These Vegetarian Sabich Pita Sandwiches are addictive in the best way possible! Pita bread is stuffed with minty hummus, pickles, cabbage, tahini sauce, Persian salad, roasted eggplant, and hard-boiled eggs. Allow these sandwiches to transport you to a Mediterranean beach-side sandwich stand in sunny Tel Aviv all winter long.
When I lived in Victoria, I met some truly wonderful, kind, genuine people–young and old–all of whom I miss dearly. A couple girlfriends from my holistic nutrition program and I started something of a habit of meeting once a week for a lunch out at a restaurant or a picnic, depending on the weather and what appealed. We had our favourite restaurants (Be Love and Nourish, for those curious), but sometimes we’d shake things up and try a newly opened place. One day, we opted to try Yalla, a high vibe Middle Eastern street food joint that had recently opened its doors near Be Love. It was love at first bite of the falafel pita with tomato, cucumber, house-made pickles, hummus, tahini, parsley, cilantro, amba, and zhoug, and first sip of the freshly made mint lemonade.
I look back at my years in Victoria with such fondness, and a hint of sadness that those are times that I’ll never get back. Robyn recently remarked that “When we experience something richly, we grieve it deeply,” and I don’t think any phrase could better sum up how I feel about the time that I spent there!
Anyways, when I first read about Tel Aviv-Style Sabich Sandwiches in a food magazine, I was taken right back to Yalla in Victoria. Of course the falafel pita there isn’t quite the same as a Sabich sandwich, but it has some similarities, and I have a soft spot for Middle Eastern food no matter what form. I knew right then and there that I wanted to create my own version of Sabich pitas for the blog.
What is a sabich pita sandwich?
Now at this point, most of you are probably wondering what the heck a Sabich pita is! Sabich is a popular Israeli street food that was brought into Israel by way of Iraqi Jews. It’s a pita bursting with hummus, egg, pickled vegetables, Persian salad, (traditionally fried) eggplant, tahini, and amba (a spicy mango sauce). They are typically served for breakfast, but if your taste buds are not sufficiently awake to handle so many flavours first thing in the morning (mine certainly aren’t!), they are equally delicious for lunch and dinner!
For my version, I opted for roasted eggplant instead of fried, and I created a fresh, minty hummus recipe that is a delicious all-purpose spread in its own right. If you are vegan, feel free to omit the hard boiled eggs and replace them with roasted chickpeas (the zaatar roasted chickpeas from this recipe would be excellent) or baked tofu or tempeh. I chose to forego the amba this time around because I felt that the hummus and tahini sauce were enough, but stay tuned: I just might be working on an amba recipe as we speak!
While the preparation for these sandwiches is a bit involved, all of the components–the tahini sauce, hummus, Persian salad, hard boiled eggs, and roasted eggplant–can be made in advance.
Here is a breakdown of the components you will be making for these sabich sandwiches:
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-Mint hummus
-Lemon tahini sauce
-Persian salad with tomato and cucumber
-Hard boiled eggs (or roasted chickpeas/baked tofu or tempeh)
-Pickles
-Shredded cabbage
-Roasted eggplant
I actually developed this recipe in August, when tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplant were at my farmer’s market, and I intended to post this recipe at least a month ago. If tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplant are no longer available at your farmer’s market, don’t sweat it this time around. While the sandwiches are tastiest with local vegetables, they will still be delicious with imported ones. Just buy organic imported vegetables if they are available to you. Not only will you reduce your exposure to harmful pesticides and protect the health of workers (and the earth!), but they are much tastier than their conventional counterparts, too.
I hope you love these sabich pita sandwiches. They are satisfying, protein-rich, ultra flavourful, and inspired by the beach-side fare of Tel Aviv. Perfect for these dark, dreary months, if I do say so myself. 😉
If you make this recipe, let me know. Leave a comment and review below, and tag a photo of your creation on Instagram with @upbeet.kitchen and #upbeetkitchen. Enjoy!
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Vegetarian Sabich Pita Sandwiches
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 sandwiches 1x
Description
These Vegetarian Sabich Pita Sandwiches are addictive in the best way possible! Pita bread is stuffed with minty hummus, pickles, cabbage, tahini sauce, Persian salad, roasted eggplant, and hard-boiled eggs. Allow these sandwiches to transport you to a Mediterranean beach-side sandwich stand in sunny Tel Aviv all winter long.
Ingredients
Roasted eggplant:
- 3 small or 2 medium eggplants, diced into ½-inch pieces
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Mint Hummus:
- 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas (or 1 14-oz can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed)
- ⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup tahini
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup fresh mint leaves
Lemon Tahini Sauce:
- ¼ cup tahini
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- ¼ tsp each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup yogurt (grass-fed and organic goat, sheep, or cow, or coconut, soy, almond, etc. for vegan)
Persian Salad:
- 1 large heirloom tomato, seeded and diced
- ½ an English cucumber, finely diced
- ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
- ½ cup finely chopped red onion
- ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the sandwiches:
- All of the above fillings, plus:
- 4 hard boiled organic free range eggs, halved lengthwise (Learn how to make the perfect hard-boiled eggs here)
- 4 large lacto-fermented pickles, sliced (such as Bubbies)
- 4 whole wheat pitas
- 1 cup finely shredded purple cabbage
- Hot sauce
Instructions
- Roast the eggplant: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange the diced eggplant in an even layer on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Toss to coat and roast for 20 minutes.
- While the eggplant is roasting, make the hummus. Place the chickpeas, lemon juice, olive oil, tahini, garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, and mint in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the ‘S’ blade. Blend until very smooth and creamy. Transfer into an airtight container and set aside.
- Next, make the lemon tahini sauce. Whisk together tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and yogurt in a dish. Set aside.
- Make the Persian salad by combining the tomato, cucumber, parsley, red onion, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Toss and set aside.
- To assemble the sandwiches, slice each pita in half and use a butter knife to gently open the pocket.
- Begin by spreading a spoonful of hummus on the inside of the pocket. Next, add a generous spoonful of Persian salad, followed by a couple slices of pickle, a handful of cabbage, a few slices of the eggplant, and a spoonful of tahini sauce. Finally, add half of a hard boiled egg. Repeat with the remaining pita halves, counting on two pita halves per person for a total of 4 servings.
- If you have leftover hummus, tahini sauce, and/or Persian salad, store separately in an airtight container to enjoy as leftovers.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Sandwich, Vegetarian
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern, Vegetarian
Sahib says
just when I thought nobody could surpass my mother’s sabich pita, I made this and it is unreal good. Definitely a show stopper for our family gatherings. So Sabich great!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed it! I don’t know if it surpassed your mother’s, though. 😉