Hawawshi Sandwich Recipe – Egyptian Spiced Meat Stuffed Bread

Difficulty:

1/5

Serves:

6 PEOPLE

Prep Time:

15 minutes

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Hawawshi Sandwich (Egypt)

Hawawshi Sandwich Recipe brings together juicy ground beef spiced with cumin, coriander, allspice, and cinnamon stuffed inside crispy Egyptian baladi bread, creating a dish that’s perfect for soccer nights, Ramadan iftars, or casual street food dinners. Featured on Global Street Eats, this recipe combines fiery jalapeño heat, aromatic Egyptian spice blend, fresh parsley brightness, and homemade tahini sauce for an authentic Cairo street cart experience that’s surprisingly easy to recreate at home with just 15 minutes of oven time.

The Inspiration

Hawawshi vendors roam Cairo’s streets with portable ovens, stuffing baladi bread with spiced meat mixture while shouting orders to waiting crowds—Egypt’s answer to the stuffed sandwich. Born in Alexandria during the 1970s, hawawshi transformed simple beef and baladi into national obsession through perfect spice balance: smoky paprika, floral coriander, warm allspice-cinnamon, and fiery jalapeños that caramelize inside crispy bread pockets.

Devan Rajkumar captures authentic hawawshi technique on Global Street Eats, adapting street stall efficiency for home ovens while preserving the magic of meat juices soaking into warm bread. This isn’t just a sandwich—it’s engineering marvel where every spice layer hits differently.

Ingredients

For the Tahini Sauce:

¼ cup (60ml) tahini paste
¼ cup (60ml) water
2 tbsp (29.6ml) lemon juice
Salt to taste

For the Sandwich:

1 lb ground beef
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
1 small white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
½ bunch parsley, chopped
1 tsp (4.9ml) smoked paprika
1 tsp (4.9ml) ground coriander
1 tsp (4.9ml) ground allspice
1 tsp (4.9ml) ground cumin
½ tsp (2.5ml) ground cinnamon
1 tsp (4.9ml) salt
3 loaves Egyptian baladi bread or pita bread

Methods

Make the Tahini Sauce:

Mix together the tahini paste, water, lemon juice, and salt in a small bowl. The mixture may look broken or seize up at first – keep mixing and it should come together. Add more water if necessary to loosen the sauce. Set aside.

Make the Hawawshi Sandwiches:

Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Add the ground beef, jalapeno, onion, garlic, parsley, paprika, coriander, allspice, cumin, cinnamon, and salt to a large bowl and mix well, using your hands if desired, until all the ingredients are combined together.
Cut the baladi or pita breads in half and fill with the meat mixture. Transfer the bread to the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until the meat is cooked and the bread looks crispy.
Serve with a side of tahini for dipping or drizzling over the sandwiches.

Serving Suggestions

Serve Hawawshi Sandwich Recipe straight from oven onto newspaper-lined trays with communal tahini bowls and lemon wedges for Cairo street cart authenticity, perfect for soccer match nights, Ramadan iftars, or casual Friday dinners where spiced meat sandwiches disappear before halftime. Pair with ice-cold karkadeh (hibiscus tea), Stella beer, or guava juice to balance warm spices while tahini creaminess demands second helpings, or elevate dinner parties by slicing into fingers with pickled turnips, cucumber yogurt, and molokhia soup for full Egyptian feast. Kids love handheld pockets, adults crave crispy edges—30-minute crowd pleaser that captures street food magic without leaving home.

Final Thoughts

This Hawawshi Sandwich Recipe captures Egyptian street food genius—simple beef and bread transformed by masterful spice engineering into crispy pocket perfection. Devan Rajkumar’s Global Street Eats version makes authentic Cairo technique accessible while preserving the joy of meat juices soaking warm bread. The magic lives in balance: fiery jalapeños meet floral coriander, allspice warmth tempers cinnamon sweetness, tahini cuts richness. Whether feeding soccer crowds or treating family to Egyptian comfort, hawawshi converts everyone instantly—proof that great street food needs no utensils.

Find more recipes from Global Street Eats here!