-
1
Soak the Broad Beans
12 Hours (Overnight)
Room temperature, ~21°C (70°F)
Rinse the dried broad beans and pick out any stones or shrivelled ones. Put them in a large bowl, cover with cold water by at least 8 cm, and stir in 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. Leave them to soak for 12 hours or overnight — they will roughly double in size. Drain and rinse well before cooking.
Start the soak the night before; there is no shortcut that gives the same softness.
Done when: Beans have doubled in size and feel plump and firm, not hard.
-
2
Simmer Until Falling-Apart Soft
55–60 Mins
Gentle boil, 100°C (212°F)
Put the drained beans in a large pot, cover with fresh cold water by 8 cm, and bring to a gentle boil. Skim off the foam, then simmer for 55–60 minutes until the beans are falling-apart soft — they should crush easily between your fingers. Before draining, scoop out 30 ml of the cooking water and set it aside, then drain the beans.
Beans for bigilla must be cooked past the point you would eat them whole; undercooked beans make a grainy dip.
Done when: Beans crush with no resistance between thumb and finger; the skins slip off easily.
-
3
Blend the Dip
3 Mins
Room temperature, ~21°C (70°F)
Put the warm, drained beans in a food processor with the crushed garlic, lemon juice, 10 g of the parsley, the mint, chilli flakes, salt and pepper. Pulse a few times, then add 30 ml of the olive oil and the reserved cooking water a spoonful at a time, blending for 2–3 minutes until you have a thick, spreadable paste — bigilla is coarser and denser than hummus, so stop while it still has a little body.
Add the cooking water slowly: bigilla should be a thick paste you can spread on bread, not a runny sauce.
Done when: The dip is a thick, smooth paste that holds its shape on a spoon, with no whole beans left.
-
4
Season and Rest
5 Mins + 30 Mins Chilling
Chilled, ~4°C (39°F)
Taste the dip and adjust the salt, lemon and chilli — bigilla should be clearly salty, garlicky and warmly spicy. Spoon it into a bowl, cover and chill for at least 30 minutes so the flavours settle and the dip firms up slightly.
The chilli and garlic mellow a little as the dip rests, so season boldly and taste again after chilling.
Done when: The dip tastes balanced — salty, garlicky and spicy — and holds a firm, spreadable shape when cold.
-
5
Plate and Garnish
5 Mins
Chilled, ~4°C (39°F)
Spread the cold bigilla in a shallow bowl, making a shallow well in the centre. Pour the remaining 15 ml of olive oil into the well, scatter over the reserved 5 g of chopped parsley and dust the top with a pinch of sweet paprika. Serve cold with galletti crackers or crusty bread.
Swirl the top with the back of a spoon before adding the oil — the ridges catch the oil and look like the bowls served in Malta.
Done when: The dip is cold, thick and glossy, with a pool of oil in the centre and the green parsley and red paprika on top.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the bigilla cold or at room temperature with galletti crackers or slices of crusty Maltese bread, alongside olives and pickles. Never reheat it — warmth turns the texture heavy and dulls the herbs.
Malta
1h 25m
Spain
Vietnam