Sabich facts for kids
 |
|
| Course | Breakfast (among Iraqi Jews) and Street food (entire country), Sandwich |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Iraq |
| Main ingredients | Traditionally laffa, although pita is often used, eggplant, hard boiled eggs, salad, amba, parsley, tahini sauce, and hummus |
| Ingredients generally used | Potato, onion, and zhug |
Sabich (pronounced sah-BEECH) is a yummy sandwich. It's made with pita bread or laffa bread. Inside, you'll find fried eggplant, hard-boiled eggs, and fresh salad. It also has parsley, a special sauce called amba, and tahini sauce.
This tasty dish comes from Iraqi Jews. When they moved to Israel, sabich became a very popular street food there. The ingredients in sabich were often eaten for a quick breakfast by Iraqi Jews. Today, you can find sabich sold in many places across Israel.
What's in a Name?
There are a few ideas about where the name "sabich" came from. Many people think it's named after a man called Sabich Tsvi Halabi. He was born in Iraq and had a small restaurant in Ramat Gan, Israel. He is said to be the first person to sell this sandwich.
Another idea is that "sabich" is a short way of saying something in Hebrew. It might come from "Salat, Beitsa, Yoter Ḥatsil." This means "salad, egg, more eggplant." This is probably a funny story, not the real reason for the name.
The Story of Sabich
The idea for the sabich sandwich likely came to Israel with Iraqi Jews. They moved to Israel in the 1940s and 1950s. On busy mornings, Iraqi Jews would eat a cold meal. It included pre-cooked fried eggplant and hard-boiled eggs. They would put these into pita bread or eat them with boiled potatoes. The eggplants were usually cooked the night before.
In Israel, these ingredients became popular as a quick meal. People say the first sabich was sold in 1961. It was at a small food stand on Uziel Street in Ramat Gan.
There's also a version of sabich without the bread. It's called sabich salad.
What's Inside Sabich?
A traditional sabich sandwich, served in pita bread, has several delicious parts:
- Fried eggplant slices
- Hard-cooked eggs
- Thin tahini sauce (made from tahini, lemon juice, and garlic)
- Israeli salad (a mix of chopped tomatoes and cucumbers)
- Chopped parsley
- Amba (a tangy mango pickle sauce)
Some versions of sabich also include boiled potatoes. The eggs are often special "haminados" eggs. These eggs are cooked slowly until they turn brown. You can also add green or red zhug (a spicy sauce) to your sabich. Sometimes, minced onion is sprinkled on top for extra flavor.
Gallery
See also
In Spanish: Sabich para niños
