Fava Beans with Rice (Riz ou Ful)

Today I’m sharing Fava Beans with Rice, or Riz ou Ful.

I found some really beautiful fava beans at Emirates Bio Farm. Without thinking, I picked them up. After the hour-long drive, contemplating what to do with my new bounty, I decided to make a childhood favorite: Fava Beans with Rice (Riz ou Ful). If you can’t find fresh ones, frozen works just fine. Along with rice, pine nuts and just about any other meat you have stashed away in the freezer, this makes an excellent pantry meal if you have the ingredients on hand.

This is a very special dish that hails from Homs. The shelled beans are boiled until tender and cooked with rice before being topped with falling apart meat and fragrant toasted pine nuts. It’s comforting, packed with fiber, and has all the nutritional components you would ever need in a meal. It’s simple to make, your kids will love it, and it’s full of feel good benefits. What else do you need?

I love to eat this bumping up next to a super lemony salad, where the tangy dressing drapes over the rice, brightening up the earthy beans.

I hope you give this recipe a try! If you do, don’t forget to put it in the comments so everyone knows how it turns out. I also love to see your creations! Tag @omayah.atassi or #omayahcooks on Instagram!

Shelled fava beans are cooked with rice and topped with cooked lamb and toasted pine nuts. Serve it alongside a lemony salad.

Serves: 6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

2 lamb shanks or 1/2 lb beef chuck, deboned and cleaned of excess fat
1/2 small onion, chopped
4 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp 7 spices
1/2 tsp black pepper, divided
500 g/1 lb shelled fava/broad beans (fresh or frozen)
2 c medium-grain rice (Calrose, Egyptian), soaked for about 1 hour
2 Tbsp vegetable oil or ghee
1/3 c toasted pine nuts

Instructions:

If using lamb shanks, boil them for about a minute in a medium-sized pot to rid of excess fat (skip this step if using beef). Drain, dumping the water. Wash the pot and return back to the stove over high heat.
Brown the meat on all sides, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes. Add 7 spices, 1/2 of salt, 1/2 of black pepper and onions, continuing to stir, for an additional 3-5 minutes. Add enough water to cover the meat, bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook until meat is tender, about 1 hour. Drain and reserve the liquid when finished.
Meanwhile, boil the fava beans until tender, about 10 minutes. This may vary depending on how soft your beans are. Drain.
Add vegetable oil and rice to a medium pot over high heat. Add remaining salt and black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until rice is translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Top with fava beans. Measure 2.25 c cooking liquid, using as much of the reserved liquid as possible, and topping with additional water if needed. Bring to a boil and cover.
While the rice is cooking, tear the meat into 1-inch pieces with your hands. After about 20 minutes, check on the rice. If liquid is dried up, and rice is cooked through, remove from heat and wrap with a towel or blanket in order for the rice to fluff up.
Just before serving, unwrap and transfer rice and beans to a serving platter. Top with meat and toasted pine nuts.