Ingredients
Base
- 6 piecesday-old malooj or flatbread, torn small
- 4eggs, beaten
- 60 gghee
Savoury version
- 1onion, chopped
- 2tomatoes, chopped
- salt and black pepper
Sweet version
- 3 tbsphoney
- ½ tspground cardamom
Directions
- Tear the bread into small pieces with your hands rather than cutting it with a knife.
- Tearing gives ragged edges that catch the egg and the ghee. Cut squares stay neat and the dish stays dry.
- Use bread that is a day old and dry. Fresh bread turns to paste the moment the egg touches it.
- Melt the ghee in a shallow stone pan or a heavy frying pan.
- For the savoury version, fry the onion until soft, then add the tomato and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the torn bread and toss it in the hot ghee until every piece is coated and beginning to crisp at the edges.
- Pour the beaten eggs over and stir immediately, folding the bread through the egg as it sets.
- Work fast once the egg is in. It should coat and bind the bread within about a minute, and left any longer it scrambles into dry curds.
- Season with salt and pepper, or for the sweet version leave out the onion and tomato and drizzle honey and cardamom over at the end.
- Serve immediately and hot, in the pan it was cooked in.
Technique
- It is a way of using yesterday’s malooj, and it is eaten for breakfast across Yemen.
- Sweet and savoury versions sit side by side and neither is the correct one.
- Ghee rather than oil. It is a short list of ingredients and the fat is one of the flavours.
Substitutions
- Any dry flatbread, or even stale pitta, torn small.
- Butter in place of ghee, though it browns faster.
Variations
- Fatoot samak, made with fish.
- With qishr, the spiced coffee-husk drink, alongside.
- Made very sweet with extra honey, which is how it is given to children.
History
A way of using yesterday’s malooj bread, served hot in a shallow stone pan.
Frequently asked questions
What is Fatoot?
Fatoot is a breakfast from Yemen: torn flatbread fried with eggs and ghee, sometimes sweetened with honey. A way of using yesterday’s malooj bread, served hot in a shallow stone pan.
How long does Fatoot take to make?
Fatoot takes 10 min of preparation and 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Fatoot?
Yes, within limits. Any dry flatbread, or even stale pitta, torn small. Butter in place of ghee, though it browns faster.
What is the most important thing to get right in Fatoot?
Tear the bread into small pieces with your hands rather than cutting it with a knife.
