Kurdish cuisine doesn’t belong to a single country: historical Kurdistan stretches across parts of Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. The Jews of Zakho, Amadiya, Erbil and Sulaymaniyah brought to Israel traditions that are close but not identical. So a dish can be Kurdish, Iraqi and Jerusalemite all at once; this page notes the overlaps rather than ruling on ownership.
In Israel, kubbeh became the most prominent symbol. The five versions here are not the same dumpling in a different color: hamusta is semolina kubbeh in a sour green soup; selek is in beet soup; bamia is in tomato sauce; fried bulgur kubbeh gets a different shell and is fried; and kotla is meant for overnight Shabbat cooking.
The ten dishes
| Dish | Type | Calories per serving |
|---|---|---|
| Kubbeh hamusta | Sour green soup | about 590 |
| Kubbeh selek | Beet soup | about 580 |
| Kubbeh bamia | Kubbeh in tomato sauce | about 560 |
| Fried bulgur kubbeh | Crispy dumpling | about 630 for three |
| Kubbeh kotla | Kubbeh hamin | about 790 |
| Yaprakh | Stuffed grape leaves and onions | about 580 |
| Meat kada | Stuffed skillet bread | about 620 |
| Cheese and chard kada | Dairy pastry | about 580 |
| Shifta | Meat and bulgur patties | about 525 |
| Kurdish macaroni hamin | Shabbat stew | about 980 |
What’s important to know
- Kubbeh shells are sensitive to water. Give the semolina or bulgur time to absorb, and only then adjust. A dry dough cracks; a soft one melts.
- Siska is cooked, shredded meat. Many families use it for filling; for accessibility, the recipes also give a route with ground beef and mark it as an Israeli adaptation.
- Sourness isn’t just citric acid. Fresh lemon gives a fuller aroma and flavor. A little citric acid (“lemon salt”) can stabilize the sourness in a large pot, but it isn’t required.
- Kurdish yaprakh is sometimes folded and wide. This is a familiar family distinction, not an absolute rule across all of Kurdistan.
Kashrut and shopping in Israel
All the basic ingredients are available in the supermarket: semolina, bulgur, chard, celery, beets, frozen okra and jarred grape leaves. Rinse preserved grape leaves to reduce the salt. The other nine dishes are meat or pareve; cheese kada is dairy and is prepared and served with separate dishes. Ground meat should reach 71 degrees Celsius and chicken 74 degrees.
About the calories
The values were calculated from raw weights and divided by the number of servings. For fried kubbeh, absorbed oil is counted; for soups, all the oil in the pot is counted. The actual amount of meat inside each kubbeh and the fat percentage can shift the result by 10%–20%.
Frequently asked questions
Question: Is kubbeh Kurdish or Iraqi? Answer: Kubbeh is a broad regional family of dishes. Jews from Kurdistan and from Iraq preserved different versions, and in Israel the traditions met.
Question: What is the difference between hamusta and selek? Answer: The shell and filling can be similar, but hamusta is green and tangy from chard and celery; selek is red, sweet and sour.
Question: Can you freeze kubbeh? Answer: Yes. Freeze uncooked in a single layer, transfer to a bag, and add frozen to gently boiling soup.
Question: Which dish is dairy? Answer: Only cheese and chard kada. Meat kada and all the kubbeh soups are meat dishes according to the recipes here.