Ful Medames
Warm fava beans crushed in their own liquid with cumin, lemon and a lot of olive oil. Breakfast that holds you until evening.
- Prep
- 10m
- Cook
- 20m
- Waiting
- 5m
- Total
- 35m
- Serves
- 4
- Effort
- Easy
Method
Tap a step number to mark it done. Tap an ingredient once for got it, twice for need it.
| 2 x 400 g tins | Simmer the beans in their liquid with the aromatics until steaming 15m Use the liquid from the tin. It is starchy and it thickens the whole thing as it reduces. | Crush about half the beans against the side of the pan 5m Half whole, half mashed. Fully smooth and it is just a dip, fully whole and it will not hold a spoon. | Spoon into bowls, scatter the toppings and pour the oil over 5m Serve it warm, not hot. Above blood temperature the olive oil turns harsh. | |
| 3 cloves | ||||
| 2 tsp | ||||
| 1 tsp | ||||
| 3 tbsp | ||||
| 5 tbsp | ||||
| 1 | ||||
| a handful | ||||
| 1 | ||||
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Simmer the beans in their liquid with the aromatics until steaming
15m- tinned fava beans 2 x 400 g tins
- garlic 3 cloves
- ground cumin 2 tsp
- fine salt 1 tsp
Use the liquid from the tin. It is starchy and it thickens the whole thing as it reduces.
-
Crush about half the beans against the side of the pan
5m- from 1 Simmer the beans in their liquid with the aromatics until steaming
- lemon juice 3 tbsp
Half whole, half mashed. Fully smooth and it is just a dip, fully whole and it will not hold a spoon.
-
Spoon into bowls, scatter the toppings and pour the oil over
5m- from 2 Crush about half the beans against the side of the pan
- extra virgin olive oil 5 tbsp
- tomato 1
- flat-leaf parsley a handful
- green chilli (optional) 1
Serve it warm, not hot. Above blood temperature the olive oil turns harsh.
Why the tin liquid stays in
Fava beans cooked long enough release soluble starch and pectin into their liquid, which is why the stuff in the tin is cloudy and slightly viscous. Drain it away and you have to add water back, and water dilutes rather than binds. Kept and reduced for a quarter of an hour, it becomes the sauce, and the crushed beans thicken it further as their starch disperses.
Cumin is added early and warmed in the liquid on purpose — its aroma compounds are fat and heat soluble, so a raw sprinkle at the end tastes dusty by comparison.
Notes
- Crush the garlic with salt into a paste; chopped raw garlic is too aggressive here.
- Ful varies by brand. Some are firm, some almost purée in the tin — adjust the mashing accordingly. A quartered hard-boiled egg on top is traditional, and ends the vegan claim.
- The toppings are not garnish. Without the raw tomato and lemon it is heavy.