Ful Medames
Updated Mar 08, 2026
Ful Medames is a popular Middle Eastern breakfast stew made with cooked fava beans, chickpeas and cumin, served with an herby olive oil sauce
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Beans for breakfast!
One of my favorite breakfast growing up in a Lebanese house is ful medames, which is a great savory breakfast option outside of eggs that packs in 17g protein and 12g fiber per serving. It is a simple savory stew made with fava beans, chickpeas and spices that are basically mashed together and ready in 20 minutes.
Ful is originally from Egypt, but it’s spread through the Middle East, and it’s a very popular Lebanese breakfast now. Like many Middle Eastern recipes, there are so many ways to vary the Ful Medames recipe and the technique – this is just a version I learned from my dad that I’ve tweaked slightly from tips from a Jordanian friend (she keeps the sauce on the side and adds jalapenos to it!)
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
How to Make Ful Medames
Ful Medames
Ingredients
- 2 15 ounce can fava beans
- 1 15 ounce can chickpeas
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
Sauce for topping
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ½ cup Parsley chopped
- 4 garlic cloves finely minced
- 1 tablespoon jalapenos chopped
- ¼ teaspoon salt to taste
Instructions
- Pour the fava beans and the chickpeas together into a colander to drain. Rinse the beans in cold water.
- Transfer the rinsed, drained beans to a medium saucepan over medium heat, and add 1 and half cups of cold water. Season with cumin and kosher salt.
- Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer uncovered for 20 minutes until most of the water is absorbed, smashing occasionally with the back of a wooden spoon to get the desired consistency.
- Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl.
- When the beans and chickpeas are done cooking, serve the sauce on top or next to the ful medames. You can have stir half the sauce with the bean mixture and serve the other half on the side.
- Serve with fresh parsley on top along with warm pita, tomatoes and radishes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Recipe Tips
- Watch the mixture carefully because cooking times will vary. The cooking time will really depend on the quality and age of the beans, so it will differ from brand to brand. However, if you dry them out too much, you can rehydrate with more water.
- Make sure to lightly crush the beans while they are simmering. This will help them absorb the liquid as they cook. But more importantly, it helps them absorb the sauce when served, so they become extra flavorful.
- Substitute the fava beans with pinto beans. While it’s traditional to use a mix of fava beans and chickpeas, pinto beans would also work if you cannot find fava beans. They are closest in size and taste.
FAQs
Ful medames, or simply fūl, is a stew of cooked fava beans served with olive oil and cumin. It’s also common to serve with chopped parsley, garlic, onions, lemon juice, pepper and other vegetable, herb and spice ingredients. Some people describe ful as a cross between a bean salad and a bean dip. And as such, you can enjoy it on its own with a mix of vegetables or you can use pita to dip, like we do.
Canned fava beans and canned chickpeas are the easiest and most practical, and that’s what you’ll find most home cooks use.
Place the dried fava beans in a pot of water so that they are fully covered and bring them to the boil for three minutes. Then, let the beans soak for an hour until they are fully rehydrated. Be sure to cover the beans with 3 to 4 inches of water above them as they will expand as they rehydrate.
Comments
Delicious and easy
Thank you! So happy you liked it!
Outstanding! So simple and delicious! And healthy!!! I added avocado and cucumbers just because I had them handy! thank you – this is a keeper!
Yum, that sounds so good!! So happy you liked it. Thank you!
Excellent tasting Ful. Thank you Yumna, and God Bless You for all your help. I am an immigrant from Brumana, Lebanon. Your recipes taste 100% like the ones I am used to eat. Thank you so very much
Aww, so glad you love it!! Thank you so much for the kind words, Nick!!
Omg! I love this recipe so much. I had the dish before at a restaurant a handful of times and I figured I’d try one at home. I’ve made it at least 5 times. Since I like it so much, when I buy the parsley and lemons, I just make up 3-4 batches of sauce and freeze the topping sauce in small containers. So whenever I want some, I can easily and quickly make the bean part (with canned beans) and go grab a sauce tub. Cut up some tomatoes and voila, I have an ultra quick lunch or snack. Thanks!
Question: Have you made this with dry beans before? I know it won’t be as quick. However, I am contemplating it, but don’t know if it will come out as good. How much dry beans will I need to make this recipe (both for fava and chickpea)?
So happy you enjoy the recipe, Christine! And I love that you make the sauce topping in bulk and freeze itโso smart! If you decide to use dried fava beans or chickpeas, you need about 1 cup to yield the same amount as the 2 cans the recipe calls for. I’d love to hear how it goes for you!
Thanks very much for sharing this wonderful recipe. Having lived in many Arab countries, your recipe is as good as the Foul Medammes in any Egyptian restaurant I ate in. Shukran jazilan.
You’re welcome, Aditiyan!! Thank you so much for your kind words, that’s very sweet!
We made three of your recipes for dinner; the Foul Medammes, Hummus and Tabbouleh. We are absolutely stuffed but it was worth the trouble.
My wife and I live in southern Brazil. Brazil as you may know has a large Christian Lebanese population. We brought back a lot of Lebanese ingredients when we returned to Brazil from the Sultanate of Oman after finishing my contract there last year.
If you visit Brazil please let me know.
Kind regards.
Dear brother, Ful Medames is good for breakfast. Broad beans in the night makes digest problem it’s a gastric beans. I’m from Tamilnadu Nagercoil
This is such a simple recipe that my expectations were not very high, but in all honesty, it was absolutely delicious. The sauce and tomatoes on top really bring it to life! I added a bit of tahini and extra cumin while cooking the beans and it was absolutely perfect. Thank you for sharing this lovely dish with us. โค๏ธ
Wow, thank you!! So happy to hear it exceeded your expectations! Yay!!
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