This week I made Egyptian Fattah, a dish that combines baked Pitta Bread and freshly cooked rice with a unique Garlic and Vinegar sauce. This dish is served as the centerpiece of most Egyptian feasts and really leaves an impression, historically this was called the People's dish due to it's popularity. The origins of this dish go back to the time of the Pharaohs, and though the recipe has since evolved, there are characteristics that have remained since then. It's my favorite dish, and with Eid at the end of the month, I thought I would share this recipe with you as it's traditionally eaten then. As always there is a full text recipe below and a video recipe in my post history.
What is Egyptian Fattah
The Middle East has quite a few Fattah (aka Fatteh, Fatta, Fetta, Fettah; pronounced Fet-ta) dishes but the Egyptian one is my favorite and I think the most striking in flavor and appearance. Fattahs are dishes that were traditionally made to use up day old bread. If you've had a Middle Eastern dish with crispy bread in it, chances are it was a Fattah, the most well known ones are the salad Fatoush, Fattat Hummus, and Fattet Batenjan or Makdous (Aubergine). They are most common in the Levant region but there are also some outliers like Egyptian Fattah.
Like other Fattahs, the dish essentially revolves around toasted bread. The bread is baked or fried till dry and crispy, and then is mixed with a garlic and vinegar sauce, this infuses the bread with a tangy flavour. A stock is prepared with meat and then the bread is moistened with just enough stock for it to become supple again, but not enough to make it soggy. A serving dish is layered first with the bread, and then with a generous portion of freshly cooked rice, the rice itself is also cooked with the meat stock. The next layer is a tomato and onion sauce, which provides a bright flavor to balance out the strength of the vinegar and garlic. Finally the dish is topped with meat from the stock, this is either fried, or served boiled.
Fattah is widely regarded as one of Egypt's centrepiece dishes, think of it as our version of a thanksgiving turkey or a Christmas goose. It is common for it to be served to celebrate Weddings, Births, and most commonly served during Eid al Adha (the longer of the two Annual Eids (Islamic holidays)). It is also popular among Egypt's large Coptic Christian community who fast from meat and animal products (except fish) for 43 days before celebrating Christmas on the 7th of January, Fattah is commonly served at Christmas eve feasts. It is also commonly served at wakes in Egypt as it is easy to make in large quantities, but is also thought to remind people of happier times.
History
Fattah is thought to have evolved from a Pharaonic dish called Fotat according to a number of prominent Egyptologists. Fotat was made by soaking dried old bread in a meat stock or in yogurt. The name Fotat means crumbs or small pieces in Egyptian Arabic. While the role of the dish is not exactly clear in Pharaonic society, it seems to have been eaten in Egypt since time immemorial. The ancient Egyptians were extremely fond of garlic in their food, as they believed it warded off evil spirits and that it provided strength and vitality to the human body, it is possible that if Fattah was a Pharaonic dish then the garlic was part of their recipe. The Coptic Egyptians are the modern day descendants of Ancient Egyptians and so it is possibly that they kept the dish alive throughout the millennia and made changes along the way. (Don't shoot me because of inaccuracies, it's hard to verify the origins of dishes from 2000 years ago, check the footnotes for sources)
Fattah was popularized as a dish during the Fatamid Dynasties rule of Egypt (969 - 1171 AD). During Eid the Fatamid rulers would throw street feasts, where people from all walks of life were welcome, the main dish served at theses feasts was Fattah. This was likely due to the simplicity in scaling up the dish, but also the efficient use of meat when creating a stock. The dish became known as the People's dish as it was eaten by rich and poor alike. Sometime in the 19th century when tomatoes spread like wildfire in the Ottoman empire, the tomato sauce was added to the dish. In some cities in Egypt, it is still eaten without the tomato sauce to this day.
This recipe is based on my mother in laws recipe, which was passed down to her through her mother and grandmother.
Flavor Profile
There are three main flavor components in this dish, now each one can actually be strong on it's own but when put together all the flavors balance out. In order of prominence the first flavor is tanginess and sourness, and that comes from the vinegar and garlic sauce that is added to the bread. The sauce is strong and pungent, and while you may think it offends the senses at first, it's actually a really inviting and welcoming smell. White vinegar is traditionally used in this dish though malt vinegar can be used instead. The sauce has fried garlic in it which also has quite a strong flavor, but is a lot nuttier and more palatable than raw garlic. I would say if you aren't a fan of garlic and vinegar you may want to give this one a miss.
The next flavor would be the meat stock, lamb or mutton is the meat of choice in this dish though it is common to see beef as well. I prefer lamb as I feel the gamey flavor of it works really well in this dish, beef would be a bit of a less prominent flavor and so could easily be overshadowed by the vinegar and garlic. The stock is traditionally very mildly spiced, bay leaves, pepper and cardamom are all that is used however I add mastic (gum arabic) as it gives a mellow background flavor to most middle eastern stocks. The main flavor here is definitely the lamb but if you do get mutton instead it might be a bit strong, fresh lamb has an almost clean tasting flavor (similar to water with a base Ph).
The third flavor is the Tomato sauce, now although tomatoes are generally considered acidic they actually mellow out the dish here. That is probably because when mixed with acidic vinegar and garlic sauce their combined Ph is lower than that of just the garlic sauce.
Ingredients
Stock ingredients:
1 KG (2 LB) Lamb shanks or leg pieces
2 Brown onions
4 Garlic cloves
2 Pieces of Mastic
2 Bay Leaves
7 Cardamom pods
1 Tbsp Butter
1 Tsp Black Peppercorns
Rice ingredients:
1.5 Cups Medium grain rice (Egyptian or Japanese)
1 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Oil
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp White Pepper
Bread:
3-4 Pitta Breads
Per pitta:
1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/8 Tsp Pepper
Tomato Sauce:
500ml (18 oz) Crushed tomatoes (you can make this by blending the whole or canned tomatoes in a blender)
250ml (9 oz ) water
1 Brown Onion
1 Tbsp Butter
2 Garlic Cloves
2 Tbsp White Vinegar
1 Tsp Salt
1/4 Tsp Pepper
Garlic sauce:
6-8 Garlic Cloves
6-8 Tbsp White Vinegar
1 Tbsp Butter
Directions
Stock:
In a stock pot add the butter on high heat and let it melt completely
When the butter is bubbling add your pieces of mastic and let them dissolve into the butter
Once the mastic melts, add your meat to the pot and fry on each side for 2-3 minutes until seared and browned all over
Hit your garlic cloves to lightly crush them and add to the pot
Cut onions in half and add along with the whole spices
Mix all the ingredients well, then pour enough water into the pot to completely submerge the meat
Bring to a boil and then skim the surface to remove any floating scum
Turn the heat down to low and simmer for about an hour until your meat is fork tender (if you are using a different cut of meat then adjust your cooking time accordingly)
Bread:
Cut the pitta into large bite sized pieces
Evenly place on a grease proof paper lined baking sheet
Add olive oil, salt and pepper then mix thoroughly
Bake in a 180c or 350f oven for 8-12 minutes until golden brown and toasted
Tomato sauce:
Melt a tablespoon of butter in a sauce pan on medium heat
Chop an onion to a medium dice and add to the pot
Saute for 3-5 minutes until translucent
Slice 2 garlic cloves as thin as you can then add to the onions (you can also mince them instead, but it looks nicer in final presentation when sliced)
Fry for a couple of minutes until lightly browned then add the vinegar to deglaze the pot
Add crushed tomatoes to the pot and use the water to rinse out the blender or jug, then bring the sauce pan to a boil
Add salt and pepper, once boiling turn the pan down to a simmer
Cook for 15-20 minutes until thick (should be a little lumpy and coat the back of a spoon but should not be runny)
Rice:
Rinse rice 3-4 times until water runs clear and all surface starch has been removed. Let dry for at least 15-30 minutes
Add Butter and Oil to the pot and when the butter has melted add rice
Fry the rice until lightly toasted and pearlescent in appearance
Season the rice with salt and pepper and mix well then spread the rice out into an even layer
Add enough stock to the pot to submerge the rice by about 1.5cm or 1/2 an inch
Bring the pot to a boil and cover with a tight lid, let it boil until all excess water has been evaporated
After 3-5 minutes check if any water remains in the base of the pot and if not turn the heat down to low and leave it to steam for 20 minutes
Garlic Sauce:
Add butter to pot and melt
Thinly slice or mince the garlic cloves like you did for the tomato sauce and add to the pot
Fry until the garlic is a light golden color and a light fond has developed in the pot
Add the vinegar and let it boil for 1 minute before setting aside
To fry the meat:
Place your meat on some paper towels to drain any surface liquid
Season generously with some salt and pepper
Melt a tablespoon of butter in a frying pan and add the meat
Fry for 3-5 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy
To assemble the Fattah:
Add the toasted bread to an oven safe dish
Add half of the vinegar sauce to the bread and a couple of tablespoons of tomato sauce mix thoroughly (tomato sauce here is optional but highly recommended)
Bake in a 180c or 350f oven for 5 minutes until crispy once more (this stops the bread from getting too soggy in the next step)
Add the rest of the vinegar to bread (if you are comfortable with the flavor)
Slowly pour a few ladles (about 150-250 ml / 6-9 oz) of hot stock on to the bread and mix thoroughly. You are aiming for moist but not wet or soggy bread, it should still retain some chewiness and texture. Add the stock in parts until the bread is barely no longer crispy
Cover with a plate or tray and leave to steam for about 5 minutes
Top the bread with the rice in a single even layer, if some of your rice has crisped up at the bottom of the pot it's best not to serve those
Add tomato sauce in a single thin layer on top of the rice (some people serve this on the side, if you have a lot of sauce then only use enough to just barely cover the rice)
Plate the meat on top of your fattah or serve alongside it
Notes and Tips
- Use Pitta bread not thin Arabic Bread and for the love of all that is holy, do not use loaf bread or sourdough. The structure of the bread is important to ensure that it does not dissolve when stock and sauce is added to it. The traditional bread used in Egypt (Aesh Baladi - Egyptian Village Bread) is similar to a Pitta but has a rusk coated exterior
- Add your stock to the bread slowly, your aim is for soft and pliable bread not soggy mush. I can’t give an exact amount of stock to add as it depends on your bread, but feel free to try the bread after adding stock and see if it has softened. If the bread is still hard and obviously toasted then add more stock and let it be absorbed
- When adding the garlic and vinegar sauce to your dish, I recommend adding maybe half of it the first time you make the dish and then you can add more directly to your plate once served. When you first add the vinegar to the bread it's hard to gauge how much you are comfortable with, especially considering that you have yet to add rice and tomato sauce to balance it out. Experiment with it and determine how much you like for future attempts at the dish. I like mine really strong and the amount of ingredients provided will give you a medium to strong taste
- Use Egyptian rice or Medium grain non sticky rice, you want something that is able to absorb flavor from stock well without having a strong distinct flavor of it's own
- When selecting meat, try go for a leg or shoulder based cut with bones. The bones are considered essential to make the stock. Sections of Lamb leg are most commonly used and it's a treat to get bone sections with plenty of marrow. Lamb neck as in another good cut for this
- White vinegar can have different strengths based on the manufacturer, if you taste it and it doesn't feel strong you may want to add extra where needed
- Always skim your stock but especially when using any cracked bones. As the water boils it can cause proteins in the marrow to denature and form floating scum which will give a grainy texture to your final stock if not removed.
- Some places in Egypt are known to not serve a tomato sauce on Fattah, you can of course exclude it or serve it on the side if you like
Footnotes:
Here's some articles talking about the pharaonic origins of Fattah, unfortunately they are all in Arabic but you can translate them using chrome. They aren't great at giving out their sources but I unfortunately don't own a book on ancient Egyptian food to corroborate this:
bon appetit
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