Sure, you can vary things. You can have oatmeal, farina, cold soggy cereal, sugary, fat-laden pastries, blimp- sized bagels, or a multitude of twigs, bark, and berries. All of these are commonplace, but even more boring. If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, why is it the least creative or exciting of the day's meals? I know that most Americans are very busy in the morning. We try to steal as much sleep as we can and then fly out the door for work. Who has time to be creative when your train is leaving in 20 minutes? There must be an interesting breakfast alternative that doesn't require a lot of morning preparation? There is!
Lately I have been eating breakfast the way the Egyptians do. I have Ful Mudammas. It is a simple preparation of small, dried fava beans, red lentils, onion, and tomato. This may not sound very interesting, but trust me, it is. The basic Ful is just a healthy, fiber-rich catalyst. The real magic is in the multitude of condiments that can be served with the Ful. I start my mornings with hot sauce, olive oil, and tahina. Sometimes I go for the fried egg option with kashk and sumac. Even a simple drizzle of salted butter raises the Ful to new levels of good!
Ful not only gets your tongue dancing, it is healthy, and will stick with you for most of the day. It is like throwing a big log on your metabolic fire. No quick burn and crash here, this stuff keeps you going strong. 80 million+ Egyptians can't be wrong!
Preparing Ful requires some planning. The beans must be soaked for 24 hours. The dish itself needs to cook for 12 hours. The good news is that you can make it in a slow cooker overnight. Then it is ready by breakfast time. Once made, the Ful can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week, and reheated in the microwave as needed. The longer it sits, the better it gets!
Here is the recipe that I use. It is very traditional, but with a few personal touches. This recipe will make quite a large batch, so feel free to cut it in half if you need to.
Ful Muddamas
3 pounds small dried fava beans*, soaked overnight in the refrigerator
1 cup red lentils, rinsed
1 onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
2 1/2 quarts vegetable stock or water
1 tablespoon hot sauce (your favorite, optional)
1 tablespoon kosher salt (optional, traditionally Ful is not salted until served)
Place all ingredients into a slow cooker. Cook on High for 2 hours. Turn temperature down to low and cook for 10 hours. After 12 hours, check consistency. Ful should not be too thick. Add more liquid to make more "soupy". Serve in a bowl with your favorite condiments and plenty of whole grain flat-breads.
If you do not have a slow cooker, start Ful on top of stove in a heavy pot. Bring to a boil, cover, and place in a 200 degree oven for 12 hours.
Here are some of the traditional garnishes for Ful Mudammas, but feel free to try your own:
hot sauce, olive oil, tahina, hummus, tomato sauce, kashk, butter, garlic sauce, fried egg, hard-cooked egg, chick peas, green onions, and sumac.
* Small fava beans can be found in most Arab or Persian stores, or on-line.
In a pinch, you can substitute regular, brown lentils. This of course is not traditional, and probably will ruffle some purist feathers.
1 comment:
I love Ful Mudammas but I wasn't up on all the garnishes you suggest.
I'll be trying them. Sumac is wonderful, that's up first. I like the hot sauce idea too, maybe some harissa. Thanks for posting.
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