Egyptian cuisine

The history of Egyptian cuisine begins with Ancient Egypt. Archaeological excavations have revealed that workers on the Great Pyramids of Giza were paid in bread, beer, and onions,^{[citation needed]} apparently their customary diet as peasants in the Egyptian countryside. Dental analysis and the desiccated loaves occasionally found in excavated tombs confirm this, in addition to indicating that ancient Egyptian bread was made with flour from emmer wheat. Beer disappeared as a mainstay of Egyptian life following the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the year 641, but onions remain the primary vegetable for flavoring and nutrition in Egyptian food. Beans were also a primary source of protein for the mass of the Egyptian populace, as continues to be the case today.
Relying heavily on vegetable dishes, Egyptian cuisine is notably conducive to vegetarian diets. Although food in Alexandria and on the Egyptian coast tends to use a great deal of fish and other seafood, for the most part Egyptian cuisine is based on foods that grow out of the ground. Meat has been very expensive for most Egyptians throughout history, and many vegetarian dishes have developed to work around this ec