Sudan: 195 Country Cooking Challenge

Mackenzie DeArment
Sep 24, 2024
4 min read

Welcome to the sixth country of the 195 Country Cooking Challenge - where I cook a popular dish from all 195 countries around the world! If you missed the previous countries, you can check those out on my blog as well as my YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Along the journey, I will be sharing these recipes with you plus some interesting facts about each country. My goal is to teach you a bit about each country while you eat or cook their cuisine! Today, I will be cooking the national dish of Sudan.

The National Dish of Sudan

I will be making Sudan's national dish...Ful Medames (or Sahan ful). This dish consists of mashed fava beans topped with feta cheese, tomatoes, onions, and arugula. The story of where this dish originated is very interesting!

Originating in Egypt, the dish started as buried beans. In fact, "medames" in Egyptian means buried. Evidence suggests that Ful Medames was eaten by the Pharaohs. The first mention of this dish goes back to the fourth century where it was written in the Jerusalem Talmud.

You can definitely make this dish at home, but I would recommend doing it on a weekend! I will go through the recipe below, but if you would like a more streamlined approach, you can check out the official recipe here.

Facts About Sudan

What is it about this country that makes it so unique?

Sudan has a rich and complex history that spans thousands of years. Ancient Nubia, located in present-day Sudan, was home to powerful kingdoms like the Kingdom of Kush, which thrived alongside ancient Egypt.

In the 19th century, Sudan became a target for colonization, first by the Ottoman Empire and later by the British and Egyptians, leading to significant social and economic changes.

After gaining independence in 1956, Sudan faced internal conflict, including a prolonged civil war between the north and south. This culminated in the secession of South Sudan in 2011, following decades of conflict and struggle for autonomy.

In the years since independence, Sudan has faced political instability, economic challenges, and ongoing conflicts, including in regions like Darfur. The country has seen changes in leadership and ongoing efforts for peace and reconciliation amidst its diverse cultural landscape.

The flag of Sudan is red, white, black and green. Red represents the struggle for independence. The white represents peace, light, love and the White Flag League, a nationalist group that fought colonial rule in 1924. The black represents the people of Sudan because the name "Sudan" translates to "land of the black people" in Arabic. Lastly, the green represents Islam, agriculture, and prosperity.

Sudan is 967,500 square miles of land. The most common job in the country is agriculture, which now employs about 80 percent of the workforce. Key crops include cotton, peanuts (groundnuts), sesame, gum arabic, sorghum and sugarcane. One of the most popular landmarks in Sudan are the Pyramids of Meroe, which are one of the last remaining symbols of ancient civilization.

The official language of Sudan is Arabic. Sudanese Arabic is slightly different than Egyptian Arabic. Around 60 percent of the population speaks Arabic as their first language. There are many other languages spoken in the country, including a variety of indigenous languages.

Cooking the National Dish Sudan

Ingredients:

1 pound dry fava beans
Tomatoes, diced
Red onions, diced
Feta cheese
Arugula
Olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
Cumin powder
Coriander powder
Optional: hard boiled eggs.
Optional: Pita bread

Steps:

Step 1:

THE NIGHT BEFORE COOKING: In a large bowl, place the fava beans and fill completely with water. Seal the top of the bowl with cling wrap and place in the refrigerator to let the beans soak overnight (at least 6 hours).

Step 2:

IN THE MORNING: Remove the bowl from the refrigerator and drain the water. Fill a pot of water and add the beans. Cook beans on medium heat until they are soft and can be crushed between your fingers easily. This can take up to 3 hours.

Step 3:

Once soft, remove the beans from the water and reserve about 1 cup of the broth from the pot. Add beans to a large bowl along with some of the reserved broth and mash with this type of utensil. Add more reserved broth if needed.

Step 4:

Once the beans are completely mashed, add the seasonings. I would start with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 1 teaspoon of cumin and coriander powder. You can always add more depending on your preferred taste. Mix the seasonings into the beans.

Step 5:

Once the mashed beans are seasoned, scoop into serving bowls and top with tomatoes, onions, feta, washed arugula, and olive oil. Hard boiled eggs are also good with this dish. I recommend serving with pita bread. I used this recipe to make my own!