Vegetables cooked bil zeit – “with olive oil” – are a Palestinian staple: gentle, room-temperature braises where good oil, salt and time do the work. Plant-based and understatedly luxurious.
In Palestine, cooking bil zeit – literally “with olive oil” – isn’t a technique so much as a whole way of eating. It’s the art of letting vegetables, pulses and herbs laze in good extra virgin olive oil until they become tender, glossy and deeply seasoned. You’ll find the same family of dishes across the eastern Mediterranean – Lebanon’s and Syria’s mezze tables are full of them. Different languages, same idea: olive oil as the main ingredient, not a background fat.
Culinarily, these dishes work because olive oil does three jobs at once: it gently fries to build sweetness, it braises to soften and carry aromatics, and then – this is the magic – it sets as the dish cools, coating every bean or leaf so flavours bloom at room temperature. Think loubieh bil zeit (green beans), bamia bil zeit (okra), kousa bil zeit (courgettes), or aubergines, cauliflower, spinach, potatoes done the same way.
There’s often onion and garlic, tomatoes or a little tomato paste, a bright lift of lemon or pomegranate molasses, and sometimes a sprinkle of sugar to balance the acidity.
You’ll often find foraged greens cooked bil zeit too – dandelion and khubeizeh (cheeseweed mallow) – the kind of village-side harvests whose gentle bitterness mellows into something silky and savoury in good oil.
Culturally, bil zeit dishes are about plenty through simplicity, and they speak to the plurality of Palestinian life. Many Christian communities know them as siyami dishes – foods for the Christian fasting season – because they are plant-based, sustaining, delicious and naturally suited to being eaten at room temperature. Across the year, households of all faiths and none lean on this way of cooking for make-ahead meals that can be shared, carried (to an olive grove, perhaps, for a picnic) and served without fuss. For Palestinians, the olive harvest is a landmark economic, social and cultural moment; in years of bounty you feel it in the kitchen too – olive oil features prominently across home cooking, from breakfasts of bread and new oil to the slow braises of bil zeit. Although not strictly a vegetable dish, mujadarra – a humble dish combining lentils and rice – sits in the same tradition and truly sings when cooked with plenty of olive oil, and served with a mountain of onions fried in olive oil until completely caramelised.
These dishes evolved in olive-growing communities where harvests were shared and kitchens stretched what the land offered – very much the region’s answer to Italy’s cucina povera. They travel well, feed many, and honour both faith and season.
Here’s how to let the oil do the work: start with enough oil to properly gloss your vegetables (be generous – this is the point). Sweat onions low and slow until sweet, not bitter; add garlic for a minute; then tumble in your main veg and let edges soften in the oil before introducing tomatoes or a splash of water. Keep the simmer gentle – olive oil prefers a patient simmer to a vigorous boil. Finish with acidity (lemon, sumac or pomegranate molasses, or a spoon of tahini for richness), fresh herbs (parsley, mint, dill), and time. Resting is not optional: these dishes are best once they’ve cooled to room temperature and the oil has thickened into that unctuous, silky cloak.
A quick template you can apply to almost any bil zeit dish
- For every 1 kg veg, use 120–180 ml good extra virgin olive oil, 1 large onion, 2–4 cloves garlic, and 1–2 tomatoes (or 1 tbsp tomato paste).
- Season early and again at the end; add a teaspoon of sugar only if tomatoes are sharp.
- Simmer gently, uncovered at first to concentrate, then covered to tenderise.
- Off the heat: lemon juice to taste, a handful of herbs, and a rest of at least 30–60 minutes. Serve with warm flatbread.
A few favourites
–Beitinjan bil zeit – aubergines with garlic and tomato, often topped with herbs, pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of pomegranate molasses (a little tahini is lovely too).
–Loubieh bil zeit – green beans with onion, garlic and tomato; often finished with lemon.
–Barasia bil zeit – leeks gently braised in olive oil, finished with plenty of lemon. Often eaten at room temperature with bread, or warm with a side of rice.
–Bamia bil zeit – okra gently braised so it stays intact and silky, brightened with lemon.
–Kousa bil zeit – courgettes with tomatoes and dill or mint; lovely at room temperature.
–Zahra bil zeit – cauliflower florets fried or roasted in olive oil, then dressed with lemon and tahini or simply more oil and herbs.
–Siniyet batata – a tray bake of potatoes with onion, tomato and generous olive oil; sometimes finished with a light tahini drizzle.
–Qalayet banadoura – tomatoes, chilli and garlic cooked down in olive oil until jammy. An olive-grove picnic classic, cooked over a woodfire and eaten with bread. Sometimes finished with cracked eggs – think shakshouka – or finely diced lamb.
Cook with the best oil you can – Palestinian, obviously 😊 – then step back.
Sun-grown vegetables don’t need much coaxing – a pinch of salt, patient heat and a little time to rest will do it. Served bil zeit, at room temperature, these dishes arrive relaxed and generous – the kind you pass with warm bread – unfussy, nourishing and quietly luxurious.
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