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!!!! I frequently order ful medames at our local middle eastern grocery store/cafe and thought I can make this. Purchased fava beans from the market decided to give it a try today. WOW! Thank you so much for the recipe. Served it tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, pita. Also added a sprinkle of Aleppo pepper to a few bites. Very nutritious and satisfying. I’ll make additional sauce next time. Going into monthly rotation. And look forward to trying your other recipes:)
That makes me so happy to hear! I love that you gave it a try at home after ordering it locally, and it sounds like you served it with all the best things. The Aleppo pepper sounds like such a delicious addition, too. Thank you so much for sharing, and I’m thrilled it’s going into your monthly rotation!
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 it—so 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. ❤️
Wow, thank you!! So happy to hear it exceeded your expectations! Yay!!
Can’t believe how simple it can be to eat great food! This recipe is so good. Beautiful and my husband loves it!
That makes me so happy to hear, Reina! Thank you. So glad you and your husband like it!
I’m so glad I found your recipe!!! I thoroughly enjoyed it to the last drop! I plan on making it often.
Aww, I’m so glad you found it too, Lisa! Thank you so much, I’m happy you enjoyed!!
I made this with just a can of fava beans and it was delicious. Thank you for the recipe.
Sounds so good! You’re welcome!
Hi Yumna, I made this recipe today was delicious 😋 just wondering can you add some tahini to it also and if so how much? Thanks
Yes, you can add 3-4 tablespoons of tahini to the fava beans and chickpeas before you simmer on the stovetop!
This was simple, filling and delicious!
I made it for dinner with some roasted pumpkin that I oiled and coated with sumac, then made the sauce in the same bowl so the finished product had a bit of sumac in it which was nice.
Sounds great!
Please add a print button that is not an add for ease of use. Appreciated.
The print button is on the recipe card on the top right-hand side floating on the image. Hope that helps!
Just made this with some slight modifications. I took the oil mixture minus the parsley and heated it in a pan and added some whole cumin seeds. Fried it for 4 minutes. Added that to the finished beans and it was AMAZING!!!
Love that! It sounds amazing!
Just had this for breakfast this morning, and we loved it! Perfect with homemade warm pita, too! Please keep your amazing Lebanese recipes coming!
Thank you so much, Karol! April is a full 30 days of Middle Eastern recipes, so you’ll have lots to look forward to!
Delicious recipe!! However, I’m not sure if I always want that much sodium just in my breakfast meal, do you think that omitting the kosher salt would have a noticeable affect on the final product?? Can’t wait to try it again 🙂
Thank you! You can do that and adjust as needed.
Because you are rinsing the beans before you cook them, the sodium level is greatly reduced.
When using tin Fava broad beans & chickpeas or
Flava beams on its own at what stage do one add cummin
A
You would add cumin to the rinsed and drained fava beans and chickpeas that are cooking on the saucepan. This is in step two of the recipe card.
YEARS back friend showed me how to make this and I loved it so much! I have since kinda forgotten how to and been trying (and failing) to recreate this quick, delicious dish, but here it is!! It had that taste that was missing when I would attempt this dish.
Thanks!!😁
So glad you found it! I love that!
I honestly LOVED this recipe it was so so easy to make and so delicious and flavourful. Highly recommended!!!!
That’s perfect! Thank you so much!
Unfortunately I didn’t have jalapeño but it was still amazing and sooo easy!! Next time I’m grabbing some jalapeño to kick up the heat!
Yay, so glad you liked it! Yes, grab some jalapeno next time!
Making this for the second time to serve at a family gathering today. I used serrano chilies instead of jalapenos for the sauce, which reminded me of making the French recipe for Aioli.
A high quality full flavored cold pressed olive oil makes all the difference! Thank you for sharing this lovely recipe.
I’m so glad you liked it. Thanks so much for the time to share your feedback! Totally agree about the olive oil…it makes all the difference!
Thank you! I’ll give this a try.
Thank you for your Ful recipe! It’s one of my favorite dishes! You’re one of my favorite chefs to follow on Instagram!
Aww I’m so happy to hear that. Thank you!!
This recipe was easy to follow and delicious. Came out great the first time I made it. Can’t wait to try it again. Thank you!
Yay, so glad you made it and loved it!
Have you tried freezing this ful? We have a new baby coming over the summer, so are trying to advance prep as much comfort food as possible 🙂
I’ve never frozen it myself, but yes you can definitely freeze it! Just make sure to cool it completely first and it should be good for 2-3 months. Also, you can freeze the parsley and olive oil mixture, but I recommend doing it separately.
Imperial measurements are not my strong suit. What does 2 14- ounce mean?
Does it mean 2.14 ounces?
Sorry the recipe card divided up weird. It means 2 cans (each of which are 14 ounces).That’s the standard can size. Hope that helps!
Yumna,
Recipe-after-recipe, you bring up memories of my youth in Beirut. My father, God bless his soul and remains, used to take us out to have a warm bowl of Ful Mudammes (and of course Hummus and Shawarma) at Maroushe Restaurant. At that time Maroushe was located at the intersection of Foch & Wigand Streets in Central Beirut. Maroushe served one of the best bowls of Ful Mudammes in the area.
I like your recipe because it is very easy to make and yet a healthy meal on its own. I also have made Ful Mudammes from scratch where I soaked fava and garbanzo beans for hours. This process is very time consuming but also yields a healthy meal.
Without mentioning the brand, I also keep several cans of their “peeled Fava beans (secret recipe)” at home. When I find myself too lazy to make Ful Mudammes, this ‘heat and ready to eat’ can comes in very handy. Just add EVOO and it’s good to consume.
I like to thank you for all the wonderful Lebanese recipes that you post. Not just authentic, but more importantly, healthy and wholesome.
Until next time,
Warmest regards,
Hi Jihad – aww that means so much to me that my recipes can bring up such lovely memories of your childhood in Beirut. There’s nothing quite like the street food of Beirut and I love to share as much of that food as possible because they really are some of the most healthy and flavorful meals. Thanks so much for your sweet note. It always brings a big smile to my face!
Got inspired by your post and made Ful Medames this morning. Everybody enjoyed it with olives, tomatoes and pita bread.
So glad to hear it! Thank you!