Recipe
🥙 LUNCH
Ftira
A crusty ring of Maltese bread filled with tuna, tomato, capers, and olives, the island's sun-soaked sandwich.
Maltese · easy · serves 4
prep 15 min · cook 0 min
~283 cal · 17g protein · 40g carbs · 6g fat · 4g fiber · 5g sugars · 1g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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The ftira is Malta's beloved bread and the sandwich made from it, so central to the island's food culture that the craft of making it was added to UNESCO's heritage list. The bread is a flattish, crusty sourdough ring with a chewy crumb.
Split and filled, it becomes the classic Maltese lunch, ftira biż-żejt: rubbed with ripe tomato or tomato paste (kunserva), drizzled with olive oil, and packed with tuna, capers, olives, and often onion and Maltese peppered cheese. Rustic, briny, and sun-drenched, it tastes of the Mediterranean.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
4 crusty ftira or sourdough rolls
2 cans (5 oz each) tinned tuna in oil, drained
3 ripe tomatoes or tomato paste
3 tbsp capers
1/2 cup black olives, sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
1
Split the rolls and rub the cut sides with ripe tomato or spread with tomato paste.
2
Drizzle generously with olive oil.
✎ Chef’s note
Be generous with the oil and let it soak into the bread. A dry ftira misses the whole point; it should be rich and glossy.
3
Layer in the tuna, capers, olives, and onion.
4
Press the halves together and let sit a few minutes before eating.
Maltese bread tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Valletta. A fenkata is the occasion rather than the dish. Rabbit is cooked long in wine and garlic and comes in two courses, the sauce first tossed through pasta and the rabbit itself after. Pastizzi, the diamond-shaped pastries sold from hatches in the wall, are filled with ricotta or mushy peas, never meat.
🗺️
Malta. Maltese food blends Sicilian and North African influences on a rocky Mediterranean island, rabbit stew (fenek), flaky pastizzi, and hearty bread. Local cheeselets, capers, and sun-ripened produce define the plate.
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Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Malta
Timpana (Baked Macaroni Pie)Tubular pasta in a rich meat-and-tomato sauce, bound with egg and cheese and baked inside a pastry case until golden, then cut into slabs.
Stuffat tal-Fenek (Rabbit Stew)Malta’s national dish: slow-braised rabbit in red wine, tomato, and bay, the centerpiece of a village fenkata feast.
PastizziDiamond-shaped flaky pastries filled with ricotta or mushy peas, Malta's favorite savory bite.
Browse all Malta recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Best made to order. Prep the fillings ahead and assemble just before eating so nothing turns soggy.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Ftira?
A crusty ring of Maltese bread filled with tuna, tomato, capers, and olives, the island's sun-soaked sandwich.
Where does Ftira come from?
Ftira is a Maltese dish from Valletta, Malta.
Can Ftira be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Ftira recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Ftira safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Ftira take to make?
About 15 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 0 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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