Egyptian Fatta (pronounced Fa-tta) is the epitome of a celebratory dish.  It holds a special place at the heart of Egyptian festivities—gracing the tables of both Christian and Muslim households during religious celebrations. Rich and opulent, Fatta is built in indulgent layers: crispy toasted bread, fluffy rice simmered in fragrant beef broth, melt-in-your-mouth chunks of meat, all finished with a bold drizzle of garlic-vinegar sauce and a luscious tomato topping.

This recipe may contain affiliate links. Please check our Disclosure policy. 

What is Egyptian Fatta? 

As I mentioned earlier, Egyptian Fatta (pronounced Fa-tta) is the ultimate festive dish. Its wafting aromas instantly conjure cherished memories of Egyptian feast-day traditions.

In Arabic, Fatta means “cut in pieces”—a nod to the toasted bread, torn or cut into small bits, that forms the foundation of this beloved dish. True to Egyptian culinary values, nothing ever goes to waste in our kitchens.

Every Egyptian family takes pride in its own signature version of Fatta, often guarding a secret ingredient or technique that makes it uniquely theirs.

To bring you a simplified yet foolproof recipe, I researched and tested several versions and consulted the renowned Egyptian Chef and TV figure, Ms. Vivian Farid.

Ms. Farid generously shared her never-fail recipe, which I tested and served to both my picky family and foodie friends—and it received unanimous thumbs up!

Unlike its Levantine cousin, Egyptian Fatta does not include yogurt. Now, let’s dive into the delicious layers that make an EPIC Fatta!

Ingredients of Egyptian Fatta 

Fatta is a rich dish that encompasses multiple layers of flavors and textures so let us dive in, one layer at a time. 

1. Meat

You can use either lamb or beef for your Egyptian Fatta.  The meat plays two important roles in this dish: first, it’s slowly simmered to create a deeply flavorful broth; second, the tender meat chunks are served atop the layered Fatta for a hearty finish.

I’ve tested both options, and my personal preference is lamb shank or beef top round. It’s worth noting that using bone-in cuts significantly enhances the flavor and body of the broth. Thanks to the slow simmering process, the meat becomes wonderfully tender without drying out.

Lamb Shanks

Top Round Beef Cut

Whether you choose lamb or beef, be sure to ask your butcher to trim the excess fat for a healthier dish with cleaner, more balanced flavors. For best results, sear the meat first in hot fat—preferably ghee—along with whole spices. This step helps lock in the juices, allowing the meat to cook through slowly until it becomes fork-tender while staying moist and flavorful.

2. Broth

Without a doubt, the meat broth is the soul of this dish—the very foundation of its rich flavor profile. A well-seasoned, flavor-packed broth serves multiple roles: it tenderizes the meat, infuses the rice with depth, and forms the base of the bold tomato-vinegar sauce. In every layer, the broth leaves its unmistakable mark.

3. Rice

Traditionally, Egyptians use short-grain Egyptian rice, a staple found in every Egyptian kitchen and available online—yes, even on Amazon! However, you can use basmati instead and adjust the liquid amount. 

Important tip: Never soak Egyptian rice in water. Instead, rinse it thoroughly under cold tap water, then leave it to drain in a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl. Soaking it will only prolong the cooking time unnecessarily.

Basmati Rice

Egyptian Rice

A healthier alternative to Egyptian rice, Basmati requires different prepping and different quantity of liquid to cook it. Unlike Egyptian rice, basmati rice should be soaked for 30 mins and rinsed before being cooked. Each cup of basmati rice takes up to 1 1/5 cup of hot water or broth and it cooks much faster than Egyptian rice. 

4. Bread

Typically, Egyptian whole wheat bread is toasted and added as the first layer of Fatta.

I like to season the bread with some sumac, paprika, and pepper. Yet, seasoning the bread is both optional and unorthodox to traditional Fatta.

You can just toast it without any seasoning and it would be fine.

5. “Tashet el Toum”: Garlic-vinegar Sauce  

This garlic sauce spikes the flavor of the rice and the bread. It is simply a generous amount of garlic fried in hot ghee or butter and then splashed with some white vinegar followed with a ladle of meat broth that we just made earlier. 

6. Tomato-Garlic Sauce 

The tomato-garlic sauce is made of passata or homemade tomato puree added to a ladle of the previous garlic-vinegar sauce.  We use this tomato-garlic sauce to drizzle on top of the Fatta dish and serve some extra on the side along with the Fatta dish.

Tips to Make the Best Egyptian Fatta

1. Whether you choose lamb or beef, be sure to ask your butcher to trim the excess fat for a healthier dish with cleaner, more balanced flavors.
2. For best results, sear the meat first in hot fat—preferably ghee—along with whole spices. This step helps lock in the juices, allowing the meat to cook through slowly until it becomes fork-tender while staying moist and flavorful.
3. Use fresh whole spices and fry them first in hot sizzling fat, before adding the meat, as the heat will release and accentuate the spices’ aromas and flavors. 
4. To elevate the broth flavor, sear your meat, onions, and garlic on all sides until they brown, before adding the boiling water.
5. Add HOT water and NOT tap water as hot water eliminates the gamey taste in the meat and leads to a flavorsome result. 
6. Skim with a serving spoon the foam that rises to the surface of the broth, while it simmers, to ensure a clean taste. 
7. Don’t add the salt to the broth at the beginning of cooking time. Salt the broth when the meat are fork tender and cooked throughout. If you salt the broth at the beginning, the broth will cook down and reduce, and could become over salted.
8. A beef bouillon cube is optional, only use it to accentuate the broth flavor.  Beef bouillon cubes are already salted, therefore avoid adding additional salt to the broth.

9. To achieve fluffy, separate grains, begin by sautéing the rinsed rice for a couple of minutes in hot fat—whether ghee, butter, or oil—until it’s lightly coated and fragrant. Then, add hot broth (never cold!) and bring the mixture to a vigorous boil for about 5 minutes. Next, lower the heat, cover the pot with a lid wrapped in a tea towel, and let it cook for another 7–10 minutes. Once the time is up, uncover the pot, drizzle in a few tablespoons of hot broth or water, then cover it again after turning off the heat. This final step locks in moisture and ensures the rice stays fluffy—not sticky.  And a final note: using hot broth instead of cold liquid significantly speeds up the cooking time—another win for busy cooks!

10. Using fresh tomato puree takes the fatta sauce to the next level. That said, you can still use the store-bought passata one and it would be fine. Adding 1 tablespoon of tomato paste to the tomato puree, enhances the tomato color and achieve a depth to flavor.

Chez Nermine blog is your source of authentic, wholesome, and no-fail Egyptian recipes. To receive our weekly recipe, subscribe here to my blog Chez Nermine.

For fun tutorial food videos, follow IG @cheznermine & Facebook page: Chez Nermine Page

Like, Comment, & Share

We love reading your comments and questions! Post below here and we will get back to them within 24-48 hours.

Fatta (Egyptian Festive Meat-Rice Dish) Recipe: الفتة المصرية

Nermine Mansour

Egyptian celebrations aren’t complete without this crowd-pleasing dish of toasted pita, fragrant rice, and slow-cooked beef drizzled in a garlic-vinegar sauce.

Pin Recipe Print Recipe

Course Main Course

Cuisine Egyptian

Servings 6 people

Do you like this recipe? Please click here to rate it 🙏

Ingredients

  

o.5x1x2x3x

For the Meat Broth

• ▢ 1 Kg boneless beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes, or bone in lamb shanks
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
• ▢ 2 tablespoons ghee (see note)
• ▢ 3 bay leaves
• ▢ 5 green cardamom pods, bruised
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon crushed mastic resins , see notes
• ▢ 5 whole allspice berries
• ▢ 1½ tablespoon Egyptian meat Baharat or Lebanese 7 spices
• ▢ 1 cinnamon stick
• ▢ 1 medium yellow onion, quartered
• ▢ 5 whole cloves garlic
• ▢ 6 cups boiling water, plus more if needed
• ▢ 1 coarsely chopped celery stalk

For the Rice

• ▢ 2 tablespoons ghee , (see note)
• ▢ 2 bay leaves
• ▢ 3-5 green cardamom pods
• ▢ 1 whole mastic resin, optional; see notes
• ▢ 1½ cups rinsed Egyptian rice , see notes
• ▢ 1½ cups warm meat broth (recipe above)
• ▢ Himalayan and freshly ground black or white pepper, to taste

For the Toasted Pita

• ▢ 2 pita bread , cut in 1-inch squares
• ▢ ¼ cup canola oil, plus more if needed

Tasha Al Toum (Garlic-Broth Dressing)

• ▢ 2 tablespoons ghee (see note)
• ▢ ¼ cup minced garlic
• ▢ 3 tablespoons 45ml distilled white vinegar
• ▢ 1 cup meat broth (recipe above)
• ▢ Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper , to taste

For the Garlic-Tomato Sauce

• ▢ ½ cup garlic-vinegar sauce (recipe above)
• ▢ ½ cup passata or tomato puree
• ▢ 1-2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ Himalayan salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Get Recipe Ingredients

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

 

Cook the Meat and make the Broth

• Season beef with salt all over and set aside. In a large heavy bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat ghee over medium heat until shimmering. Add the bay leaves, cardamom, mastic resin (if using), black peppercorns, allspice, and cinnamon, and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Working in batches to avoid crowing the pot, add beef in a single layer (you can leave the whole spices in the pot). Increase heat to medium-high and cook, turning occasionally, until beef is browned all over, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate with the whole spices and repeat with remaining beef.
• Add onion and garlic to the pot and cook over medium-high heat until beginning to blister, about 1 minute.
• Return beef and whole spices to the pot along with any accumulated juices. Stir in hot water (the water should cover the beef by about 1 inch; if necessary, add additional water) along with the spices. Bring the broth to a boil over medium-high; let it boil for 5 minutes.
• Reduce heat to medium-low and let the broth simmer gently, uncovered, until the beef is fork-tender and the broth becomes fragrant and laden with flavors, about 2 hours; occasionally skim and discard any fat that rises to the surface. Season with salt and add beef bouillon cube, if desired. Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
• Strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer set over a large heatproof bowl. Transfer the cooked beef cubes to a separate plate, discarding onion, garlic, parsley stalks, and whole spices, then cover broth loosely to keep warm. Transfer the broth to a clean medium saucepan, skimming and discarding any fat on the surface; you should have 4 cups of broth (if necessary, add additional water to reach 4 cups). Cover to keep warm.

Cook the Rice

• In a large saucepan, heat ghee over medium heat until shimmering. Add the bay leaves, cardamom, and mastic resin (if using) and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant and mastic has melted, about 1 minute.
• Add the rinsed and drained rice and cook, stirring constantly, until the rice is very lightly toasted and evenly coated with the ghee, 2 minutes.
• Stir in the meat broth (see note), cover, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until rice is tender and water is absorbed, following timing on rice bag instructions.
• Remove from heat, uncover rice, and fluff with a fork, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper; discard cardamom pods and bay leaves. Let stand, uncovered, for 5 minutes (this allows excess steam to escape so the rice remains fluffy). Then cover rice with a clean tea towel to keep it warm until you assemble the fatta.

Toast The Bread

• Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle pita squares all over with oil. Bake seasoned pita, tossing once halfway through, until crispy and golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Set aside and cover loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm until you assemble the fatta.

Garlic-Vinegar Sauce

• In a small saucepan, heat ghee over medium heat until shimmering. Add minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic becomes fragrant and starts to turn golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Immediately whisk in the vinegar, then whisk in the broth and remove from heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then set aside.

The Tomato-Garlic Sauce

• In a small saucepan, heat the 1/2 cup of the garlic-vinegar sauce over medium heat until nearly simmering. Whisk in tomato passata and tomato paste until fully dissolved. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Assemble the Fatta

• On a large serving platter, arrange the toasted pita chips in an even layer. Spoon the hot rice on top in an even layer. Drizzle 1/2 cup of hot garlic-vinegar sauce over the rice.
• In a large skillet, heat ghee over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add cooked beef and sear, stirring occasionally, until heated through and shimmering, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and arrange the cooked beef over the rice.
• Drizzle the entire dish with the tomato-garlic sauce.

Nermine's Notes

Nermine's Notes 

1. Whether you choose lamb or beef, be sure to ask your butcher to trim the excess fat for a healthier dish with cleaner, more balanced flavors.
2. For best results, sear the meat first in hot fat—preferably ghee—along with whole spices. This step helps lock in the juices, allowing the meat to cook through slowly until it becomes fork-tender while staying moist and flavorful.
3. Use fresh whole spices and fry them first in hot sizzling fat, before adding the meat, as the heat will release and accentuate the spices' aromas and flavors. 
4. Mastic resin is a natural, aromatic resin harvested from the mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus), native to the Mediterranean.  It comes in small, translucent droplets and has a delicate, pine-like aroma with slightly sweet, herbal undertones. A pinch of mastic resin, ground with a bit of salt, adds a subtle piney aroma and luxurious depth to the meat broth—a traditional touch in many Egyptian kitchens.  Would you like an alternative with a more poetic or technical tone?
5. To elevate the broth flavor, sear your meat, onions, and garlic on all sides until they brown, before adding the boiling water.
6. Add HOT water and NOT tap water as hot water eliminates the gamey taste in the meat and leads to a flavorsome result. 
7. Skim with a serving spoon the foam that rises to the surface of the broth, while it simmers, to ensure a clean taste. 
8. Don't add the salt to the broth at the beginning of cooking time. Salt the broth when the meat are fork tender and cooked throughout. If you salt the broth at the beginning, the broth will cook down and reduce, and could become over salted.
9. A beef bouillon cube is optional, only use it to accentuate the broth flavor.  Beef bouillon cubes are already salted, therefore avoid adding additional salt to the broth.
10. To achieve fluffy, separate grains, begin by sautéing the rinsed rice for a couple of minutes in hot fat—whether ghee, butter, or oil—until it’s lightly coated and fragrant. Then, add hot broth (never cold!) and bring the mixture to a vigorous boil for about 5 minutes. Next, lower the heat, cover the pot with a lid wrapped in a tea towel, and let it cook for another 7–10 minutes. Once the time is up, uncover the pot, drizzle in a few tablespoons of hot broth or water, then cover it again after turning off the heat. This final step locks in moisture and ensures the rice stays fluffy—not sticky.  And a final note: using hot broth instead of cold liquid significantly speeds up the cooking time—another win for busy cooks!
11. Using fresh tomato puree takes the fatta sauce to the next level. That said, you can still use the store-bought passata one and it would be fine. Adding 1 tablespoon of tomato paste to the tomato puree, enhances the tomato color and achieve a depth to flavor.

 

Add Your Private Notes

Click here to add your own private notes.

Keyword beef recipes, Egyptian cuisine, Fatta, rice recipes