When it comes to love, one often searches for a partner that ticks all the right boxes; someone who listens to the ‘right’ music, cries to the same 41-second ‘save my cat from cancer’ TikToks, or even hates the same niche greens you can’t even name, because let’s be real, they all look and taste the same. Yet, we’d be remiss to believe that love requires full compatibility. After all, what have our late-night cravings taught us if not that opposites attract?

This February 14th, we’re celebrating the pairs that matter - the ones we can count on after-hours when it’s late, dark, and you get that itch (nope, get your mind out of the gutter) to get up and just grab whatever it is the first shelf of your fridge offers you. Though these culinary couples shouldn’t make sense together, they irrefutably do, and we can’t help but fall in love with them. From ‘Assal w Tahina’ to ‘Bassal w Renga’, here are the food pairings we never want to see break up.

Watermelon & Feta Cheese

Life in Egypt is split into two defining chunks; before you try your first watermelon and cheese sandwich, and after the fact. A match made in heaven, there are few pleasures in life that live up to what watermelon and feta cheese do to our bodies.

Jam & Cream

The Egyptians’ equivalent of pEnut ButTa eN jellEH, ‘Assal w Eshta’ is a prime example of finding joy in the simple things. Oh, and, the calories don’t count, so snack away princess.

Honey & Tahini

‘Assal w Tehina’ is a combination laced with coke, there’s simply no other explanation. A pair so sweet, sour, and magically delicious, Assal w Tehina is exactly what you need to cure late-night existential crises.

Molokhia & Rabbits

N.b. The author of this article does not approve of rabbits serving any function other than looking cute on Instagram, yet unfortunately most Egyptians do not agree with this, seeing how often one comes across rabbit thighs in molokhia. You may move on.

Macaroni Sandwiches

Italians were found dead in a ditch, and we can’t blame them. In theory, this sounds like Type 2 Diabetes in the making - which it is. Yet in reality, there’s just something so satisfying about holding a loaf of macaroni bolognese in your hand and going to town on it. We’re sorry folks, it just works.

Spring Onions & Smoked Herrings

Though this is the kind of meal you eat only when you’re single - or plan on being single afterwards, ‘bassal akhdar and renga’ are a love story for the ages. One would think, given how pungent each of these ingredients are, that you’d pair them up with something slightly more…demure… to offset the smell, but alas, Egyptians are always up for a challenge, we just hope the sewage system is.

Yellow Koshari & Fried Boiled Eggs

Okay, hear us out…While this combination may change your genetic makeup for good, we’d say it’s worth it. Popular in Alexandria and across the delta governorates, pairing yellow-lentil koshari and ‘beid medahrag’ is one of life’s greatest discoveries, and we’d suggest you hop on that bandwagon.

Stuffed Vine Leaves & Kaware’

Once more, the author of this article feels obligated to point out that cow’s feet should not belong anywhere other than the ground (whether above it, or below it), yet unfortunately there is objective truth to be reported here. A comparably normal yet seemingly random pairing, ‘Wara’’ Enab’ and ‘Kaware’’ seem to be in some sort of situationship across Egyptian street restaurants. Why? Well, that’s a question we can’t - and wouldn’t like to - answer.

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