Sudan - Ful Medames with Kisra and Tomato Salad
I've always been really interested in trying foods from all over the world, but it was a little bit paralyzing to figure out where to start! So, I ended up asking some of my friends to spin a globe on google maps, close their eyes, and stop it randomly. I’d then search the internet and make a meal from whatever country they landed on. My friend Liz selected Sudan this way, and here is the food I decided to try!
On the menu was a tomato and peanut butter salad, an entree of Ful Medames, and a side of Kisra flat bread. The meal was really delicious and had a pleasantly earthy flavor. Please keep in mind, I am making these dishes having never tried them prepared by a Sudanese person, so it’s entirely likely that they’re not perfect! I have linked my sources at the bottom of the page if you’d like to explore the dishes further! :)
First up, Tomato Salad!
Ingredients:
4 Large Tomatoes
1 Jalapeno
2 Green Onions
2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
¼ Cup Plain Peanut Butter
Juice from half of a lime
Parsley to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions:
Chop up the tomatoes into bite-sized chunks
Dice the Jalapeno
Dice the green onion
In a large bowl, mix your oil, peanut butter, and lime juice
Add the tomatoes and pepper and stir well, coating the tomatoes in the peanut dressing
Stir in parsley, chopped green onion, and salt and pepper to taste.
Next, the main course: Ful Medames
This dish was so satisfying, and it is pretty inexpensive to make a large dish big enough for multiple people to share without running out.
A little note - I realized after I mixed the dish together that many people peel each individual fava bean after they soften. I didn’t do this. A little extra fiber never hurt anyone though, right? Haha. If you’d like to peel yours first, just boil them for a few minutes after soaking them overnight, and then transfer them to an ice bath. The skin should squeeze right off at that point, and then you can continue on with the recipe as normal.
Ingredients:
2 cups of Dried Fava Beans (OR 4 15 oz Cans, drained)
2 teaspoons of cumin
2 teaspoons of salt
2 Tablespoons of Sesame
Optional Sides:
Chopped Red Onion
Chopped Tomatoes
Feta Cheese
Hard Boiled Eggs
Arugula
Red Pepper Flakes
Directions:
For Dry Beans:
If using dry beans, soak the fava beans in water overnight
In a large pot, add in the fava beans and cover with water.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for about 2 hours or until the beans are soft
For Canned Beans:
Drain the liquid from the cans
Heat the beans in a saucepan with about half a cup of water.
Recipe is the same for either option from here:
Add your cooked beans to a large bowl with some of the bean water from the cooking process
Add cumin and salt to the beans
Mash the beans using a pestle or potato masher
If desired, transfer your beans to a nice serving dish
Drizzle beans with sesame oil for added flavor
Offer the beans with optional sides, such as chopped veggies and hard boiled eggs!
Kisra Flat Bread
Bread is one of my favorite food groups, so of course I couldn’t complete my exploration of Sudanese food without trying a popular bread from their country! Kisra is a thin flat bread that is prepared similarly to a crepe. It was really enjoyable with this meal, and I’ve read that it goes very well with stews. I would definitely like to revisit this bread next time I put a pot of stew on!
Please note that this recipe needs to be started the night before!
Ingredients:
2 cups of sorghum flour
1 cup of all purpose flour
1.5 cups of warm water
Additional 1 cup of water
Sesame Oil
Directions:
Mix the Sorghum flour with 1 1/2 cups warm water and let it sit in a covered bowl overnight on the counter
The next day, heat a large skillet or griddle to medium heat and lightly grease it with sesame oil
Stir the all purpose flour and additional cup of water into your fermented sorghum mixture, creating a thin batter
Ladle the batter onto the skillet, and immediately start spreading the batter around using a scraper or old credit card to create a thin, even layer of the dough. (This can be challenging!)
The kisra is finished when the edges begin to curl up and there is no raw batter. Move the kisra with a spatula to a separate serving tray and repeat steps 4-5 until the batter is gone.
I hope you enjoy this meal as much as I did! While I'm not entirely sure if these dishes are commonly eaten together, I made an effort to select popular and delicious dishes from Sudan, and I must say, I wasn't disappointed.
As I mentioned above, I’m not from Sudan and have never been there to try their food first hand, so I relied on others who shared their knowledge to piece this meal together. You can find those instructions and stories here:
Tomato Salad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-ysKeC_6SU
https://globaltableadventure.com/recipe/sudanese-tomato-salad/
Ful Medames:
https://www.internationalcuisine.com/ful-medames/
Kisra:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88r8Vs2Ycxg
https://globaltableadventure.com/recipe/recipe-sudanese-kisra-sorghum-crepes/
