It’s probably no suprise that I’m still learning about how to use a lot of what we sell at MAD, which is why I’ll often ask our customers how they use the food they’re buying. One such example was a lady who told me she uses faba beans to make “ful medames”. It sounded delicious, so I thought I’d give a try.
This is traditionally an Egyptian breakfast stew, but I think it’s just great comfort food you can have any time, so I knocked this up for a warming lunch.
Prep time: 1hr (including soaking your beans (step 1)
Cook time: 20 mins.
Makes 2 servings.
Ingredients
From MAD Wholefoods;
Faba beans – 125g
2 tbsp olive oil + drizzle for garnish
Ground cumin (1 tsp)
From the Summer Hill Fruit & Veg shop;
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
80g baby spinach leaves
1 lemon (juice only)
1 tomato, chopped
1 bunch of parsley, roughly chopped
From Two Fat Butchers;
1 spicy chorizo sausage, cut lengthways, then diced
2 free-range eggs
Method
- Rinse the beans, place into a small saucepan of water, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 2 minutes. Then cover, remove from heat, and allow to sit for 50 mins. Drain through a seive and rinse. Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil on a medium-high heat in a medium sized fry pan and add the garlic and chorizo. Stir gently, being sure not to burn the garlic, until the chorizo is nearly cooked (about 5 minutes).
- Add the beans, cumin and 3/4 cup of water. Stir through and gently simmer (no lid) on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the water has been absorbed or evaporated.
- While the beans are simmering, bring a small pot of water to the boil, place the eggs in them, and cook for 10 minutes (assuming eggs from fridge – 9 minutes if at room temp). Remove from heat and place in cold water for a minute to arrest cooking. Peel and slice in half lengthways.
- Gently smash the beans a bit with a potato masher, then add the spinach to wilt. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and season to taste.
- Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with eggs, chopped tomato, and parsley.
Serve with freshly baked sourdough or pita bread.
