The pickles might not taste like yours back home!

With almost any food you eat here in Egypt:
• a plated meal
• a sandwich
• breakfast
• liver with rice
• grilled chicken and fries
you will find a small plate or container filled with pickles, as a side dish.
But let us warn you: the Egyptian pickles have a taste all of their own, a rather unique one it has to be said. However, if you can manage to eat a few, they are said to be totally addictive.

Back to the days of Cleopatra

Miggelil is said to date back to the time of the Pharaohs. Apparently Cleopatra herself attributed her good looks to a daily diet of pickles! It is thought that in ancient Egypt, people from every level in society consumed pickles daily, due to their nutritional value.
For centuries, people all over the world have believed in the power of the pickle. They believed, as Cleopatra had said, that these salty vegetables will enhance their beauty!

Which vegetables?

Egyptians love to pickle a variety of vegetables. The most prevalent are carrots, turnip and cucumbers. However you can pickle anything: cauliflower, whole chilis and even whole small lemons.
The flavour can be a bit shocking at first, as vinegar is not the main ingredient. Egyptian pickles are more along the lines of vegetables in brine. Salt water and lemon are the main pickling ingredients, with chilli or dill added for a different flavour. The purpose of these pickles is not to preserve them, but to add a salty, bitter crunch to almost any meal.

The local market

When you walk in a local market, or even in many supermarkets, you will usually see a vast array of pickled vegetables available for sale. Wholesalers sell them by the drum, and street sandwich vendors sell them in a small packet or 2. Some women will pickle their own at home.
But the common theme about these pickles is that Egyptians take a great pride in their sour-salty pickles. Any foreigner who enjoys them, will immediately be applauded and welcomed into the family.

Do they taste nice?

Doing a rather quick and informal survey among our guests, it would appear that out of every 10 people:
2 will really, really like them, and ask after them if not on the table.
2 will actually rather enjoy them (and eat a couple every time they are available)
3 will not dis-like them, but will try one at a few meals, trying to see if the taste grows on them!
1 will try once and never again
2 won’t even try them!

So when you come to Egypt, give Miggelil a try and see which kind or person you are. But on advice from our guests, try a little piece of one as a first try, but never, never ,never have a first taste with a whole small pickled lemon. It really is too much too soon!