- Wow, (spatula clanging)
he's like alternating them.
Check this out.
He flips that one and brings it forward.
Wow, look at those flip skills.
That is so whoa.
All right, check it out guys.
This Trevor James.
We are an Old Cairo today
and I am super pumped.
Just look at this amazing city.
We're going for a full on street food tour of old Cairo
with Bellies En-Route.
It's gonna be a lot of fun.
Let's go check it out guys.
(upbeat music)
Mariam, good morning. - Hi.
- How are you? - Good morning.
How are you? - Good to see you.
Good to see you too, again.
- [Trevor] Good to see you.
Let's go eating.
- Yeah, let's go.
Are you ready? - Yeah awesome.
And here we are old Cairo.
- Downtown. - Downtown.
And what's up first?
- We are going go to actually my favorite food and falafel.
- Food and falafel?
- Yes, we're gonna try
some very, very, very nice stuffed falafel with chili.
- Okay.
- And some delicious (speaking foreign language)
- Oh, let's go.
Let's go.
- There's Laila. - Hi.
- [Trevor] Hey Laila how are you?
- Good, how are you?
- [Trevor] Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you too.
- [Trevor] So excited.
- Hi there how are you? - This is
my business partner Laila.
- Awesome. - She and I
started Bellies en-route together.
- Okay, let's eat.
(speaking foreign language)
Okay, we're gonna go in the kitchen.
- Yes, we gonna
go in the back. - to see how
the falafel and the (speaking foreign language) is made.
Let's go check it out.
Here we go.
Oh, and this is where it starts.
- [Laila] Yes.
- [Trevor] Those are just pure fava bean hearts.
- [Laila] Peeled and pressed fava bean hearts.
- [Trevor] Wow.
- [Laila] You don't add skin in.
- [Trevor] Wow four garlic cloves,
parsley, coriander leaves.
Oh look at that.
Wow, it's all in there. - And there are
many green things in that.
- [Trevor] Oh and then these are the fava bean hearts.
- [Laila] These are the fava bean hearts.
- Wow, adding in more and more.
Just smells amazing.
All of the different herbs, the fava bean, the garlic.
It's good.
And that's the final product there.
They just keep adding it in over and over, right?
They're also making this beautiful fried cauliflower
Right? - Yes.
- [Trevor] What do they put in here?
- [Laila] Eggs, flour, parsley,
salt, pepper, garlic powder.
- Oh. - And a little bit of cumin.
So this pot is called an idra.
- Idra. - Idra.
It's both like boiled and steamed
at the same time. - Oh wow.
- And that's why this pot has like a very unique shape.
It's very wide from the bottom,
but very narrow from the top.
- [Trevor] Oh wow.
The (speaking foreign language) master.
- Yeah and they also add red lentils or yellow lentils
to give it this really nice like orangy color.
- [Trevor] Wow.
- So the food is cooked on a low heat
for anywhere between nine to 10 hours.
- Oh wow. - Yes.
- [Trevor] Oh and here's the sandwich?
The baladi.
Oh, here's the falafel. - Falafel, good?
- Oh, wow.
Oh and look at this.
That's the parsley, coriander seed mix.
Oh, here comes the falafel.
He's just taking this chili paste here
and adding it in,
like into falafel patties.
Look at those.
Okay and then back to the regular ones.
There we are looking good.
There we are.
Oh, and here we go.
So this is the special falafel here, right?
Ooh, so it's an egg?
And then ooh, okay scramble
and then adding falafel in.
Wow, that's unique.
Okay and then adding a little bit
of that coriander seed and parsley.
Oh and then just adding it right in there
and just look at the egg version.
It's looking so good.
Like an ultra egg fried pancake.
There's the flip.
And we're gonna have a full selection today.
Oh and here's the fried cauliflower.
Wow, here it comes.
Okay and here's the moment look,
frying the cauliflower.
I'm just getting hungry
just smelling all this amazing Egyptian street food.
Wow, there they are.
That's the signature Cairo fried cauliflower.
Ooh, he just garnished it.
What was that
- Parsley? - Parsley.
- Oh there's ours.
Thank you.
Okay and here we are.
We got a bunch of different Cairo street food specialties.
So what do we got here?
We got the--
- So we got the
(speaking foreign language)
- [Trevor] With the baladi bread.
With baladi bread. - Yeah.
- And then over here is,
got the falafel. - Oh
- With the tahini paste.
And I asked them to add french fries.
- Upgraded.
Oh and then the--
- We have the
(speaking foreign language)
which is the falafel paste mixed with the eggs.
- Oh wow.
I'm really excited for that.
I think I might just go right in.
Let's go.
Mmm, mmm, mmm.
Ooh, mmm, so fluffy.
That's like upgraded fluffy falafel
with the egg.
And it's got those nice coriander seeds,
the parsley,
and it's also - And also a bit of dill.
- Yeah and dill yeah.
It's also very aromatic with the garlic.
And then your personal favorite is this one, right?
- Yes, the fried cauliflower.
I absolutely love it.
- Dill. - Nice and yellow
- Cauliflower, egg. - Parsley
Let's try that out.
Here we go.
Oh, mmm, oh.
The dill.
The dill is a lot more potent than I thought it would be.
It's really aromatic. - Homestyle.
- That is just amazing.
And then next up,
we gotta try that spiced, chili based stuffed falafel.
- And french fries. - French fries and tahini.
- Mmm - And the tahini's
gonna taste really good.
- Tahini mm.
- That's the perfect tahini.
It's nice.
- Mmm, look at that.
you can see a little chili paste there.
Oh yeah,
that is a little spicy, mmm.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you guys.
Thank you.
Amazing.
And we're gonna keep exploring.
Let's go.
Thank you.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you.
Amazing.
Next up is the?
- Koshari - Koshari.
- Yeah. - Classic Egyptian
street pasta.
- It's the national Egyptian dish.
- Upgrade pasta.
I cannot get enough of this.
Let's go try it out.
(speaking foreign language)
How are you?
Ooh. - It's called
macarona bechamel.
And it's basically baked pasta with bechamel sauce
and minced beef.
- Oh, it sounds amazing. - And it is delicious.
- Oh, and here's the making.
Oh, so this is like a mixed pasta rice.
Oh wow.
Little bit of fried onion.
Oh and then the tomato sauce.
Oh and there's our pie.
And here's the koshari.
We're gonna watch the making
of Egypt's number one pasta dish.
Here it is.
Let's watch.
So it's the pasta with the tomato sauce.
You get that here.
Okay, let's go eat it.
- Let's sit on the table.
Here it comes.
Wow, street Koshari and signature pie.
- Macarona bechamel. - Macarona bechamel.
- Yeah. - It's just beautiful.
So we got the Egyptian street pasta,
the Koshari.
Wow, can never get enough of that.
And you just pour the tomato sauce on?
- You just pour the tomato sauce on
and then over there we've got the
(speaking foreign language)
This is the garlic and a little bit of chili.
- [Trevor] Garlic and chili.
- [Laila] You put your hand on 12 and 12.
- [Trevor] Oh yeah and just pour it on.
- Something that they give you on the street
to get you to order more food basically.
- Gets you hungrier.
- Yes. - Yes.
And, and we call it whiskey
on the street. - Whiskey okay.
- But there's no alcohol.
- Like a tomato.
- Vinegar shot. - It's like sour.
- Sour base soaked in a vinegarette.
- Okay. - Yeah.
Solid water vinaigrette.
- Yes exactly.
- Mmm, mm, mmm.
Oh. - It's so good.
- Mmm it's good.
- Mmm, it's garlicy.
And then the signature pie.
Like what was in here again?
- So you got pasta,
minced beef. - Wow look at that.
- And it's spiced.
And then bechamel sauce.
- Okay and then let's do the tomato sauce pour.
Seriously that's like.
Koshari for me is worth flying
into Egypt for. - Oh yeah.
- I'm sure once we leave,
this is what I'm gonna be missing.
Okay let's just mix that up.
Oh yeah.
Lentils full of protein.
Okay, so this is the spicy chili oil.
- Very spicy chili oil.
- [Trevor] Just touch it up.
Is that enough?
- Yeah. (Mariam laughs)
- [Laila] Yeah.
- Okay, it's spicy?
And then these are the signature street sausage, right?
- Yes. - Oh yeah.
- [Trevor] Put a little lime.
- [Laila] Yeah.
- [Trevor] And then just pour some sausage in?
Can I do that?
- [Mariam] You can add a few bit in there yeah.
- [Laila] Egyptians are generally not judgy
on like how you eat.
- [Trevor] Oh, that's good.
- [Laila] Like that might not be the typical way
of eating it,
but then also no one's gonna be like,
"Oh, you can't do that."
- [Trevor] It's just like, whatever you like.
- Exactly. - Whatever you like.
- [Trevor] Look at that.
- Thank you. - Egyptian,
it's like a pasta pie.
- [Mariam] It is like,
it's very similar to the Greek pastichio.
- Let's try this out.
Here we go.
I'm excited.
- Mmm, mmm, mm.
Yeah, you can't go wrong with Koshari right?
- [Mariam] You cannot.
- Mmm, just like so aromatic
with all the fried onions and the mmm,
smoothness from the tomato sauce
and the gotta try sausage in there too.
Awesome, that was amazing.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you.
Okay, so next up we are in the back alleys of Cairo.
We're coming to try a hawawshi, right?
Yes, hawawshi rabea.
- [Trevor] Hi boss.
Oh - Hi.
(speaking foreign language) Nice to meet you.
- [Trevor] How are you?
- I'm fine.
- [Trevor] Wow, so this is the hawawshi?
- Hawawshi. - Hawawshi.
Okay, we're gonna watch the making from the very beginning.
Hi boss. - Hello, hello, hello.
(speaking foreign language)
- [Man] He's the owner.
- [Trevor] How are you?
(speaking foreign language)
- Hello.
- So this is hawawshi,
the ingredients.
Oh, it's all with good beef here.
Oh the hawawshi beef.
Oh, there it is perfectly ground.
Oh, here's the marinade.
Time for some onion and pepper.
Oh and there it comes out.
Look at that.
Yeah, that's gonna get mixed in.
Ooh, mixed in with the beef.
So they're just making like hundreds
of these hawawshi every day.
- Oh yeah.
It's their specialty. - Their specialty.
And this is the mixture
that goes into those stuffed flatbread.
- [Laila] And we have the spices here.
- Oh, here we go.
Salt, pepper, allspice
going into that ground beef, onion and pepper mix.
And then for a quick mix.
Nice.
(speaking foreign language) - Bye, bye.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you. - Bye, bye.
- Here it is.
This is for the hawawshi rabea.
We're gonna watch how the pancakes are made.
Oh and then little baladi bread.
And then it's gonna just get stuffed in there.
Look at that ball.
Ooh it's a big ball.
There it is the hawawshi.
Hawawshi rabea. - Hawawshi rabea.
- Hawawshi rabea.
And then that goes right onto the flat grill here.
And just look at these grills guys.
They're just packed with hawawshi.
Wow, (spatula clanging)
he's like alternating them.
Check this out.
He flips that one and brings it forward.
Wow, look at those flip skills.
(spatula clanging)
Oh and there's the inside?
That's the spiced beef.
Oh, it's like a giant patty and it's just beautiful.
So we got the hawawshi and then what's this up here?
- Sausages.
- [Trevor] Egypt is just the land of the sausages.
Delicious sausages wow.
Okay and here we go.
We're gonna watch the making (food sizzling)
of our Egyptian macaroni.
Oh, there we go look. - They're some garlic.
- [Trevor] Oh he's just throwing
all these clay pots in. - pasta and tomato.
- Wow, look at this.
I don't think I've ever seen anything like this.
Just throwing like clay pot after clay pot
of macaroni pasta onto a flat grill.
Oh and he's just throwing
a little pepper. - And green pepper.
- Pepper ooh bell pepper.
Wow, this is so good.
Wow and then he is just spreading it out,
looking at that.
Spreading it out so it gets,
it just gets grilled and sizzled and the aroma comes out.
Look at the spreading there wow.
Just look at how he's scraping it all together.
All that saucy goodness is just getting extra aromatic.
Is he gonna put it back in?
Ooh wow look at that.
So not only do you get the macaroni and pasta
you can get it with sausage.
You can get it with liver.
You can get it in these little silver packets.
I think there's some beef in there.
Look at that.
Oh, it just comes right out.
- We've been to
(speaking foreign language)
and there it is right there.
It says,
(speaking foreign language)
which means like's Zana's Villa
and Zana is actually the first granddaughter of the owner.
- Oh molokhia. - It's molokhia.
- Molokhia - Oh he's fixing molokhia.
- [Trevor] Wow.
Oh, wow look at this.
This is (speaking foreign language).
(speaking foreign language)
- [Trevor] Which is?
- [Laila] Basically it's the knuckle soup.
- Oh like the foot jelly. - Yeah.
- [Trevor] Oh, wow.
- So this is nutmeg. - Nutmeg.
- [Laila] Yeah.
- So there's two different types
of clay pot classic Egyptian dishes we've seen here.
This one here,
which is the beef foot jelly soup right?
What's it called?
(speaking foreign language) (speaking foreign language)
And then the classic?
- Molokhia - Molokhia.
- [Laila] Yeah.
- [Trevor] Which is the Egyptian kinda like an herb,
a green herb, right?
- [Laila] Yeah.
- [Trevor] Okay and we're gonna watch
the making of molokhia.
Little oil in there.
Oh wow,
look at all that garlic in that oil.
That's gonna be super aromatic.
- [Laila] A lot of garlic and dry coriander.
- Dry coriander.
Oh and there's the (speaking foreign language)
That's the jute leaves mixed with the beef jelly,
the beef foot jelly stock.
So this is the molokhia.
We've got the garlic sizzling,
the jute leaves in here.
- We're gonna put it in.
- You just hold tight okay? - Oh that molokhia.
- [Laila] Woo.
- You're gonna pour it out here.
- Oh, you want me to?
Oh it's like,
it's like cold tea.
- [Laila] Oh yeah.
- [Trevor] It's like cold tea.
(Laila laughs)
- Wow.
- He's doing it. - Oh man, damn.
(Trevor laughs)
- Okay and it's just gonna get brought to our table now.
Oh, it's a beautiful feast. - Are you ready for the show.
- Molokhia.
(speaking foreign language)
- Ooh the garlic.
- Look at that color.
- [Trevor] That is so.
(singing in foreign language)
(Trevor laughs)
(singing in foreign language)
Wow.
(singing in foreign language)
Wow.
(singing in foreign language)
Oh wow.
(Laila cheering) Thank you.
(Trevor claps)
Thank you.
- [Laila] Nice.
- [Trevor] Seriously one of the most aromatic dishes
you'll ever smell,
especially from that sizzled garlic.
Oh wow and then this is the foot jelly stew, right?
- [Mariam] The foot jelly.
- Thank you.
You can already tell this is gonna be an amazing meal
- Yeah. - just by smelling it.
- Yeah, yeah.
Go for it, yeah.
- Let's go in for this pasta.
- Go for it.
- [Trevor] Look at that.
- [Mariam] Nice.
- [Trevor] I love how they sizzle it on the grill
to get the extra aromas like out.
So all it's just extremely aromatic.
- [Mariam] It gives us this like beautiful caramelization.
- Yeah, okay.
There it is.
Egyptian macaroni. - Macaroni.
I love it. - Mmm.
- Tastes really homemade.
It's so good.
- Yeah.
- That is extremely,
extremely delicious. - So good.
- [Trevor] Just like soothing, comforting.
- It's very comforting. - Mmm.
- [Trevor] You eat the whole thing.
- [Laila and Mariam] You eat the whole thing.
- You eat the whole rind of the pickled lemon.
Mmm.
- Do this.
- Oh yeah.
- And some molokhia.
- [Mariam] So rice with vermicelli obviously,
'cause this is how we eat our rice in Egypt.
- [Trevor] Oh yummy, yummy.
- [Mariam] And you can tell by the color of the rice
that there's a lot of ghee in there.
- Mmm (Mariam laughs)
Okay and then you just mix it up, right?
- [Mariam] Yeah mm-hm.
- [Trevor] Oh yeah you can see the consistency there.
You said it's not slimy it's?
- Viscous. - Viscous, okay.
Look at that.
Wow, look at that Molokhia.
Ooh. - You did it.
- [Trevor] And I'm just gonna try that out.
Look at that.
That's the Molokhia jute leaves.
Look at the texture.
Look at the consistency there.
Look, as you said, it's viscous.
- Viscous. - Not slimy.
Let's try it out.
Mmm, mmm, mmm.
Oh yeah.
- This isn't your first time trying Molokhia.
- No, no, but this
ooh, been a long time.
Mmm, oh wow - Forgot how flavorful it is.
- Yeah, it does taste a little like spinach,
but with more of an okra texture
and so aromatic with the garlic.
So they cook the Molokhia
with the broth
- from this beef jelly soup. - Yes.
I'm just gonna take one of these nice jelly pieces.
Wow look at that.
- Mmm, mmm.
Oh it's so nutritious.
That stock is just seriously nutritious and rich, wow.
Okay and then this is what we came here for the hawawshi.
- Yes. - Look at that.
Made in the baladi bread pocket, right?
- [Laila] Yep.
- And they own the butcher just right beside.
- Yeah. - They started out
as a butcher - They started out
as a butcher. - and then started the shop.
- Mmm and look at that.
Looking nice.
Just look at that.
You can see the brand on there,
which gives it that
like earthiness right? - Yeah.
- Mmm, oh, oh that's really nice.
Yeah that is really nice.
Just satisfying to the soul beef pocket.
And then you,
oh, look at that tahini.
That is just like richly thick.
Is that the way to do it?
- Yes and then take a bite.
- Mmm, mmm.
- It's really good.
Very nutty - Very nice tahini.
(speaking foreign language)
- Welcome. - Thank you.
- Welcome, welcome. - Thank you.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you so much.
- Thank you.
- It was very nice.
Thank you boss.
(speaking foreign language)
Thank you.
Wanna give a big thank you Bellies En-Route.
Thank you guys
for the amazing, - Thank you so much.
- Amazing food tour.
- Thank you for joining us.
- So much fun.
You guys can check them out in the description below.
They offer amazing food tours around Cairo and so much fun.
Thanks so much guys.
- Thank you. - Thanks Trevor.
- Awesome, thanks for watching.
(upbeat music)