While you are planning your trip to Egypt a question comes to your table “What to eat in Egypt?”
The answer is not that difficult, whatever you want to eat you will find it in Egypt, vegan food, fatty food, fast food, high carbohydrate food, and more.
Don’t over-plan this part, forget your healthy lifestyle, and be ready for the appetizing food in Egypt.
In this blog, you will find the answers to your questions:
What to eat in Egypt?
What are the average prices?
Where to find this food?
What is traditional street food? Is it safe to try it?
Say goodbye to your diet and let’s start, read till the end to see the golden tips for saving your money.
Street Food in Egypt
It’s another level of experience to try.
1- Grilled Corn
While you are walking in the Egyptian streets you will notice a delicious smell coming from a food grill that stands by it an Egyptian man wearing ghalabia (traditional Egyptian custom).
Unexpectedly, he grills Sweet corn.
Don’t think twice about going to buy it.
Then, eat it hot and tasty while walking in Egyptian streets exploring the beauty scattered around.
2- Koskos (Koskosi)
It’s a sweet snack to take on Egyptian streets.
Koskosi “is a semolina sprinkled with water and rolled with the hands to form small pellets and get cooked on the steam”.
Its origin was the North African countries, and it’s made in Upper Egypt as a traditional food and get served with meat broth and vegetables.
However, in Egyptian streets it’s served in a sweet form with powdered sugar and some butter to give you the perfect taste.
3- Kibda & Sausage
What is the most popular food in Egypt among Egyptians?
Kibda & sausage is one of them.
Egyptian can’t get enough of these sandwiches.
*Tips:
- You will find Kebda & Sojuk carts and restaurants along the Egyptian streets.
- Go to Kebda & Sojuk trusted cart to ensure the quality of food is good.
- Order 2 sandwiches at first as a trial. If you love its taste, tons of sandwiches won’t be enough.
- Average prices are between 15 EGP to 25 EGP per sandwich.
4- Grilled Sweet Potato
While walking in Egyptian streets in winter and the weather is getting cold, there’s no perfect snack to take better than the Grilled Sweet Potato.
It’s light, sweet, and warmly delicious.
When you try it once, you will get addicted to eating more.
*Tips:
– Take sweet potatoes that are recently out of the oven.
– The price is around 5 to 7 EGP.
5- Belila
Belila is one of the traditional dishes made in the feasts and winter since the Pharaonic era.
It is made from wheat grans, usually added with it milk and sugar.
*Tips:
- it’s hard to find it in street without asking where the Belila carts stands.
- Prices are between 10 to 30 EGP.
6- Homs Sham
*Tip:
- add lemon and red powder spicily and enjoy it while it’s still hot.
- It tastes better in winter.
7- Zalabia
*Tips:
- It’s usually served with sugar syrup or powdered sugar. However, there are other flavors you can put on Zalabia (Nutella, white chocolate, lotus, and others).
- You will find this variety in flavors according to the cart’s conditions.
If talking about street food and snacks makes your appetite increased, then it’s time for main dishes and desserts to talk about.
Traditional Food in Egypt
Egyptians add large quantities of carbohydrates to their meals through bread, rice, and pasta.
The main item you will notice on the Egyptian food tables are loaves of bread or dishes of rice beside the main course.
Rarely to find an Egyptian meal without adding bread or rice to it.
Beside note: Egyptian food is mostly cooked with oil or butter even it’s not fried.
8- Koshari (Vegan)
Koshari is an Egyptian traditional dish made in the 19th century.
It is composed of rice, macaroni, and lentils mixed together and served with tasty tomato sauce and garlic vinegar sauce.
Adding chickpeas and crispy fried onions make it tastier.
You may don’t understand this weird mix, but its taste will impress you.
*Tips:
- The red sauce in the bottle or very small plate is so spicy, put only one drop on your Koshari.
- Prices range from 15 to 30 EGP.
9- Fool and Tamia (vegan)
Fool and Ta’mia are famous Egyptian breakfast dishes for decades.
You can experience them on a food cart in the streets or in a traditional restaurant.
*Tips:
- Order with them fried potato, oriental salad, and oriental pickels. And stop counting how many loaves of bread you eat.
- The prices range between 15 to 30 EGP
10- Fetter Sharki
It is a layered pie made with butter and flour, filled with different oriental fillings with some cheese and vegetables as the main ingredients.
It can be filled with extra vegetables, mix cheese, meat, and chicken, choose the mix you would accept.
*Tips:
- It’s popular that sausage pie is the best. HHowever, other fillings are adorable.
- Use your hand to eat it 😉 you will be surprised how tasty it will be using hands instead of a fork and knife.
- Its average price is between 50 EGP to 200 EGP according to food quality and the type of filling.
11- Roz B-Laban
It is a famous oriental dessert in Egypt.
It’s made with rice, milk, and sugar that are cooked together.
*Tips:
- It tastes more delicious after spiced food.
- Its average price is between 15 to 50 EGP according to the size and quality of the restaurant.
12- Hawashi
Itis a bread filled with spiced minced meat, then it gets grilled.
*Tips:
- Add mozzarella to it, if you are a cheese lover.
- Don’t eat from the streets to avoid being sick, go to a trusted restaurant with good quality food.
- Average prices are between 40 EGP to 120 EGP
13- Egyptian Shawarma
It is beef or chicken slices arranged on a skewer to get grilled, then mixed with onion, vinegar, and tomato. Then be put into bread with tahini.
*Tips:
- Eat it from an Egyptian restaurant, not a Syrian restaurant.
- Average prices are between 30 EGP to 150 EGP.
14- Mulukhia
It’s a popular dish at Egyptian family gatherings.
Itis a kind of green leafy plant that is cut into tiny pieces, then added to soup and fried garlic.
*Tips:
- Eat Mulukhia with rice or traditional bread
- Prices between 30 to 80 EGP.
15-Ma’hshi
It is called here in Egypt for vegetables that are filled with rice, green leaves, and tomato sauce, and it tastes amazing.
*Tips:
- Don’t judge ma’hshi from one kind, try more than one kind, till you find your favorite.
- Its price varies according to the size of the plate. But it’s not that expensive.
High calories ALERT
But worth trying
16- Goulash
17- Savory Rice with cream (Meammar Rice)
18- Tajen Bamia
19- Bacaroni Bashamel
20- Fried Sambosa
Egyptian desserts
21- Basbousa
It is a famous traditional dessert in Egypt, when visiting someone’s home Basbousa is one of the traditional gifts to give.
It’s made from semolina, yogurt, sugar, and butter, then baked till become golden, and coated with sugar syrup.
22- Sweet Goulash
It is filled with different fillings, and sometimes it doesn’t have filling at all. Try it and enjoy its crunchy and delicious taste. green leafy plant
23- Kunafa
It is a main dessert in Ramadan month (musliums’ fasting month)
It is thin strands of dough stuffed with nuts and coated with butter, then baked till become golden.
24- Om Ali
25- Baqlawa
26- Soab’ zeinab
Other cuisines in Egypt
Here are other cuisines you can find in Egypt that serve another type of food.
- American Food
In Egypt, there are restaurants serving American food with high quality. You can find burgers, sandwiches, and whatever you want.
- Asian Food
Chinese and Japanese food is served in many restaurants in Egypt. You can eat Chinese noodles, Shushi, and other dishes you want to try.
- Italian Food
Pizza and pasta are so delicious in Egypt. There are good options that vary in price and quality, choose the best for your taste and budget.
- Syrian Food
Syrian restaurants are famous in Egypt, you have to try Syrian Shawarma and Shawarma fata.
- Indian and Lebanese Food
Additional Golden Tips
To be on a budget, you have to concider many things:
- Buy your snacks and essentials from supermarkets, not small shops, to avoid increasing the prices. In addition, you will find a credit payment option there if you don’t have Egyptian cash.
- Look at the menus to see the prices, as some restaurants may profiteering and increase the prices to trick you.
- If you didn’t use to a lot of fats and spicy food, don’t eat much street food, and choose trusted restaurants to avoid being sick.
- You can give tips if you want in the restaurant for serving.
What is the cost of Food in Egypt? You can find all the price ranges starting from 10 EGP to 600 EGP according to the type and quality of food. Egyptian oriental food starts from 10 EGP to 250 EGP
How Safe is Street Food in Egypt? Like any country in the world, there is good quality food and low-quality food. Ask locals about good restaurants, or you can search on Google and Facebook to get feedback from people.
Do Restaurants Serve Alcohol in Egypt? Some restaurants and cafes serve alcohol but don’t drink it outside those places, as it can lead to getting arrested. Read First time to Egypt guide to know more.
Now you have a lot of interesting options; you only need someone to guide.
Travel DotCom makes lively and unique travel packages that ensure you enjoy all the Egyptian details and food to the max.
Just be ready to stimulate taste buds that have never been stimulated before and contact us for more details and special offers.
And tell us in the comments what is the Egyptian dish you can’t wait to try?
Or did you try Egyptian food before? Which was your favorite dish?
