Koshari is a medley of rice, macaroni, and lentils topped with a spiced tomato sauce, garlic vinegar, chickpeas, and crispy fried onions. British explorer Richard Burton describes a similar dish served in Suez on the Red Sea coast at the end of the 19th c. and comments on its resemblance to the Indian rice and lentil dish kichhri. Historians speculate that kichhri most likely arrived from India to Suez with pilgrims returning from Mecca, later reaching Cairo where it evolved into the popular street food it is today.
For more, see the full story What’s for Lunch in Egypt? (link in details).