Koshari

Researching into Egyptian food I was pleasantly surprised to find out that their "National dish" is a vegan street food called Koshari. Combining rice, lentils and pasta it's a comforting hearty dish and the layer of spicy tomato sauce tops it perfectly.  

Ingredients

Serves 4

For the tomato sauce
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 small red onions, finely chopped 
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
400g chopped tomatoes, tinned
2tsp red wine vinegar
1tsp finely-ground black pepper
2tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste

salt

For the koshari
8 tbsp vegetable oil
200g basmati rice, rinsed
75g ditalini, tubettini or short cut macaroni 
75g vermicelli, broken into small pieces (2cm)
180g brown, puy lentils, or green split peas, soaked for an hour in cold water
150g chickpeas (cooked weight) 
Salt 

freshly ground black pepper

3 medium white onions, peeled, thinly sliced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground cinnamon

400ml water

Method


First, make the tomato sauce. Put 3tbsp of oil and chopped onion in a saucepan and gently cook over a medium heat until soft.  Stir in the garlic and cook for a couple more minutes, then add the tomatoes, vinegar and chilli. Simmer for 10-20 minutes or until thickened. 
Either push through a sieve or blend in a liquidiser until smooth. Set aside. 

Then in a large frying pan heat up 8 tbsp of oil on a medium heat. Add the sliced onions and fry until dark brown. With a slotted spoon lift out the onions into a bowl lined with kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil. Season with a pinch of salt.

Add the chickpeas to the frying pan for a few minutes then also lift out and place in the bowl. Keep warm in an oven on a low temperature.

Meanwhile, place the lentils in a large saucepan with salted water. Bring it to a boil and then simmer for 20 minutes before adding the pasta for a further 10 minutes. Drain and place in a warm bowl, sealed with foil to keep warm in the oven.

Rinse the rice under the cold tap until the water runs clear.

In the same saucepan as the onions were fried bring the oil back up to a medium temperature, adding the rice, ground cumin and cinnamon. Cook for a minute, stirring to coat the rice. Add the water, with a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Then reduce the temperature to low and simmer for 10 minutes placing a lid to keep the moisture in.

Once the rice is cooked, add the lentils and pasta and half the onions. Stir through. Remove from the heat and let it rest for a few minutes with the lid on.

To serve, spoon out a portion into a serving bowl and top with the tomato sauce, fried onions and chickpeas.