The cuisine of Israel has been influenced by the cuisine of the countries from the Middle East, Northern Africa, and the Mediterranean countries. Ancient Egypt and the Byzantine Empire influenced the Jewish cuisine in the past. The strongest influence, though, seems to come from the Middle East. People have learned from the Iranians to cook meat with fruits, split peas and lentils, from Lebanon to prepare fish with paprika, cayenne pepper and other condiments, from Jordanians to prepare kebabs and not at last, from Syrians they have learned how to cook kubbeh. The cuisine of Yemen also played an important role. In particular it is distinguished in the combination of spices that are used, and not through complexity. Also, the Maghreb affected very much the Israeli cooking style. couscous an