A vegan take on an Egyptian staple, this Vegan Hawawshi is a delicious pita sandwich of ground plant-based meat. These popular sandwiches are flavoured with a distinct combination of spices, and a refreshing mixture of jalapeño, parsley, onion and green pepper.
Egyptian cuisine is actually very vegan-friendly, with many dishes like koshary, falafel, ful medames, hummus, dolma and more being vegetable based. While Hawawshi is typically made of ground minced meat, here we stuff it with vegan meat or black beans.
This version of Egyptian Hawawshi is a fast and plant-based version. Authentic Hawawshi is not vegan. Further, In Egypt the popular street food is typically made with a fresh dough then oven-basked. In this version we’re using pita bread and searing the sandwiches on the stovetop. It’s quick, vegan and delicious!
Ingredients in Vegan Egyptian Hawawshi
My plant-based and quick take on Egyptian Hawashi is made with:
- Vegan meat of choice (or you can substitute with black beans ore red kdney beans or even tofu)!
- Green peppers
- Jalepeño
- Yellow onion and garlic
- tomato paste
- parsley
- salt & olive oil
- vegan cheese (optional)
- pitas
A fragrant mix of savoury spices with a hint of sweet
- coriander
- all spice
- paprika
- pepper
- cumin
- cardamon
- cinnamon
How to Make Vegan Egyptian Hawawshi
- In a small bowl, add the spices and mix to combine.
- Place the onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeño, and parsley in a bowl and pulse a few times with a hand blender until finely chopped. (Or place in food processor only until finely chopped, or use pestle and mortar).
- Transfer the onion mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add the vegan beef (or black beans). the spice mixture and a dash of salt. Mix until well combined and spices are evenly distributed within the vegan meat mixture.
- Heat a large pan and cook the vegan beef (or black bean) mixture until golden brown ( 5-7 minutes), adding the tomato paste half way through.
- Cut the pita loafs into halves to create 6 pita pockets.
- Heat another large pan on the stove top with a generous drizzle of olive oil.
- Stuff each pita pocket with the vegan meat ((or black bean) mixture. Using the back of a spoon, spread the meat mixture inside the pita pockets. (Add cheese if desired).
- Arrange the pitas in the prepared frying pan and cook each side on medium low for 6 minutes each until golden brown.
How to Serve Vegan Egyptian Hawawshi
Serve this Vegan Egyptian Hawashi with my Egyptian Ful Mudammas Stewed Beans! It’s an Egyptian dish of stewed beans with fresh lemon, olive oil and spices. Best of all, authentic Egyptian Ful Mudammas is totally vegan!
Make a mini Egyptian feast by adding Dolma, which are rice-stuffed grape leaves. Slice up a small plate of tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and jalepeño to complete your spread.
Common Questions
What else can I use as vegan meat in this recipe?
I used Yves veggie ground round for simplicity sake, however you can use any type of plant-based meat. Other great options are black beans, red kidney beans, or crumbled tofu!
How do I store Hawawshi?
My fully cooked Vegan Egyptian Hawawshi sandwiches can be stored in the refridgerator in am air tight container for 3 days or so. Simply warm them up in a medium-heated oven to re-heat.
Can I freeze Hawashi?
Yes, you can freeze fully cooked Hawawshi. For best results wrap up the individual pita sandwiches in freezer bags or containers. Then simply warm them up from frozen.
Vegan Egyptian Hawawshi
Ingredients
Hawawshi Seasoning
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp all spice
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp cardamon
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Hawawshi
- 1 package vegan ground meat or canned black beans
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 green bell pepper chopped into large chunks
- 1 small jalapeno halved and seeded (omit seeds if preferred less spicy)
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley
- 3 Tbsp tomato paste or strained tomatoes
- salt to taste
- 3 loaves pita bread each loaf cut in 2
- olive oil for frying
- vegan cheese optional
Instructions
Hawawshi
- In a small bowl, add the spices and mix to combine.
- Place the onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeno, and parsley in a bowl and pulse a few times with a hand blender until finely chopped. (Or place in food processor only until finely chopped, or use pestle and mortar).
- Transfer the onion mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add the vegan beef (or black beans). the spice mixture and a dash of salt. Mix until well combined and spices are evenly distributed within the vegan meat mixture.
- Heat a large pan and cook the vegan beef (or black bean) mixture until golden brown ( 5-7 minutes), adding the tomato paste half way through.
- Cut the pita loafs into halves to create 6 pita pockets.
- Heat another large pan on the stove top with a generous drizzle of olive oil.
- Stuff each pita pocket with the vegan meat mixture. Using the back of a spoon, spread the meat mixture inside the pita pockets.
- Arrange the pitas in the prepared frying pan and cook each side on medium low for 6 minutes each until golden brown.
Looking for more healthy vegan recipes? Try my Spicy Cabbage Broad Bean Soup!
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