5Discover more than 50 Assyrian recipes. Assyrian cuisine is made up of the foods of the ethnic Assyrian people, Eastern Aramaic speaking Syriac Christians that typically reside in northern Iraq, northeastern Syria, north western Iran and south eastern Turkey. Assyrian cuisine is very similar to other Middle Eastern and Caucasian cuisines including those from Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Turkey and Armenia. The foods are rich in vegetables and grains, such as barley, meat, tomato, herbs, spices, cheese, potato as well as herbs, fermented dairy products, and pickles. Alcohol, in particular wheat beer, organic wine and arak is often consumed with an Assyrian meal.Rice is usually served with every meal accompanied by a stew which is typically poured over the rice. Tea is typically consumed at all times of the day with or without meals, alone or as a social drink. Cheese, crackers, biscuits, baklawa, or other snacks are often served alongside the tea as appetizers. The primary difference between Assyrian and other Middle Eastern cuisines is that alcohol is rather popular, with several brewing traditions specifically in the form of arak, wheat beer, and organic wine being prevalent amongst them. Unlike in Jewish cuisine and Islamic cuisines in the region, pork is allowed as Assyrians are Christians, however it is not widely consumed in the Arab countries, Turkey or Iran because of restrictions upon availability imposed by the Muslim majority.Grab your copy of Assyrian Cuisine today and learn more about the foods of the Assyrian culture