Skip to main content

Shakshuka- eggs poached in spicy tomato sauce



Shakshuka or Shakshouka is a dish of eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, peppers, onions and frequently spiced with cumin. The dish is of Tunisian origin, but it is very popular in the Middle East and North Africa. An Neapolitan Italian dish, eggs in purgatory or ouva in purgatorio, is a very similar dish of eggs poached in a tomato sauce. That dish, however, does not include the chili and cumin spices. Both are delicious.

Shakshuka means “a mixture” in Egyptian, Tunisian, and Libyan Arabic. Some people say the dish was originally called Chakchouka, a Berber word that mean vegetable ragout. This dish is a popular for breakfast, lunch and dinner; in Israel it is said to rival hummus and falafel as a national favorite, particularly in cold weather months.

I love Shakshuka; the dish is easy to make, spicy without being too hot, warm and filling, served with my perennial favorites bread and cheese, and the name itself is awfully fun to say. I hope you try it out!



Ingredients:
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 sweet onion, sliced
2 belle peppers (I used red and yellow, sliced
1 cup cooked broad beans, fave beans or lima beans
1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo
3 garlic coves, mixed
1 1/2 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 28 ounce can of San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes, squeezed by hand
freshly ground black pepper
salt
4 eggs
Chopped parsley, for garnish
Bread and goat cheese crumbles and kalamata olives- for serving!



Method:
Heat the olive oil in a large deep skillet until the oil shimmers; add the onions and belle peppers. Cook until the vegetables are well browned, almost charred. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the chipotle in adobo, paprika, cumin and coriander, and cook until fragrant, another 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and beans and cook for 10 minutes on a simmer, reducing the heat. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to the sauce.

Make 4 wells in the sauce with a large spoon. Break each egg into a bowl, one at a time, (this ensures no broken shells get into the sauce) and pour into a well. Season the eggs with salt and pepper, cover the pan with a lid, and cook until the whites are set and the yolks are runny, about 6 to 8 minutes.


Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and crumbled goat cheese and olives. Serve with a slice of bread. Enjoy!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Peek-a-boo Squares

My grandma, Mimi, taught me this recipe. I used to make this with her and my mother as a child. It is my very favorite dessert. It is incredibly easy to make, and even easier to eat. My favorite part of making this as a child was dusting every bar generously with snowy white powdered sugar.  My favorite version of this dessert uses canned blueberry pie filling; I vastly prefer Libby brand over the store brand. You can make blueberry pie filling from scratch with sugar, cornstarch, bleberries, etc. but using the canned stuff is easy in a pinch and is much for nostalgic for me. Plus, I don’t notice a vast improvement over my homemade blueberry pie filling and the Libby brand; it just takes me longer to put this dessert together.  I have been known to whip up a pan of these Friday night and have them disappear by Saturday afternoon. Be warned, these things are addictive! Ingredients: 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 cups of granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 ...

Samosas with Yogurt Sauce

I love exploring many kinds of cuisine in my kitchen because I can control the spice level, and in the case of this recipe, the use of cilantro. Cilantro lovers out there- sub it info the parsley here. I have the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, which limits my ability to enjoy some dishes in restaurants, but is easily rectified in my own kitchen. I hope you enjoy! Ingredients:  3 russet potatoes 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped 2 teaspoons curry powder 5 ounces peas Six 8 inch flour tortillas 4 ounces Greek yogurt Oil, salt, pepper, vinegar 4 tablespoons butter Method: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. Scrub potatoes and cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces. Place in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high; uncover and cook until tenderDrain potatoes and transfer to a bowl.  Heat 2 tablespoons oil in reserved saucepan over medium. Add chopped garl...

Deluxe BLT- with avocado, Emmental cheese, and asiago bread

 I don't normally feature sandwiches on this blog, but I simply cannot ignore this one. It's too good! The method is dead simple, but perhaps I can include a tip or two you may not have thought of to elevate your BLT to the next level! Ingredients: Bacon, best quality but thinly sliced Tomatoes (ideally fresh from your garden) Romaine lettuce Mayo Emmental cheese Asiago bread salt, pepper, butter Method: In a large sheet pan with a wire rack, lay your bacon out. In a preheated 400 degree F oven, bake for 15 minutes or until the bacon is crispy.  Slice your tomatoes and salt and pepper them. The salt is non-negotiable despite the saltiness from the bacon- the salt brings the flavor out of the tomato. Do not skip! Slice avocados. Rip lettuce to desired sizes for bread. Freshly slice bread and butter one side. In a large pan over medium high head, toast the buttered side of each bread slice. Lay a slice of Emmental cheese on one of the bread slices, and allow to melt. Time to con...