Bissara (Fava Bean Dip)

Ever go into an Israeli restaurant and see Ful (pronounced fool, as in "I pity the fool" -A-team reference for those of you 80's babies) on the menu? I see it all the time and for the life of me I could never figured out what it was.  A type of bean I presumed but no clue what type. Of course, I could have just asked Dr. Google but I guess I never got around to it. Well, I was strolling in the shuk recently with my husband  and came across these big green pods (think string beans on steroids) that people were buying up. Curious as to what they were and what to do with them we approached the vendor and found out they were Ful (talk about an "aha" moment.) We bought a massive bag of them and brought them home. Once cooked the massive bag amounted to about a cup of beans. No wonder people were buying wheel barrels full! Well, I put hubby in charge of their preparation and this is the Moroccan dip he cooked up. I have to say, it was quite tasty, almost like chummus but bright green (think Incredible Hulk) though it takes a little effort to cook and shell them. We devoured it with some pita chips and are already looking for a wheel barrel for sale. Enjoy!


1 big bunch of ful in its pod, shelled ( you want 1 cup of shelled beans)
3 cloves garlic
zest and juice of one lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp cumin
2 Tbl chopped cilantro (or parsley)
salt and pepper to taste

Boil the ful for one minute and let cool. Once cool remove the waxy outer shells of the beans and place in the food processor. Process the beans with the garlic, lemon juice and zest, olive oil, cumin and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Blend until pureed. If the mixture is too thick for your liking you can add a little water or olive oil.