Egyptian Food Recipes

Egyptian cuisine is based mainly on wheat and barley that is grown along the banks of River Nile. Bread is the staple diet of Egyptian people. The pita type bread is either made from whole wheat - aysh baladi, or white flour - aysh shami. Among beverages, beer is the national drink. Egyptian beer is made from barley and spices are added for flavor. Egyptian wine making has been practiced since ancient times. Egyptian wine is made from a variety of fruits like grapes, dates, pomegranates, plums and palms. Egyptian cuisine uses variety of vegetables, such as molokhiyya (a spinach-like vegetable), beets, beans, mushrooms, etc. Salads and non-vegetarian food like fish and meats are also part of their menu. One of their popular dishes is bean stew falafel with lamb and pigeon.

Rice and bread with vegetables and meat is served at lunch and dinner in Egypt. A specialty Egyptian meal encompasses delicacies like grilled pigeon stuffed with rice, dry or deep fried fish, a spicy salad made of tomatoes, cheese, beans, eggs, potatoes and yogurt. The people of Egypt, also relish seafood like shrimps, squids and scallops. Garlic and onions are also used predominantly as ingredients in majority of Egyptian food recipes. Among desserts, there are pastries, puddings meshed with honey, pancake called fatir which is stuffed with eggs and apricots, light and gummy ice creams, Umm ali (pudding), etc. can excite your taste buds. The Egyptian cuisine is also influenced by cuisines of neighboring Iraq, Greece and Italy.

Egyptian Food Recipes

Egyptian cuisine is rich in varied vegetarian as well as non-vegetarian recipes. The dukkah (a special blend of spices) is used for vegetarian cooking. Egyptian food encompasses a great blend of mouth-watering traditional foods like kebabs, breads, cakes and tasty desserts like halva. Let’s take a look at some of the Egyptian food recipes

Egyptian Meat Soup

Ingredients
Lean beef or lamb, cut into small pieces
Water: 6 cups
Onion: 1 medium, chopped
Butter: 3 tbsp
Garlic: 5 cloves, crushed
Vinegar: 1 tsp
Arabic pita bread: 1 loaf, dried in the oven until crisp
Cooked rice: 2 cups
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation
Prepare a broth by boiling meat in water with salt, pepper and chopped onions, until the meat is tender. Skim off the froth, and remove the onion. Take away the meat with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set aside.

Then melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan. Fry all the meat over high heat, until it becomes brown. Keep it in a serving bowl. Then fry garlic in the remaining butter until golden brown and stir the contents. Pour vinegar into the broth and boil them. After that, break the crispy bread pieces into the soup. Place the meat and the rice separately and serve.

Egyptian Onion Bread

Egyptian onion bread is one of the tempting recipes and can elevate your mood and satisfy your appetite. The strong odor of the onion is believed to help cure illness. Egyptian onion bread is filled with chopped onions, sesame seeds or grated cheese and is yummy to taste.

Ingredients
Eggs: 3
Chopped onion: 1 large
Water: 1 cup
Sifted flour: 5 cups
Baking powder: 5 tsp
Scant salt: 1 tsp
Sesame seeds: 1/2 cup
Beaten egg: 1
Dry onion soup mix: 1 tsp

Preparation
In a large mixing bowl, place coarsely chopped onion. Keep 2 teaspoons of onion for later use. Add beaten eggs into water and mix it with a wire whisk or rotary beater until well blended. Then, blend flour with baking powder, salt and sesame seeds. Add mixture of egg with the mixture of flour, until a soft ball is formed. Turn out onto a floured board; knead lightly for 3 minutes and then make roll about 3/4 inches thick. Then cut into flat rounds, each about 8 inches in diameter. Pour the remaining chopped onions and brush it lightly with beaten eggs. Place it on a baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree F preheated oven for about 25 minutes, until the onion bread becomes brown in color.

Stuffed Potatoes or Batatis Mahshiya

Ingredients
Medium potatoes: 6-8
Seasoned ground beef: 1 cup
Beef stock
Cooking oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Preparation
Peel potatoes and soak them in salted water. Then drain the potatoes, dry well and fry. Place the potatoes on absorbent paper towels to cool. Fill the center of the potatoes with seasoned ground beef. Then arrange all the potatoes in a pot and cover halfway with the well-seasoned beef stock and cook slowly. Serve the stuffed potatoes hot. To tickle your taste buds, you can also use tomato juice instead of beef stock.

Egyptian Cake Recipe
The Egyptian cake can be included in your breakfast too.

Ingredients for the cake
Eggs: 4
Sugar: 1-1/2 cups
Butter: 1/2 cup
Milk: 1/2 cup
Flour: 1-3/4 cups
Baking powder: 3 tsp
Vanilla: 1 tsp
A pinch of salt
Hot water: 5 tbsp

Ingredients for cake filling
Egg yolks: 4
Sugar: 1 cup
Cream or condensed milk: 1 cup
Chopped walnuts: 1 cup
Chocolate: 2 tbsp

Preparation for the cake filling
Dissolve chocolate in water to make smooth syrup. In another bowl, mix cream, butter, sugar and egg yolks (well beaten). Then, pour 1/2 cup of milk and chocolate in the mixture and mix the cake filling well.

Preparation for the cake
Mix flour with baking powder and a bit of salt in a different bowl. Add the mixture of flour with the cake filling mixture. Now, add 1 teaspoon of vanilla for flavor and bake in moderate oven.

Bake all together in double boiler until it becomes thick. You can also use grated coconut instead of nuts.

Try these Egyptian food recipes at your home, to find out their delicious taste. Remarkably, the positive feature of Egyptian recipe is that the ingredients used in Egyptian cuisine are easy to get in the market.