Egyptian-style braised beans

1. Soak the beans overnight in a bowl of cold water. The next day, preheat the oven to 160˚C, gas mark 3. Drain the beans and put in a medium casserole with the onion, garlic, oil, salt and 500ml water. Cover with a lid and bake for 2 hours.

2. Remove from the oven: the beans should now be nice and soft. Mash lightly with the back of a fork or a potato masher. Stir in the lemon juice and check the seasoning. They’re ready to eat now, or they taste even better reheated the next day.

3. To serve, warm the beans on the hob (if necessary), adding a splash of water to loosen. Mix the tahini in a bowl with 2-4 tbsp warm water until the consistency of single cream; season and set aside. Toast the cumin seeds in a dry frying pan for 1-2 minutes until fragrant, then roughly crush in a pestle and mortar. Spoon the beans into shallow bowls with some tahini spooned over the top, plus a generous drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of crushed cumin seeds and a scattering of chopped parsley. Serve with the toasted pitta bread for scooping up and lemon wedges for squeezing over.