Fuul and Koshary aren’t the only vegetarian fast food gems in Egypt. Once you’ve had your fill of beany goodness, you can always turn to ta’ aminya (the Egyptian word for felafel) or fiteer.

Fiteer is a local dish that’s described alternately as pizza or pancake. It’s somewhere between, but not actually either, of the two. The dough is very light (like golzeme, but thicker) and surrounds the filling like a calzone (but much thinner).

There are a lot of possible savoury fillings, including vegetable, mushroom and cheese, but fiteer can also be a sweet dish, served with jam or sugar.

We deferred trying felafel in Egypt in favour of the unique local vegetarian delicacies. However, once we tasted the felafel in Cairo we regretted our decision.

Egyptian felafel is great! The inside is left soft and very green, and the mixture is heavily spiced making sure you get a hit of flavour alongside the usual “just been deep fried” taste. Whole sesame seeds are scattered on top, which gives it extra flavour and a prettier appearance than the usual brown felafel balls.

There are some felafel shops on Egyptian streets, but less so than in other parts of the Middle East. Instead, felafel often comes served plain on a plate in local restaurants - perfect for mopping up some tahini dip with freshly baked bread.

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