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Gebna bel tamatem
White cheese with tomato and onion
Gebna bel tamatem: salty white cheese mashed with tomato, onion and green chilli for an Egyptian breakfast
Breakfast in Cairo flats and Delta villages rarely happens without a plate of gebna bel tamatem beside the ful and falafel. Soft, salty white cheese is broken up with a fork, then tomato, onion and a little green chilli are mashed in with a spoonful of oil until it turns into a rough, juicy, pink-flecked spread. It is scooped up with torn aish baladi, or with gluten-free bread if you need it to stay gluten free. Domiati and feta are often set with animal rennet, so choose a white cheese labelled vegetarian. Avoid soaking-wet tomatoes; seed and drain them, or the cheese turns into a watery mash. Chef's tip: make it no more than an hour before eating; the salt draws water from the tomato and the spread slowly turns watery.
- Total time
- 10 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
- 7 oz white cheeseEgyptian domiati or feta made with vegetarian rennet
- 2 tomatoesripe, finely chopped
- ½ onionsmall, very finely chopped
- 1 green chillifinely chopped; seeds removed for less heat
- 2 tbsp olive oilor the corn oil many Egyptian homes use
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp dried mint (optional)to finish
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Crumble 7 oz white cheese into a bowl and mash it with a fork until broken into small, creamy pieces.
Step 2: If the tomatoes are very juicy, squeeze out some of the seeds first. Add 2 tomatoes, ½ onion and 1 green chilli and mash everything together lightly; it should be chunky, not a purée.
Step 3: Stir in 1 tbsp olive oil and ¼ tsp ground cumin. Taste: the cheese usually brings enough salt.
Step 4: Spread on a plate, drizzle with the rest of 1 tbsp olive oil, sprinkle with ½ tsp dried mint if you like and serve with bread.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 270 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 7 g
- Fat
- 22 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does gebna bel tamatem take?
- About 10 minutes in total.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of tomatoes?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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