How To Make Shakshouka
This recipe is adapted from a recipe found in my cookbook, The Spiralizer Recipe Book. To get the full recipe and other recipes like this, you can order it here.
I became obsessed with shakshouka after a visit to Israel. At first, I was pretty weirded out by the idea of eggs soaking in tomato sauce, but after my first bite, all previous judgments flew out the window. Apart from the abundant flavor and amazing melange of spices found in shakshouka, I was draw in by the ease at which you could make it in the morning.
There are many versions of shakshouka, and I'm going to give you two different ways to make: The easy way and the fancy way. Let's start with the easy way:
The Easy Way To Make Shakshouka
The simplest way to make shakshouka is to pour tomato sauce into a pan, heat it up, crack an egg over it, and cover it for 4-5 minutes until the whites cook. That's it. This will be the most basic but also the least flavorful. But you can do some small modifications to make it more tasty without spending a lot of time. Here are my suggestions:
1. Add 1/2 cup tomato sauce to a small pan.
2. Add some spices to the sauce. If I'm going for a more Middle Eastern flavor, I add in a dash of cumin, paprika, oregano, and red chili flakes. If I'm going for more Mediterranean, I add basil, oregano, and garlic powder.
3. Add some salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil or ghee butter. Add eggs, cover and cook for 4-5 minutes or until whites have just begun to set.
4. You can then just enjoy the eggs as is, or you can top them off with some greens or Greek yogurt.
The Fancy Way To Make Shakshouka
If you want to make the more traditional and involved shakshouka, you can use this recipe, which involves sautéing onions and peppers first and then transferring the pan to the oven. My suggestion is to do something in the middle between these two recipes, but I'll leave you to the experimenting.
Ingredients (serves 3-4)
1 medium onion
1 cup chopped bell peppers (I used red, green, and yellow)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
Dash of pepper
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup tomato sauce
5 pasture-raised eggs
Parsley, to garnish
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (You can also skip the baking step and just simmer the eggs to cook them). Cut off both ends of the onion, and remove the outer layer. Cut the onions into thin slices or spiralize using a small noodle blade.
2. In a large skillet, heat up olive oil on medium heat. Add onions and bell peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes. Then add garlic, cooking for an additional 2 minutes.
3. Add cumin, paprika, red chili flakes, and pepper, mixing in evenly. Add diced tomatoes and marinara, stirring everything together. Cook for about 3 to 5 minutes until tomato mixture begins to bubble.
4. Crack eggs into skillet, and transfer to the oven, baking for 12 to 15 minutes or until eggs set. If you don't want to use the oven, you can also cover the skillet and cook for 5 to 8 minutes or until egg whites have cooked. Add a few parsley leaves as garnish, and serve warm.