The staples of the Egyptian diet are broad (‘aish, which also means “life”), fuul and taamiya. Bread, eaten with all meals and snacks, comes either as pitta-type ‘aish shamsi (sun-raised bread made from white flour) or ‘aish baladi (made from coarse wholewheatflour).
Fuul (pronounced “fool”, fava bens) Is extremely cheap and can be prepared in several ways. Boiled and mashed with tomatoes, onions and spices, the beans are referred to as fuul madammes, a dish often served with a chopped boiled egg for breakfast. A similar mixture stuffed into’ aish baladi constitutes the pitta-bread sandwiches sold on the street.
Just as inexpensive is taamiya, sometimes called falafel, deep-fried patties of green beans mixed with spices. Again, it’s served in pitta-bread, often with a snatch of salad, pickles and tahina (a sauce made from sesame paste, tahini), for which you can expect you pay the grand sum of E1 or so.
Another cheao café perennial is makarona a clump of macaroni baked into a cake with minced lamb and tomato sauce inside. It’s rather bland but very filling. Similarly common is Kushari, a mixture of noodles, rice, macaroni lentils and onions, in a spicy tomato sauce (another sauce, made of garlic, is optional). It’s served in small, medium and large portions (E3-5) in tiled stand up diners, also called kushari.
