Welcome to Food Feuds, where we rate similar dishes from different countries to figure out who does it better!
Hawawshi vs Arayes: Who does the Middle Eastern Style Burger better?
Both Hawawshi and Arayes are delicious Middle Eastern dishes, but they have some differences in terms of preparation and ingredients. We are figuring out who makes the best Middle Eastern style burger. Egypt or Lebanon?
- Origin: Egyptian
- Description:
- Hawawshi is a dish that involves combining ground meat, typically beef or lamb, with an array of spices, onions, and peppers. This mixture is stuffed inside aish baladi, a type of Egyptian flatbread, and baked or grilled with samna (clarified butter) until the meat is fully cooked and the bread attains a crispy texture.
- It’s interesting to note that there are various types of Hawawshi enjoyed across Egypt. For example, there’s the Alexandrian Hawawshi, which is enveloped with homemade dough. However, in our comparison today, we’re focusing on the Cairo Street Style Hawawshi.
Arayes:
- Origin: Lebanese
- Description: Arayes is crafted with ground meat, often a blend of lamb and beef, using a distinct preparation method. The seasoned meat is spread between two layers of thin flatbread, creating a sandwich. The aryes is then either grilled or baked until the bread achieves a crispy texture, and the meat is thoroughly cooked.
Which one is better?
Both dishes offer a delicious combination of seasoned meat and crispy bread, making them popular choices. Some people may prefer one over the other based on the specific spices or preparation methods used in each dish, but I giving you my honest opinion on both these dishes.
Sensory Analysis
- Taste/Texture: 8/10 The samna really brought a nice crispy texture to the outer layer of the pita bread. The juice from the meat was nicely absorbed in the inside of the pita.
- Appearance: 8/10 I found it to be visually appealing and the crisp noise that it made when I sliced my knife through the sandwich was pleasing ASMR.
- Overall: 6/10 Hawawshi was really heavy and it is definitely a once in a season kind of meal. It felt like I went to eat a sandwich at a fast food restaurant because of all of the samna I added to it to make it crispy. As I get older, I consider it an overall experience to my food critiques. I would eat it again, but I just couldn’t not come back to it as often as I would like.
- Average Score: 7.3/10
- Taste/Texture: 7.5/10 The olive oil was nice but it didn’t add a crispy texture to the outside like samna did. The juice from the meat abosrbed into the thin flat bread which also contributed to the sogginess. It was still really delicious and I would probably make it with a thicker flatbread instead of the traditional Lebanese flatbread. It felt healthier to eat because the bread was thinner and the olive oil is a healthier fat overall.
- Appearance: 7/10 I found it to be lighter in color which contributed to the overall look. However, the outside did seem a bit soggier so I wasn’t as impressed with the texture as I was with the Hawowshi.
- Overall: 8/10 Arayes is a lighter dish and I could eat it all the time. It’s not a heavy meal. Arayes uses a thinner bread and it is typically cooked with olive oil which contributes to it being a lighter dish.
- Average Score: 7.6/10
Winner Winner
Arayes
I have conflicting feelings about this rating. Grilling arayes with olive oil contributes to a taste that I perceive as “healthier” and less fatty. The use of a thin-style Lebanese flatbread also played a role in my perception of it as a light and not-so-heavy meal.
The hawawshi won overall on taste and texture, but I couldn’t eat much of it because it was extremely filling and heavy. The aish baladi tasted great and was able to absorb the juice of the meat without reducing the crispiness. Which the arayes had a hard time doing.
I could easily eat arayes over and over again so I would have to pick it as the winner.
What is your favorite? Hawawshi or Arayes?
