Food: Kushari

To supplement my thrice-weekly ta3miyya helpings, I've added a new evening staple which is available at a tiny hole-in-the-wall very near the school. Kushari, which is the national dish of Egypt, is easy to describe but difficult to understand. It has something from every level of the vegan food pyramid, with a foundation of rice, macaroni, spaghetti and vermicelli, followed by layers of brown lentils, chickpeas, and garlic sauce. The whole hodgepodge is then topped with crisp fried onions. At my vendor of choice, you also get three baggies of condiments: a large bag of a tomato-based sauce and a small bag each of spicy dark brown chili sauce and vinegar, though at many places, the dish will be served with the tomato sauce already added. I then mix the whole thing together and dig in.

I'm delighted that this is Egypt's national dish. It seems like something your stoner college roommate would make when he woke up in the early afternoon. You'd tease him about it, but you'd never admit that you secretly love it as well - that you sometimes ache for it. It's hardly high cuisine, and it's appropriately inexpensive. It is ordered by size; the gut-busting extra-large size costs LE 3. I've found that the two guinea size (pictured here) is more than adequate.

The orange liquid in the glass has the taste and nutritional profile of Tang, but none of its convenience. I thought it was just fruit juice, until I tried to pour some and this bright orange syrup slowly glopped into my glass. It was then that I had to break out the dictionary to see what exactly we were dealing with here. Turns out I had bought a bottle of concentrate which you are supposed to mix with water in (why not?) a 9:1 ratio. The sugar rush you get from a 6:1 mix will blow your mind and comes recommended.

Epicurious doesn't have a kushari recipe, so I've found a few recipes scattered around the web and distilled them to create something that most closely reflects what it is I'm eating every other day. I think you should make it right now.

1 lb lentils (brown or black)
A combination of at least one cup of each of the following, and five cups in aggregate of:
- rice
- elbow macaroni
- spaghetti and vermicelli, broken into two to three inch lengths
1 cup vegetable oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 hot chili pepper, cleaned and chopped
3-4 ripe tomoatoes, chopped
1/2 cup of water
2 tbsp vinegar
salt (to taste)
1 onion, cut in rings

Place lentils in a large pot and cover with cold water, such that the water level is one inch above the lentils and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender and water is almost completely absorbed, approximately 30 minutes. Add additional water if necessary.

While the lentils cook, prepare the rice. The sauce can be prepared while the lentils and rice cook: Heat 1/2 cup of the oil in large skillet. Sauté garlic and chili pepper for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, water, vinegar, and salt. Cook on high heat for a few minutes, then reduce heat and simmer.

While Lentils and rice are cooking and sauce is simmering, heat the remaining 1/2 cup of oil in another skillet. Sauté onion until it is deeply browned and crispy. When done, remove onion from skillet and drain on paper towels.

While lentils and rice are cooking, sauce is simmering, and onion is sautéing, prepare macaroni in normal manner.

When everything is done: Assemble each serving of kushari in a soup bowl: alternate layers of lentils, rice, and macaroni, then top it all with the fried onions and tomato sauce. Serve with bottled hot chili pepper sauce. You may also add vinegar to taste.

I can't promise it will be good - I think half the pleasure of kushari is its convenience, and all of that preparation hardly seems convenient. Let me know how it goes.