Msabbaha ( ar, مسبحة, musabbaḥa, also romanized musabbaha, literally "swimming" also known as mashausha or mashawsha ( ar, مشوشة) is a variation of

hummus Hummus (, ; ar, حُمُّص, 'chickpeas'; full Arabic name: ''ḥummuṣ bi-ṭ-ṭaḥīna'' ar, حمص بالطحينة, 'chickpeas with tahini'), also spelled hommus or houmous, is a Middle Eastern dip, spread, or savory dish made fr ...

popular in the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is eq ...

Ingredients

The main difference between msabbaha and hummus is the texture. In contrast with hummus, the

chickpea The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Its different types are variously known as gram" or Bengal gram, garbanzo or garbanzo bean, or Egyptian pea. Chickpea seeds are high ...

s here remain whole. It sometimes contains hard-boiled egg, and like hummus, it is typically eaten with fresh

pita Pita ( or ) or pitta (British English), is a family of yeast-leavened round flatbreads baked from wheat flour, common in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and neighboring areas. It includes the widely known version with an interior pocket, als ...

bread. The base of the dish is ''balila'': warm cooked chickpeas in their own soak-water with a little added cumin, chopped parsley and lemon or lime juice. Pine nuts fried in olive oil or ''

samneh ''Smen'' (from ar, سمن or سمنة also called ''sman'', ''semn'', ''semneh'', or ''sminn'') is a salted, fermented butter, and a traditional Yemeni dish. In Yemen, Yemenis prepare a special version of ''semneh'' (سمنة) which is smoked wi ...

'' (clarified butter) are sometimes poured over the ''balila''. Other ingredients include

tahini Tahini () or tahina (, ) is a Middle Eastern condiment made from toasted ground hulled sesame. It is served by itself (as a dip) or as a major ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva. Tahini is used in the cuisines of the Levant and E ...

and minced

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Allium fistulosum, Welsh onion and Allium chinense, Chinese onion. It is native to South A ...

. A variation of ''msabbaha'' common in

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

serves chickpeas and

with melted butter, pomegranate or lemon juice, and pistachios or pine nuts. In Lebanon, it is known as ''masabaha'' or ''mashawsha'', and may be served with a hot sauce condiment with side dishes. It is also sold prepackaged''. ''

References

{{Lebanese cuisine Appetizers Arab cuisine Lebanese cuisine Palestinian cuisine Jordanian cuisine Syrian cuisine Hummus Israeli cuisine Levantine cuisine Chickpea dishes Vegan cuisine