Ful (Fava beans)

Ful or Fava beans isa staple dish in the middle eastern cuisine. The Ful is rich in iron so it's very healthy. Some people with low tolerance to iron might be allergic to Ful so be careful!

Time: 3 hours

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

1 Kilo of cubed beef for slow cooking (Optional)

1 Kilo of Ful (green with shell)

1 big onion

1 spoon of cooking oil

4 spoons of salt

5 spoons of Baharat (Allspice)

Rice

Water

Yogurt for serving

Lemon for serving

Directions:

1. Wash the Ful and cut them while keeping the shells around the beans (See image below - That's how the Ful looks like after it has been washed and cut)

2. Cut the onion to cubes and saute it

3. Add the meat and fry them up a bit so they are seared from the outside

4. Add 2 spoons of Baharat and stir

5. Add the cleaned and cut Ful and saute for a few minutes

6. Fill the pot with water untill contents are covered

7. Add the rest of the Baharat and salt

8. Cook for 2 hours or until the meat is tender

9. Cook rice on the side

10. Serve in a bowl or a deep plate with rice at the bottom, Ful and meat on top and Yogurt above it. Squeeze some lemon juice on it all

Tips and comments:

* The meat is optional. If you don't want the meat, use two big onions instead of one. The taste of the onions with the Ful and the Baharat spice will resemble the taste of meat.

*When cutting the Ful, you can try to remove the strings or fibers that are on the shell's sides. Usually when the Ful is a bit old and dry, the fibers become more tough.