Egyptian Koshari Recipe, Ingredients and Places to Eat in Cairo

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Egyptian Koshari

Egyptian Koshari is one of the national meals and the best food in Egypt, koshari (also written kushari and koshary), is what I call “real deal comfort food.” Like mac and cheese, koshari may be found in practically every Egyptian home. This Egyptian koshari dish comes from my family and is the greatest I’ve ever tasted. If you ever visit Egypt, make sure to sample ful medames, mulukhiyah with roz, and, of course, koshari!

Egyptian Koshari

History of Egyptian Koshari

Koshary first appeared in Egypt in the mid-nineteenth century, when the country was experiencing economic hardships and the public was embracing more vegan-based cuisine. Koshary, often known as “Poverty Food,” is a dish made up of fried onions, lentils, rice, macaroni, and a lemon sauce.

Why Koshari is the best recipe?

A cooked red vinegar sauce is used in many kushari dishes. This recipe, however, calls for two types of red sauce: fresh and koshari cooked vinegar red sauce. The fresh red sauce is the secret sauce in this recipe, which has been honed over a lifetime.

Koshari Ingredients

Tomatoes: I prefer vine-ripened tomatoes, but Roma and beefsteak tomatoes work well as well. In this dish, tinned tomatoes are not recommended.

Chickpeas: Although I recommend dry chickpeas, canned chickpeas can be used to save time.

Pasta: White pasta is used in traditional koshari, although whole wheat pasta is a healthier option. When I can find whole wheat spaghetti and whole-wheat elbow noodles, I like to use them in this recipe.

Brown Lentils: For the best koshari experience, I recommend using brown lentils.

White onions, brown onions, white onions, sweet onions, or red onions can all be used.

Tomato Paste: For this recipe, any type of tomato paste will suffice. The koshari vinegar red sauce is made using tomato paste.

Garlic: fresh garlic is recommended.

Bell Peppers: Green bell peppers are preferred, but yellow, red, or orange bell peppers can also be utilised.

Spicy Pepper: You can use any type of hot pepper if you prefer spicy food. But be careful not to overdo it!

White Vinegar :Use distilled white vinegar instead of regular white vinegar. Other vinegars should not be used since they will alter the flavour of the koshari vinegar red sauce.

Lime: For this recipe, fresh limes are preferred over lemons.

Oil: This recipe can be made with any type of oil. One idea is to use the same oil that was used to fry the onions (after the onions have been fried) because it has an onion flavour.

Spices: Ground cumin, ground coriander, and ground chilli powder are required in this traditional Egyptian koshari dish.

Koshari Recipe

1-Soak the lentils and chickpeas for 3 hours ahead of time.

2-While making the fried onions, boil the chickpeas with cumin. Using a knife, cut the onions into thin circles. Allow the floured onions to rest for 30 minutes before cooking. Sunflower oil produces the crispiest fried onions. Add a squeeze of lime to the chickpeas once they’re soft.

3-Add bell pepper, tomatoes, onion, and garlic cloves to make the fresh red sauce. Blend on high until smooth. In a food processor, combine the ground cumin, ground coriander, salt, pepper, lime juice, and part of the oil from the fried onions. Blend on high until smooth.

4-Blend the peeled onion in the food processor to make the koshari lentil rice. In a high-rimmed pot, heat some oil and cook the pureed onions for around 15 minutes on medium heat.

5-Toss the sautéed onions with the soaking brown lentils and water. 5 minutes after bringing to a boil Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir in the rice and more water. Mix in the salt and pepper with the rice. Cook the rice for 12 minutes with the lid on. Remove the rice from the heat and keep it covered.

6-While creating the koshari red vinegar sauce, cook the pasta according to the package directions.

7-In a blender, puree 5 medium tomatoes and drain the tomato liquid.

8-Add some oil to a pot over high heat and cook the chilli flakes and minced garlic for 1 minute. Before adding the strained tomatoes, cook for roughly 30 seconds with the tomato paste and white vinegar. Boil for about 10 minutes on medium-high heat, stirring in the ground cumin, ground coriander, salt, sugar, and ground pepper. If desired, add a chile pepper.