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Street food Vegan

Food Flavour DNA

Nutritional Values

🔥510kcal
💪5gProtein
🌾82gCarbs
🥑18gFat
🌿2gFibre
⚖️160 gServing

* Per serving · 160 g. May vary.

Mshabbak

How to order / say it
Say it مشبك طرابلسي — [mish-SHAB-bak]
Order One fresh Tripoli mshabbak, please.
Locally أريد مشبك طرابلسي طازج، من فضلك.
Say locally

A bright orange spiral fritter fried crisp and soaked in scented syrup.

Why try it?

Mshabbak is a beloved Tripoli street sweet, sold warm from traditional dessert shops and market stalls. Its dramatic spiral shape, vivid color, and sticky syrup make it an immediately memorable taste of everyday Tripolitan indulgence.

How it tastes

It has a crisp, lacy shell with a slightly chewy interior and a sweet floral syrup coating. The frying oil contributes a toasted aroma, while orange blossom and lemon keep the finish lively.

Origin & History — first documented: 1880

The spiral fritter tradition reached Levantine urban markets through Ottoman-era confectionery culture and was firmly established in Tripoli by the late nineteenth century. Local shops developed a distinctive bright, crisp version that could be prepared quickly for market customers. It remains especially associated with Tripoli’s old souks and festive food stalls.

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 🌾 180 g all-purpose flour
  • 🌾 30 g cornstarch
  • 🍯 220 g sugar
  • 🥣 300 ml water
  • 🌾 4 g instant yeast
  • 🍋 15 ml lemon juice
  • 🍋 10 ml orange blossom water
  • 🧂 1 g turmeric
  • 🫒 600 ml frying oil

Method

  1. 1 Mix flour, cornstarch, yeast, turmeric, and water into a smooth pourable batter and rest it.
  2. 2 Pipe the batter in tight spirals into hot oil until crisp and golden.
  3. 3 Boil sugar, water, lemon juice, and orange blossom water into a light syrup.
  4. 4 Drain the fritters and soak them briefly in the warm syrup before serving.

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All Asia recipes — Lebanon — Tripoli — Mshabbak
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