Picture yourself walking through the busy streets of Cairo, Egypt, during lunchtime, and a gust of wind sends an overwhelming aroma of spices and flavor through your nose.
Your brain immediately searches for the aroma, and your stomach growls in urgency that it’s time to eat.
Out of the corner of your eye, you spot a food cart and, with it, a line of people waiting wrapped around the corner.
As you pass the cart, you see barrels of steaming hot rice, noodles, lentils, and that aromatic red tomato sauce staring back at you.
Immediately, you get in line.
Origins
While Koshari is Egypt’s national dish, it originates back to India, where it was called "khichri" in Hindu, meaning “something that is all mixed up,” which this dish certainly is. It was brought over to Egypt by Indian soldiers fighting as part of the British Protectorate during World War One. In India, this delightful concoction is associated with good fortune and prosperity - and who couldn't use a little extra luck in their lives?
Many of the flavors and ingredients in this dish date back thousands of years ago to the Middle Eastern regions. Lentils originated in the Fertile Crescent, a moon-shaped region of the Mediterranean that borders the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf. In the early BC era, this region was known as Mesopotamia. Barley wheat is also native to this area.
Tips
- Don’t overcook the lentils! Lentils can take up to 30-40 minutes to cook, but keep an eye on them to not overcook them. Once overcooked, they can be mushy and lose their texture.
- Don’t cook the lentils and the pasta at the same time. It is okay to cook them in the same pot, but cook the lentils first until about 70-80% cooked, then add the rice.
- Spice up the sauce! Add red pepper chili flakes to the tomato sauce as it’s sautéing for some extra heat.
Ingredients
This recipe has only a few ingredients, all quite simple, and mostly staple items in the pantry. The best part about this carb-heavy dish is that although time-consuming to prepare at first, it will leave you with enough leftovers for the whole week! The main ingredients in Egyptian Koshari are:
- Brown Lentils
- Short-grain rice
- Chickpeas
- Noodles
- Crispy fried onions
- Spicy tomato sauce
How It’s Made:
Most of the time spent on this recipe is spent cooking the starches.
First, bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a large pot and cook the lentils.
Add more water and rice after the lentils are cooked for this recipe.
If you prefer, cook the rice separately in a different saucepan.
Once the lentils and rice are cooked, set both aside for later.
Visual guide:
In another saucepan, cook the pasta per the directions on the packaging, strain and set it aside.
Heat oil in a sauté pan on medium-high heat. Add the coriander to the hot oil and stir until combined. Add the chickpeas to the sauté pan and occasionally stir until all the chickpeas are warmed. Once warm and thoroughly seasoned, set aside.
While the above ingredients are cooking, the prep for the tomato sauce can be done. In a food processor, combine all the tomatoes, one small onion, two garlic cloves, salt and pepper. Using a mesh strainer, strain the liquid from the pulp. The liquid will be used for the sauce and the pulp can be discarded.
Once the lentils, rice, pasta, and chickpeas are cooked. The last two steps are the tomato sauce and the fried onions. Heat a saucepan on medium heat for the tomato sauce and add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic and stir.
Once the onions are beginning to brown, stir in the tomato paste. After the tomato paste is incorporated, add the white vinegar and strained tomato sauce. Season with coriander, cumin, salt, and pepper. Bring it to a boil and then boil it to simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce thickens.
Lastly, heat frying oil in a deeper pan until about 365 degrees Fahrenheit. While this is heating up, slice an onion into thin strips and place it in a bowl. Add flour and toss the onions until each onion piece is lightly coated. Drop them in the hot oil and cook until golden brown. Stir occasionally if uneven frying occurs. Once cooked, remove and place on a cooling rack or paper towel to allow excess oil to drip off.
For assembly, layer the lentils and rice on the bottom and top with pasta, chickpeas, tomato sauce, and fried onions, and enjoy!
Assemble and enjoy!
Substitutions
There are quite a few substitutions that can be made for Egyptian Koshari. As I mentioned before, this is a recipe full of pantry staples. But let’s be real. Everyone’s pantry looks different….
So let’s run through some of these substitutions together.
If you don’t have brown lentils, which are a little less common in traditional grocery stores, red, black, or green lentils will taste the same in this recipe. The main difference between these four colors of lentils is their size. The larger lentils will take longer to cook than the smaller ones, but not a significant amount more time. So if you have green lentils already in the pantry, use them!
Traditionally, Egyptian Koshari calls for short-grain rice. However, ANY rice will do. Long grain, basmati, jasmine, brown rice, wild rice. Again, whatever is already in your pantry will do. If you’re like me and basmati is your favorite, make it with basmati. If you have a 10 lb bag of organic brown rice from Costco in your pantry that you can’t seem to get rid of no matter how much brown rice you eat, use that!
The same rule is going to apply to pasta. Whatever, and I mean WHATEVER noodles are in your pantry, feel free to use them. If you are gluten-free, use chickpea pasta or lentil pasta. Whole wheat pasta is also a great option to add more fiber to the meal.
It can be difficult to heat oil to the proper frying temperature or you may not feel comfortable throwing onions in burning hot oil. Buying pre-made crispy fried onions is an option. You’ll still get that great onion flavor and crunch from the fry but with much less kitchen work.
You can make many substitutions to this traditional recipe while maintaining the dish's taste, texture, and culture.
FAQS
Do I have to create layers when preparing the dish to eat?
No way! You can combine the lentils, rice, chickpeas, and pasta altogether and serve however you like. There are no rules when it comes to serving Egyptian Koshari. The focus is on the flavors and the textures.
What if I have minimal time, but want Koshari fast?
Many grocery stores sell pre-cooked, ready-to-serve vacuum-sealed lentils, “90-second” rice and even “90-second” pasta. Ready-to-serve ingredients will speed up the cooking time significantly and won’t alter the integrity of the flavors.
Can I make this ahead of time and reheat it?
Each component of this dish has a 5-7 day shelf life once cooked and stored properly in the refrigerator. Make this dish ahead of time and reheat it on the stovetop or in the microwave before enjoying it.
Is Koshari Egyptian or Indian?
The Koshari recipe was brought over from India to Egypt. It was during World War One, when Indians were fighting with the British Protectorate in Egypt, that they brought the original dish with them. It has been adopted by Egyptian culture ever since.
Is the Koshari healthy?
Although a heavy carbohydrate dish, Koshari is considered healthy. Lentils and chickpeas are great sources of protein and fiber, and pasta and rice are complex carbohydrates that fuel the body with energy.
CONCLUSION
Koshari is the ultimate comfort food, a perfect mix of carbs, protein, and warmth from all the different flavors and spices. Although it takes quite a while to prepare, it's not difficult and doesn't require too many ingredients. Simply put, it's a delicious dish that will keep you full and feeling like home!
📖 Recipe
Egyptian Koshari
Ingredients
For Lentils and Rice
- 5 cup water
- 1 ½ cup brown lentils
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
For Pasta
- 2 cup elbow pasta raw
For Chickpeas
- 2 cans 15.5oz cans chickpeas (or 2 cups dried chickpeas soaked overnight)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoon coriander
For Tomato Sauce
- 1 lb ripe tomatoes
- 2 small onions
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon cumin
For Onion Crisps
- Canola oil
- 1 small onion
- 2 tablespoon flour
Instructions
For Lentils and Rice
- In a large pot, bring 3 cups of water to a boil
- Once boiling, add brown lentils, cumin, salt and pepper to the water
- Lower heat to low-medium, cover with a lid, and let lentils simmer for 15-20 minutes
- Remove lid, add 2 cups of water, and turn heat to medium-high heat
- Once water is boiling again, add rice, turn down the temperature to low, and cover with a lid
- After 15-20 minutes (or rice is cooked) remove lentil and rice mixture from heat and set aside
For Pasta
- Cook the pasta per directions on the packaging, strain, and set aside
For Chickpeas
- In a sauté pan, heat oil
- Once oil is hot, add coriander to oil and stir
- Add chickpeas and stir, once warm, set aside
For Tomato Sauce
- In a food processor, combine all tomatoes, 1 small onion, 2 garlic cloves, salt and pepper
- Strain the tomato mixture, releasing all the juice, set aside
- Discard the pulp
- In a saucepan, heat oil on medium heat
- Add in onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent and beginning to brown on the edges
- Stir in tomato paste and combine
- Add white vinegar to saucepan and stir until combined
- Add strained tomato sauce, bring to a boil, and then reduce to simmer for 10-15 minutes or until sauce thickens
For Crispy Onions
- In a deeper sauté pan, heat canola oil to approximately 365 degrees Fahrenheit
- Slice onions into thin strips and combine in a bowl with flour
- Once oil is hot, drop onion strips into oil and fry until golden brown
- Remove onions from oil and set on a cooling rack
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