Sabich is falafel’s younger, less-well-known cousin—a popular pita sandwich in Israel, brought there by Iraqi immigrants. The warm pita is stuffed with slices of hard boiled egg, soft fried eggplant, Israeli salad, pickles, hummus, tahini, and amba—a savory pickled mango sauce. It might sound like too much going on in one sandwich, but somehow it all works.

It’s not a difficult recipe, but there are a few different pieces you have to prepare, so it can be a bit time consuming. Some suggestions:

a) Prepare all the parts at the beginning of the week and refrigerate in small containers. Then you can easily assemble it for lunches or quick dinners during the week.

b) Sabich can be a good option for a crowd or large family or picky kids, because each person can choose which items to include in their pita. Fry up some falafels and you suddenly have double the options.

c) Turn it into an activity. Assign each person one element and it will be done in half the time.

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs
  • 1 eggplant
  • Oil for frying
  • Kosher salt
  • 2 medium Persian cucumbers
  • 2 plum tomatoes
  • 1 lemon
  • Hummus
  • Israeli pickles
  • Tahini sauce
  • Amba sauce
  • 4 pitas

Directions

  1. Boil the eggs using your preferred method. I cover the eggs with cold water and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils, remove the pot from the heat and keep the cover on. Set timer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, run the eggs under cold water until fully cooled. Slice and aside.
  2. Cut the eggplant into half rounds (no need to peel). Use neutral tasting oil like avocado oil. Heat oil on a frying pan and fry the eggplant in batches. When golden on one side, flip and fry on the second side until golden. You want the eggplant to be extremely soft, so you may need to turn down the flame and keep it in the pan longer. The eggplant soaks up a lot of oil, so you may need to add more throughout. Place fried eggplant slices on a plate lined with paper towel and sprinkle with salt. Set aside.
  3. Finely dice the cucumbers and tomatoes. Squeeze the fresh lemon over the vegetables and add salt to taste. Set aside.
  4. Gently warm your pitas in the oven for a few minutes.
  5. To assemble: Cut the top off your pita. Smear the inside with a generous scoop of hummus. Stuff with eggplant, Israeli salad, sliced egg, pickles, tahini and amba. Eat immediately.

Serves: 4