Maqluba: An Upside-Down Meal, a Reality Turned Inside-Out

Gaza Today: Famine and Genocide

• Famine Declared: For the first time in the Middle East, famine has been officially recognized in Gaza. Over half a million people are trapped in catastrophic conditions—starvation, malnutrition, and death are daily realities

• Child Malnutrition Soars: In Gaza City, malnutrition rates among children under five have soared—quadrupled since February—creating a generation silently vanishing

• A Man-Made Crisis: This isn’t nature’s fault—it’s the result of systematic policies: blockade, bombardment, destruction of crops, mills, bakeries, and food stores—transforming hunger into a weapon

• Genocide Allegations Rise: Humanitarian organizations like MSF and B'Tselem, alongside UN experts, warn that the intentional deprivation of food and forced displacement bears the hallmarks of genocide—and may amount to crimes against humanity

Maqluba: An Upside-Down Meal, a Reality Turned Inside-Out

When I prepare Maqluba, the Levantine “upside-down” rice, meat, and vegetable dish, each layer—tomato, cauliflower, eggplant, lamb or chicken—is carefully arranged, only to be flipped at the end, revealing history, care, and community in every slice Wikipedia.

But today, that ritual of flipping a pot becomes a metaphor for Gaza itself: a land turned upside-down by war, famine, and suffering.

Recipe: Maqluba (Upside-Down Rice with Meat & Vegetables)

Ingredients (serves 4–6):

• 2 cups rice, soaked and drained

• 1 lb lamb or chicken, cut into pieces

• 1 tomato, sliced

• 1 eggplant, sliced and fried or roasted

• 1 cauliflower head, broken into florets and fried/roasted

• Optional: potatoes, other seasonal vegetables

• 2–3 tbsp Middle Eastern spices (e.g., cumin, allspice)

• 2 tbsp oil, plus more for frying

• Toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions:

1. Fry or roast the vegetables (eggplant, cauliflower, tomato, optional potatoes) until golden.

2. In a heavy pot, drizzle oil, then layer:

   • Fried cauliflower florets

   • Fried eggplant

   • Sliced tomato

   • Meat pieces, seasoned with spices

3. Gently pour the drained rice over the layered mixture.

4. Add water to just cover the rice, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on low until rice is tender (~20 minutes).

5. Let rest a few minutes, then place a large plate over the pot, invert it, and lift—the Maqluba rises like a layered cake.

6. Garnish with pine nuts and parsley. Serve with yogurt or a fresh salad.

Every forkful tells a story of home, heritage, and a shared table—the kind that’s now being violently ripped away.

Maqluba has always been a dish made with love—patiently layering vegetables, rice, and meat, then holding your breath as you flip it over to reveal something beautiful. It’s a meal that brings families together around one pot, sharing not just food, but stories, laughter, and warmth.

But in Gaza today, those same layers—of family, of tradition, of hope—are being stripped away by hunger and destruction. The upside-down pot becomes a reflection of an upside-down reality, where children go to bed starving and entire generations are at risk of being lost.

Please consider donating to support families in Gaza. The donation link can be found in the Donate area of this blog.