1
Cook the lentils
Boil lentils in salted water until tender but still holding shape. Drain and set aside.
Lentils
20:00
Egypt | Main dish
Koshari
Egypt's iconic street food — layers of rice, lentils, macaroni, and chickpeas topped with a spiced tomato sauce, garlicky vinegar dressing, and shatteringly crispy fried onions.
Country
Egypt
Region
North Africa
Time
70 min
Serves
6
Level
medium
Recipe overview
What to know before you cook
Koshari is Cairo in layers: rice, lentils, pasta, chickpeas, tomato sauce, garlicky vinegar, and a crown of onions fried until crisp.
What the dish tastes like
Egypt's iconic street food — layers of rice, lentils, macaroni, and chickpeas topped with a spiced tomato sauce, garlicky vinegar dressing, and shatteringly crispy fried onions.
When to cook it
Best for Everyday lunch, street food, with a medium cooking level and about 70 minutes total.
What to serve alongside it
Extra crispy onions and hot sauce
Follow the collection
Koshari appears in 3 AfroKitchen collections. Start with Vegetarian Africa if you want more dishes in the same mood. Vegetarian Africa
Regional lane
Egypt national table. A verified Egypt dish in the AfroKitchen archive.
Chef watch-outs
- Adding too much liquid after the rice goes in.
- Stirring too often once the grains should be steaming.
- Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.
How you know it is ready
- The grains should be tender but still distinct, with steam carrying the seasoning upward.
- The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
- Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.
Recipe photos
See the dish before you cook
Each recipe supports one main image and up to four extra prep, serving, or step photos when they are available.
Chef board
Build the table around Koshari
Extra crispy onions and hot sauce
Best route from here
Egypt national table
Collections to keep cooking
How to cook it
Step-by-step method
Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.
6 steps
70 min total
medium
2
Cook rice and pasta
Toast vermicelli in a little onion oil if using, then cook with rice. Boil macaroni separately until al dente.
Rice and pasta
20:00
3
Fry the onions
Fry sliced onions in batches until deep golden and crisp. Drain well and keep the onion oil.
Onions
10:00
4
Make tomato sauce
Cook half the garlic in a little onion oil. Add tomatoes, some vinegar, cumin, salt, and chile, then simmer until thick.
Tomato sauce
15:00
5
Make dakka
Sizzle the remaining garlic in oil, then add vinegar and cumin. It should smell sharp and garlicky.
Dakka
01:00
6
Assemble
Layer rice, lentils, macaroni, and chickpeas. Spoon over tomato sauce and dakka, then finish with crispy onions.
Some cooks fold vermicelli into the rice, some keep the rice plain. The tomato sauce, dakka, and fried onions carry the soul either way.