How to Cook Shakshouka

Shakshouka is a dish made of eggs fried in tomato sauce with chili peppers, cilantro, garlic, onions, and spices. Different countries have different variations of the recipe. In Turkey, for example, it’s a sauce made of vegetables and chopped meat or liver that serves as the base of shakshouka, while in Tunis, this dish is cooked with an array of diverse spices. Typically, it’s cooked in some sort of metal cookware and served right after it’s been prepared.

We at 5-Minute Crafts will show you how to cook classic shakshouka from eggs, vegetables, and spices in a frying pan. The main advantage you have with this recipe is the ability to easily change things as you go through the process.

Ingredients

You’ll need:

• 4 chicken eggs

• 1 bell pepper

• 4 tomatoes

• 2 tbsp of tomato paste

• 1/2 onion

• 1 clove of garlic

• 1 tsp of ground cumin

• 1 tsp of paprika

• 1 tsp of chili pepper

• Black pepper and salt as per your taste

• 1 tbsp of olive oil

• Fresh cilantro as per your taste

Cooking method

Step 1. Cut up some onion, tomato, and bell pepper. Finely chop some garlic as well.

Step 2. Place the frying pan on medium heat. Wait until it heats up and add oil. Reduce the heat and fry the spices and garlic in the oil for 30 seconds. Put the onion into the pan and keep frying it until it becomes transparent, mixing it with spices and garlic.

Step 3. Add bell pepper to the frying pan. Keep frying it for about 5 minutes, stirring it. After that, add tomatoes and mix it all up well. Stew them for several minutes under the lid, then add tomato paste and stir it well again.

Advice: If the tomato paste tastes a bit sour, add a pinch of sugar or a bit of honey.

Step 4. Once the mass starts to thicken, melding into the sauce, make 4 holes in it with the help of a spatula, and break an egg into each hole. You can carefully mix the white with the sauce, add pepper and salt, and cover the dish with the lid for 10-15 minutes, having reduced the heat to a minimum. Make sure to sprinkle the ready-to-eat shakshouka with chopped cilantro. It’s done!

Useful hacks

• Try different combinations of spices. For example, try adding add nutmeg, Curcuma, and cloves.
• If you don’t like garlic, just crush 1 to 2 cloves and sauté them in oil, then remove them from the pan. This will create a fragrant, spiced oil without a strong garlic flavor.
• The dish will not lose its taste if you use canned tomatoes in their own juice instead of tomato paste and fresh tomatoes and a bit of hot pepper.
• Shakshouka can be cooked in an oven too. For that method, heat the oven up to 375°F. Fry all the spices and vegetables on the frying pan in order to get the sauce as was described above. If the frying pan doesn’t fit in the oven, pour the sauce into a baking dish, add eggs, stir slightly without touching the yolk, and place it in the oven for 10 minutes. Decorate the ready-shakshouka with fresh greenery and feta cheese. It’s ready!