Masoub

Masoub is a soft dish of crumbled bread mixed with ripe banana. It is popular in Yemen and on the Arabian Peninsula. Topped with honey or cream, it can serve as breakfast or as a sweet dish after a meal.

Combining Bread and Fruit

Whole wheat flatbread is broken up and combined with mashed banana. In one recipe, it is warmed with butter, honey and cream, finished like a thick pudding, and served with dates and almonds. The bread absorbs moisture from the fruit and dairy and comes together while still leaving some small pieces intact.

Ripe bananas are easy to mash and add aroma and sweetness. Honey adds another layer of sweetness, and cream brings the mellowness of dairy. The presentation and the amounts added vary by maker, and some versions are served with nuts or cheese.

Yemen’s tourism promotion agency describes an example in which brown bread made with oil is finely mixed with banana, with cream or honey added to taste. In this example, it is eaten cold, freshly made.

In a home recipe from Sheba Yemeni Food, which introduces Yemeni cuisine, ripe banana and coarsely crumbled bread are mixed, arranged on a plate, and topped with raisins, almonds, cream and honey. Whether to warm it is a matter of preference, and grated cheese is sometimes added.

It is also known as a breakfast shared from a large platter. In using bread as the core of the dish, it has something in common with Aish el-Saraya, in which bread is soaked in syrup and topped with a layer of dairy, but in masoub the fruit and bread are mixed together and served either cold or warmed.

Glossary