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Traditional Egyptian Food - what you can expect to eat while on holiday   by James Hunt

Although in many parts of Egypt it is quite possible to find European food, there is no experience that matches trying the local foods, and traditional Egyptian cuisine is rich and varied.

This is due to the many influences from surrounding countries, though these have been absorbed and modified to create foods that are entirely Egyptian.

Egyptian bread, which is called Eish, is a very important component of an Egyptian meal and resembles Pita bread though it is darker and has a somewhat different texture. It is provided with just about every meal and often it is used to scoop up other foods and sauces and to create kebabs. Make sure you try some on your Egypt holiday.

Although flavoursome and spicy, traditional Egyptian food is not particularly hot, though the use of copious quantities of garlic should be expected. Popular dishes include "Ful Medammes" which is created using mashed fava beans garnished with garlic, lemon, onion, olive oil and herbs; Kushari which is made using rice, chickpeas, pasta and tomato; Mulukhiyah which is generally served as a soup made from the mulukhiyah vegetable which is similar to ocre; pigeon, which is often stuffed with rice and grilled; and Fetir Meshaltet, a delicious short crust pastry.

Fish is quite popular and both fresh water and sea fish are served; deep fried eels are also popular. Potatoes are also served and most often they are fried.

The most common Egyptian cheeses are gibna beida which resembles feta cheese and gibna rumy which is a hard cheese. These are often served in a large variety of salads which include tomato, greens, beans and often eggs.

Egyptian deserts tend to be based on pastries and cake type dishes which are heavily drizzled with syrups. Pancakes stuffed with fruit are also served. Bbouzat haleeb is Egyptian ice cream which is much lighter than that served in the West. Another popular dish is umm ali which is a cake containing raisins and served with milk as is mahallabiyya which is a kind of rice pudding. You will also find plenty of fresh fruit.

To finish off your traditional Egyptian meal on an Egypt holiday, try the Turkish coffee which is served at different levels of sweetness.

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