I have cooked enough family dinners to recognize a recipe people will ask for again, and Fava Beans in Yogurt Sauce the Palestinian Way~ فول اخضر مع لبن has that quality. I would set this in the middle of the table and let everyone help themselves. Recipes like this carry the warmth and generosity I associate with a Middle Eastern kitchen. The only thing left to do is gather a few willing tasters and enjoy it together.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds fava beans
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 2 tbs water
- 1 pound beef or lamb chunks
- 1 onion chopped fine
- 2-3 tbs olive oil
- 1 tsp mixed spices (7 spice)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 1/2 cup water
- 4 cups yogurt
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbs corn starch
- 1 head garlic l, finely chopped
- A handful cilantro, chopped
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Rinse the fava beans in cold water, with a knife Pull the seems on the sides of the pod it’s stringy and tough, feel the skin on the pods if soft you can cut into bite size I use the seeds as a guide to cut across. If the pods are tough you need to shell the fava beans and use the seeds only.
- In a big pot add 2 tbs olive oil, add the fava beans and cook stirring to get some golden color on it, cover and cook on low it needs to steam cook. Keep an eye on it check after a couple of minutes if starting to dry add 2 tbs water and cover again it should take 15-20 minutes, needs to be soft and firm. Set aside.
- In a pot heat 3 tbs olive oil with the onions cook until soft add the meat stir to change color then add the spices and continue browning the meat, add 5 1/2 cups water and pressure cook for 15 minutes. If you’re cooking without a pressure cooker it will take about an hour on low.
- Add the meat with the broth to the fava beans with 1 1/2 tsp salt cover and cook on low-medium until the fava bean are tender.
- In the meantime prepare the yogurt sauce whisk the yogurt + water + cornstarch before turning the heat on so there’s no clumps. Turn the heat on and continue whisking until it starts bubbling. Add the yogurt to fava beans and cook for 15-20 minutes, if you need to thin the yogurt sauce add 1/2 cup hot water. Taste to adjust the salt.
- Finally fry the garlic in olive oil until fragrant then add the cilantro and fry quickly add 1/2 to the fava beans and continue cooking for a couple of minutes, add the rest to the top when serving. Serve next to rice.