The national dish of Egypt is Koshari. An interesting thing about this dish is that it is a vegan dish and consists of pasta, fried rice, crispy vermicelli, and lentils. It is served with a tomato sauce, vinegar and hot sauce on the side. You pour a little sauce onto each bite. It is also topped with chickpeas and crispy onions/garlic. I had it first at our hotel (the St. Regis which was amazing, but more on that in a later post).
…and then later our guide took us to a local place…I don’t know that name but according to my map, its on Al Manial and Gengengi Passage. Maybe you can show someone the pic below.
The dish itself is delicious for a number of reasons. First, there are many textures from chewy/soft pasta, to crunchy from the onions, lentils and other fried stuff. Then the flavors are varied from salty and savory to the acidity from the tomato sauce; you can also add hot and some vinegar. Everything comes together nicely with each spoonful. I would highly recommend you try the dish if you find yourself in Egypt. I know I would have it again, and in fact, writing this makes me want to try making it at home!