 |
| Wine recommended. |
Shakshuka is North African, or Israeli, or well what culture within spitting distance of the Mediterranean doesn't have some version of eggs baked in tomato sauce for dinner? There's likely as many versions as there are people making it: the NY Times published one, as did Yotam Ottolenghi (actually several from him); my version takes Smitten Kitchen's version as a starting point and then departs from it entirely. As usual, I make no claims to authenticity. All I'm saying is it tastes good.
Shakshuka!
1 lg (28oz) can crushed or diced tomatoes
1 fist-sized onion, or a leek
1-5 cloves garlic, to taste
1 can chickpeas
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp paprika (or way way way less if you use the same uber-smokey kind I have)
1 tsp cayenne
olive oil
S&P to taste
good crumbled feta
1-2 eggs per person
chopped parsley and/or cilantro
good sourdough/pita/other bread to serve with
Optional other additions:
harissa paste or powder
spinach leaves
crumbled sausage (merguez?) or bacon
diced bell or spicy peppers (I take it these are fairly traditional. Whatevs.)
Other veggies as desired
 |
| Leeks! Green parts welcome. |
1) Rinse & chop the onion/leeks. Toss them in a cast iron skillet with some olive oil and saute til soft/translucent. If you're doing peppers of any sort, this is probably the moment to add those too.
2) Mince the garlic. Add to the saute party, along with the spices.
2.5) At this point, you or your forward-thinking cooking companion will realize that if you're gonna turn that leftover pizza dough in the fridge into pita breads, you'll need the cast iron skillet for that. Transfer everything to a Dutch oven. (This step optional.)
 |
| Stuff in pot. |
3) Once everything's nice and fragrant, pour in the tomatoes and the drained, rinsed chickpeas. Let simmer until the sauce is thick enough to make indentations to set the eggs into. Near the end, stir in any spinach leaves or cooked sausage. Salt & pepper to taste.
4) Preheat the over to around 400. Use a spoon to make dents in the top of the sauce, then crack eggs into them. Don't scramble the eggs first, since that will make them runny and they'll just go everywhere instead of nestling in their little holes. Trust me.
 |
| Ignore runny scrambled egg in the upper right. Don't do that. |
5) Crumble feta all over everything. I like a good Bulgarian sheep's milk feta, but take your pick.
6) Put a top on the pan and bake for around 10 minutes, until the eggs are set to your liking. Runny is good. Broil for the last few if you want the cheese to brown and bubble a little. If you forget, you could use your creme brulee torch to get the same effect, but only if you're totally insane. Don't look at me.
7) Top with chopped parsley and/or cilantro, then scoop into bowls and eat with warm bread. Possible other variations include replacing cumin, cilantro, and feta with oregano, basil, and romano (ricotta?) for ouvo alla shakshuka, or whatever other national spin appeals to you. Buon appetito.
 |
| Also ignore shitty camera phone photos. Next time I'll charge my actual camera battery before cooking. Maybe. |
