The most famous Iraqi food and official national dish is Masgouf.
Masgouf is a freshwater carp from the Tigris or Euphrates rivers. Cooks split the fish down the back, season it with salt and spices, and clip it onto stakes. It slow-cooks vertically next to open wood fire embers before finishing on hot charcoal. Restaurants serve Masgouf hot with tannour bread, lemon wedges, pickles, fresh onions, and spicy amba sauce. In Baghdad, visitors commonly eat it along Abu Nuwas Street by the Tigris River.
Other famous dishes across Iraq include:
- Dolma. Onions, vine leaves, peppers, and courgettes stuffed with minced lamb, rice, and herbs, simmered in a tart pomegranate or tamarind sauce.
- Quzi. Slow-roasted lamb served over spiced long-grain rice and roasted nuts. It is the central dish for celebrations.
- Iraqi Kebab. Minced lamb and tail fat seasoned with salt, grilled on flat skewers over charcoal, and eaten inside hot bread with sumac.
- Tashreeb. Meat or chicken broth poured over torn flatbread with chickpeas and dried black lime.
- Kleicha. A spiced pastry filled with date paste or walnuts, baked for holidays.
Traveller tip. Sauces and rice dishes frequently contain nuts, sesame, or gluten. Confirm ingredients directly with restaurant staff before ordering if you have food allergies.
Sources: Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Washington, D.C., Wikipedia - Masgouf.
Checked on 2026-10-06.