In season

May produce

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Chana Chaat

Chana Chaat

Cooked chickpeas (tinned for speed, OR overnight-soaked and home-cooked for the best texture) toss with diced red onion, finely chopped tomato, small-diced boiled potato and chopped fresh coriander. The dressing: lemon juice, chaat masala (a salty-sour spice mix sold at Pakistani shops), roasted ground cumin, Kashmiri chilli powder and a pinch of salt. Hot chilli sauce and tamarind chutney drizzle on; the chaat tosses; crushed papri tops; eat immediately.

Sides 20 minutes Serves4
Falafel Lebnani

Falafel Lebnani

Dried chickpeas soak overnight (never cooked, chickpeas must remain raw). Drained, blitzed with onion, garlic, a heaped pile of fresh parsley and coriander, ground cumin, ground coriander, salt, black pepper and Aleppo pepper into a coarse green paste. Rested for 30 minutes. Baking soda mixed in just before frying. Shaped into small (3 cm) patties or balls, a falafel scoop (zalabia) gives the cleanest shape but two spoons work. Optionally rolled in sesame seeds. Deep-fried in oil at 175°C for 2-3 minutes per side until amber-gold and crisp. Stuffed into pita with tahini, salad and pickles.

Snacks 37 minutes Serves4
Falafel Palestinian

Falafel Palestinian

Dried chickpeas (or a chickpea-fava blend) soak overnight. Drained, blitzed with onion, leek, a heaped pile of fresh parsley AND coriander (the Palestinian style is herb-heavy and notably green), garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, salt and Aleppo pepper. Left to rest. Baking soda mixed in right before frying. Shaped into small patties or balls; pressed into sesame seeds; deep-fried until amber. Stuffed into khobz with tahini sauce, salad and pickled vegetables.

Snacks 37 minutes Serves4
Foul Saudi

Foul Saudi

The Saudi take on foul medames, somewhere between the Egyptian original and the Yemeni daal-like versions. You soak dried fava beans overnight, then simmer them with a chickpea or two and a garlic clove for six hours low and slow (or pressure-cook for forty-five minutes if you don't have the day) until they're so soft they fall apart at a glance. Once drained, the beans go back into a hot pan with olive oil and garlic, cumin and a hit of chilli; you crush them roughly with a fork (chunky, not smooth) and finish with lemon and a handful of chopped parsley. Eaten warm for breakfast across the Gulf, scooped with flatbread, with a side of pickles or salata hara, and a glass of mint tea.

Sides 6 hours 55 minutes Serves4
Iraqi Falafel

Iraqi Falafel

Dried chickpeas soak in cold water 24 hours, the long soak hydrates them fully without cooking. Once drained, they are ground with onion, garlic, fresh coriander, parsley, dill, green chilli, cumin, coriander seed and ground cardamom to a coarse pale-green crumb. Bicarbonate of soda adds at the last minute for the open, fluffy interior. The mix chills for 30 minutes; small patties form; deep-fry at 175°C for 3 minutes until deep gold outside, fluffy and bright green inside. Eaten in warm samoon with the trimmings.

Snacks 25 hours 15 minutes Serves4