That’s why they started eating meat raw. Kibbeh nayyeh was born, [but] we don’t know if it’s true”  (Astana).

  No matter what the true history is, raw Kibbeh is occasionally eaten today as a delicacy like steak tartare.  The raw meat-bulgur paste is covered in olive oil and scooped up with raw onion chips.  According to Kamal Mouzawak, owner of the Tawlet restaurant, you have to exercise great caution when preparing raw meat for consumption.  "You have to know the butcher, and how to talk to him….clean meat; clean blades. No fat or gristle. I don't want to see any white" (Mouzawak). Because raw Kibbeh is such a common food to eat in Lebanon people must really trust and have a connection with the butcher who prepares meat for them.

Kibbeh can be paired with many condiments and side dishes.  It is best to, “serve [Kibbeh] hot or at room temperature with tahini sauce, tzatziki sauce or plain Greek yogurt,” (Karadsheh).  One side dish is hummus which is a creamy paste of cooked chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, and garlic. Another is Tabbouleh salad which is made with parsley, tomatoes, onion, bulgur, mint, and dressed with lemon juice and olive oil. Fattuosh, a fried bread salad that typically includes fried pieces of break, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes is also commonly served with Kibbeh. 

   Finally, stuffed cabbage is a more substantial accompanying side dish.  Stuffed cabbage consists of lightly cooked cabbage leaves rolled around a mixture of rice, ground beef and spices and covered with a tomato-based sauce or a lemon-garlic sauce. Lemon-garlic sauce gives the stuffed cabbage a strong garlic flavor.  “Yup, you will need 16 cloves of garlic for this recipe,” said Yumna Jawad, a healthy food blogger.

Kibbeh is a dish that is not just nourishing, it actually contains Lebanese history and culture.  It is made many different ways with many different ingredients because people sometimes faced famine and had to make due with what they had.  Kibbeh was also made in communal ovens in villages and thus the process of making Kibbeh became part of Lebanese village culture.  Because of this, it is the undisputed National Dish of Lebanon.  “Learning to make Kibbeh is a rite of passage, Poppy,” my grandfather concluded.  “Now eat.”