Georgina Hayden’s recipe for ful medames with charred olives

Ful medames, often referred to as simply ful, is a popular breakfast dish in Egypt and parts of the Middle East. Packed with protein, it’s a great way to start the day, particularly if you follow a plant-based diet. Having said that, I regularly make it as a quick dinner with pitta, and I’ve even been known to pop an egg on top, too. I like to add charred olives to the traditional dressing, alongside parsley, tomato and cumin, because I love the depth of flavour they bring. If you haven’t tried barbecuing olives before, they’re definitely something worth trying.

Ful medames with charred olives

If you can’t find fava beans, use whatever tinned or jarred beans you have to hand. Alternatively, soak and boil dried beans in advance, so they’re ready to use.

Prep 10 min
Cook 30 min
Serves 2, or 4 as part of a meze

12 pitted black olives
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
½ tsp ground cumin
2 400g tins fava beans, or cannellini or borlotti beans, drained and liquid reserved
Sea salt and black pepper

For the dressing
1 large green chilli, finely chopped (remove and discard the pith and seeds if you want less heat)
½ bunch flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 lemon
2 ripe tomatoes, deseeded and finely chopped
Pittas, to serve

Put a large frying pan on a medium-high heat, add the olives and fry for five to eight minutes, until lightly charred and blistered. Transfer to a board.

Put two tablespoons of olive oil in the hot frying pan, turn down the heat to medium-low, then add the onion and half the garlic, and saute for 10 minutes, until the onions are soft but not coloured. Stir in the cumin, then add the drained beans and 200ml of the reserved bean liquid. Bring to a boil, season to taste, then turn down the heat to low and cook for about 10 minutes. Towards the end of the cooking time, especially if you’re using tinned beans, you might need gently break up and mash the beans gently with a potato masher – you’re not looking for a puree here, just a creamy broken consistency, so add a little more liquid, if need be.

While the beans are cooking, make the dressing. Put the chilli in a mortar with the remaining garlic and a good pinch of salt, then bash with the pestle until broken down and creamy. Add the chopped parsley to the mix, and pound that in, too. Halve one of the lemons, squeeze in its juice, then stir in a couple of tablespoons of oil to loosen, or to taste.

Chop the charred olives, then stir them into the green dressing with the tomatoes.

Serve the creamy fava beans drizzled with the spicy green dressing. They’re perfect with some warm pitta.