As home to the largest concentration of refugees within historic Palestine, Gaza is an extraordinary place to encounter culinary traditions, not only from hundreds of towns and villages that now exist only in memory-depopulated and destroyed during the Palestinian exodus of 1948-but also from the rest of Gaza's long history. 

Ah, Sumagiyya-that quintessential Gazan dish that is either much loved, or much hated! Sumagiyya (in classical Arabic: Sumaqiyya) is a classic Gaza City dish, one in the category of single-bowl dishes popular in Gaza. Sumagiyya's greyish appearance-a result of the sumac, its namesake, and tahina-can be off-putting to some,but don’t judge a dish by its cover! While the dish is usually made with an infusion of whole sumac berries, ground sumac will do in a pinch. 

It is the only brewery in the Palestinian territories but, against an uncertain economic and political backdrop, Taybeh beer is still going strong. The West Bank company sells its bottles as far apart as London to Tokyo. But getting its product to the international market requires negotiating time-consuming Israeli checkpoints. So, the company is looking to overcome the barriers by expanding its business abroad. 

Palestinian restaurant Tanoreen continues to receive praise as it is recognized by both Zagat Survey and The Michelin Guide for its fine Middle Eastern cuisine. Tanoreen, which is co-owned by Rawia and Jumana Bishara, snagged the Best Middle Eastern food title in the 2011 New York City Zagat Survey. This would be second time Zagat Survey would recognize Tanoreen as Best Middle Eastern (the first was in 2008).
 

Once upon a time, Gaza was known for its citrus trees and its extraordinary seafood, the smell of jasmine in the evening. No longer: now it is hard to find any image of Gaza that does not reek of death, destruction and deprivation. And yet despite the siege, the bombings, and the political turmoil that surrounds them, the people of Gaza continue to live and to create their small share of beauty and grace wherever they can. One of these places is in the kitchen. 

The International Fairtrade Association aims to provide farmers in the developing world with a fair share of the profits. For a Palestinian olive oil company which markets its product through the association, exports have soared after Israel's war on Gaza. Al Jazeera's Nour Odeh reports from the West Bank, where Israeli restrictions have barred Palestinian farmers from accessing thousands of acres of olive orchards. 

The small village of Taybeh, nestling in the mountains of the West Bank, has established several Palestinian firsts, but it hopes its latest will make it a household name in the Arab world. As well as being the only entirely Christian village in the Palestinian territories and running the only Palestinian brewery, it now hopes to export what it is calling a "non-alcoholic beverage" to Muslims across the Middle East. 

Food traditions form a major part of the Palestinian national identity. As a matter of fact, Palestinian culture revolves around the kitchen, for there isn't a single social event that is not connected to food and drink, of which the most honourable is the month of Ramadan, described as the month of generosity.