This week I have been craving snacky foods, and while I always get my nightly popcorn fix, I thought I should broaden my horizons by making some Syrian-style munchies. Charmed by Syrian Foodie in London's story about feasting on ful nabit in china bowls from street vendors after school, I decided to make a batch for evening noshing.
Well, this fool (har) totally forgot when she went to Kroger that fava beans either in canned or dry form are not sold under that name in the regular aisles but instead are hidden in the international foods section. And even there these sneaky beans go by their lesser-known moniker, 'pigeon peas,' which technically are a smaller varietal, but hey, I'll take, what I can get.
So, I had to make a repeat visit, but it was worth it. Ful nabit is extremely simple and the nutty, warm bite of the cumin plays delightfully well with the milder flavored legumes.
Ingredients
Preferably dry fava beans (canned in a pinch)
Salt
Cumin
Directions
When using dry beans, soak overnight in water. Then, boil in water for about 90 minutes until flesh is supple and skin can be easily peeled off.
When using canned, drain and rinse beans in colander. Then just barely cover in water, bringing to boil just briefly.
Pinch skin off one end of a bean, dip in salt, then cumin, and squeeze flesh into mouth. Discard skin. Repeat about 100 times while watching Conan O'Brien videos.
