Ħobż biż-Żejt (Maltese Tomato and Tuna Sandwich)

Name: Ħobż biż-Żejt (Maltese Tomato and Tuna Sandwich)
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients: 2 crusty Maltese bread rolls (ftira or ħobża about 400g total); 2 tbsp olive oil; 2 tbsp tomato paste (kunserva); 1 small tin tuna in olive oil (160g) drained; 1 tbsp capers rinsed; 1 small red onion thinly sliced; 1 large tomato sliced; A few olives (optional but traditional); Salt and black pepper to taste; Fresh mint or basil; Cooked broad beans (fava beans) drained, as an optional topping; Fresh ġbejna (Maltese sheep's-milk cheeselet) as an optional topping; Hard-boiled eggs as an optional topping

Malta's iconic rustic sandwich of crusty bread, kunserva, olive oil, tuna, capers, onion, and tomato.

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Prep15 minsCook0 minsServes2DifficultyMedium

Bright, satisfying and built for real life.

This recipe brings together the generous flavours of Maltese cooking in a format that works on a busy day. Read through the method before starting and adjust seasoning to your taste.

Ingredient notes & swaps

The ftira guide explains the bread choices and offers more sandwich filling combinations. If Maltese bread is unavailable, choose a crusty loaf or roll with a firm crumb, such as a plain sourdough or ciabatta. Kunserva can be replaced with a thin layer of tomato paste, adjusting seasoning to taste. Cooked broad beans are an optional topping; ful medames refers to cooked beans, not a pickled product. See the ingredient guide for the different tomato products.

Ħobż biż-Żejt literally means "bread with oil," but it is much more than that. It is Malta's most iconic everyday sandwich: simple, rustic, and packed with Mediterranean flavour.

Ingredient Substitutions Outside Malta

The ftira guide explains the bread choices and offers more sandwich filling combinations.

If Maltese bread is unavailable, choose a crusty loaf or roll with a firm crumb, such as a plain sourdough or ciabatta. Kunserva can be replaced with a thin layer of tomato paste, adjusting seasoning to taste. Cooked broad beans are an optional topping; ful medames refers to cooked beans, not a pickled product. See the ingredient guide for the different tomato products.