“Shakshuka.” That’s a fun word to say, “Shakshuka.” Actually it’s a really fun word to listen to Daniel say. “Shashkuukee, is that even a thing? Will people know what you’re talking about? Oh, that taste good! Wait, there isn’t any meat in it?” So, to appease Daniel, Shakshuka is a traditional Tunisian dish that has now become a wildly popular Israeli breakfast.
Last Saturday morning, when I had the time to actually make the food, I poached some eggs in a tomato-based sauce simmered in cumin, jalapeno and smoked paprika, filled with juicy onions and sweet peppers. I wish I could make this everyday for breakfast.
Or lunch, or dinner for that matter.
I know that my response to, “Oh hey, Karlee, how has it been going?” has been a patented, “busy” but lately that answer has never been more true. I haven’t had time to watch ANY Fuller Houses, if that says anything. I also haven’t had a lot of time in my kitchen. It’s where I de-stress; it’s where I’m happiest. But this week has been a lot of pizza and Trader Joe’s salads.
I’m trying to find happiness in the margins. So, when I’m busy like this, I wake up a little earlier than usual, 5:00 instead of 6:00 and drink a cup of coffee in bed before I check e-mails and do general blog maintenance. I’ll listen to my favorite Podcasts during my work day: The DP Show, Food Blogger Pro, Smart Passive Income, Mixergy and anything else that catches my interest. On the drive home (or to my next commitment), no music or phone calls, I just let myself gently sink into the silence. It’s definitely been a season of “busy” but soon, the tides will change and I’ll be lousy with time.
The good news is this recipe is easy, quick, one pot, healthy and just up my culinary alley. Because “Oh hey, Wednesday, I want to crawl in bed and forget you ever happened” can be cured by this dinner, with multi-grain or Challah bread on the side. Also, chocolate? yes. Chocolate should help.
Shakshuka for two
A traditional Israeli recipe for poached eggs in a tomato sauce simmered in cumin, jalapeño and smoked paprika, filled with juicy onions and sweet peppers.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 can stewed tomatoes
4 eggs
|| Topping ||
feta cheese
fresh parsley
Instructions
In a medium cast iron skillet place in the olive oil and put over medium-high heat. Add the onion, red pepper and salt and cook and stir until the onions have sweat (or become transparent).
Add in the garlic, jalapeño, cumin, sugar, smoked paprika, tomato paste and stewed tomatoes and turn the heat down to medium.
Continue to stir until the ingredients have warmed up, about 5 minutes. Flatten out the sauce to make it even and crack the four eggs on top of the sauce and cover. Wait until the eggs look just about done to remove from the heat. They will continue to cook for a bit after.
|| Toppings || Take a hand full of parsley and give them a rough chop and sprinkle on the Shakshuka along with the feta cheese.
Notes
I took off the lid a few minutes before the eggs were fully done so that I could have a runnier yolk.
Cook lower longer for runny eggs and higher shorter for over-hard yoke.
Keywords: eggs, poached eggs, shakshuka, tomato sauce
