Shakshuka (vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free)

Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern and North African dish of eggs poached in a spicy tomato and pepper sauce.  It is a hearty, cheap meal; breakfast, lunch or dinner.  There are many ways to prepare the sauce.  Some recipes call for more tomatoes, different peppers, potatoes, eggplant, more hot spice, less hot spice, a dollop of yogurt or a crumbling of feta at the end.  So as a dish with a lot of variance you should explore what you like in a dish, pack it with more vegetables and spice and it will still taste nice.  Serve with homemade flatbread and no one will leave the table disappointed.

Prepare the dish by cooking down the peppers, onions, and garlic, add crushed tomatoes and let simmer. Once the sauce is cooked down a bit and full of flavor its time to add the eggs.  Depending on the size of the pan I use 6-8 eggs, or as many as I can fit to poach.  Make little dips in the sauce and gently break the eggs into the dips, being careful of course not to break the yolks.  Spread the whites a bit with a fork into the sauce.  Then simmer for about 8 to 10 minutes until the egg whites are cooked through and the yolks are still runny, like an over easy egg.  Covering the pan with a lid will speed the process a bit.  Once the eggs are cooked and removed from the heat its time to add a little more salt and pepper, garish with the parsley, and/or yogurt or feta cheese.


Serves 3-4

Recipe:
2-3 tbs. olive oil
1 diced medium yellow onion
6 minced cloves of garlic
3-4 diced red peppers
1 minced jalapeno pepper (or other hot pepper) (or 1 tsp. harissa)
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. ground paprika
1-2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1 large, 32 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
6-8 eggs 
1/4 c. chopped parsley
plus salt and pepper to taste



Method:
1. Heat olive oil in a large cast iron skillet or other deep pan over medium heat.
2. Add onion, garlic, peppers and spices.

3. Cook the peppers and onion until tender.

 

4. Add tomato sauce and reduce heat to medium-low.

 

3. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the sauce cooks down a bit.

4. Make dips in the sauce, one for each egg.

5. Gently break the eggs into the dip.

6. Swirl the egg whites with a fork into the sauce.

7. Continue to simmer the dish for 8-10 minutes, until the whites are cooked through but the yolks are still runny.
8. Remove from heat.
9. Add chopped parsley and any other garnishes you wish to serve with the dish.
10. Serve by spooning out the egg with some sauce onto the plate or right onto the flatbread.




ENJOY!