Afghan Cuisine

Afghan cuisine blends regional culinary traditions and shares much in common with Persian, Turkish, Azerbaijani, Central Asian and South Asian cooking owing to Afghanistan's geographic position and cultural ties across these regions. The cuisine is halal and generally mild in flavor, favoring dishes that combine sweet and sour elements and are seasoned with herbs and spices such as coriander, mint, dill, cumin, cardamom, turmeric and locally grown saffron. Meat, chiefly mutton, beef and poultry, rice and Afghan bread form the center of the diet, accompanied by vegetables, dairy products including milk, yogurt and whey, and fresh and dried fruit such as apples, apricots, grapes, pomegranates, melons and raisins. The national dish is Kabuli pulao, a rice dish cooked with raisins, carrots, nuts and lamb or beef, and the table typically also includes dumplings, meat and vegetable stews, legumes and kebabs, with tea, served green or black and sometimes flavored with cardamom or saffron, consumed daily in large quantities as a central part of hospitality.