Shakshuka

Okay, what? Yes, shakshuka. Another spelling could also be Shakshouka. Either way, it is delicious. I have had it before in a restaurant. It's believed to be a North African dish, known in the Tunisian cuisine, but also apparently found in the Israeli cuisine. Well, today it is found in my kitchen and my stomach, so to be honest, I don't care where it's originally from {well, I still want to fully know} I just love how easy it is to make and how delicious it is on top of it.

If you were wondering...it is basically poached eggs in a {spicy} tomato sauce. Simple as that. 

Really, that simple.

Here's what you need {for about 4-6 servings}:
1/4 cup olive oil
5 Anaheim chiles or 3 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped {optional, you don't need to use them but for an extra kind of gentle kick I recommend it}
1 small yellow onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, crushed and sliced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, do NOT drain {I sometimes use diced tomatoes, works just as well}
salt to taste
6 eggs
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
Warm pitas, for serving {or similar bread; I used gluten free bread from Canyon Bakehouse}

Here's what you do:
Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat.
Add chiles and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, about 6 minutes.
Add garlic, cumin, and paprika. Cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is soft, about 2 minutes.
Put tomatoes and their liquid into a medium bowl and crush with your hands {unless you use diced ones you don't need to do this step}.
Add tomatoes and their liquid to skillet.
Add 1/2 cup water and reduce heat to medium.
Simmer and stir occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes.
Season sauce with salt.
Crack eggs over sauce so that eggs are evenly distributed across sauce’s surface.

 

Cover skillet and cook until yolks are just set, about 5 minutes. 

Using a spoon, baste the whites of the eggs with tomato mixture, being careful not to disturb the yolk.

Done. Sprinkle shakshuka with feta and parsley and serve with bread. 

Obviously I used three eggs and not six. Reason? We are two people in this household, so I don't want to cook too much. I always just go with half of what is said in this recipe. This was done so quickly, had a kick to it, and has become our easy-made dish when we don't know what to cook. We always have eggs, garlic, onion, and tomato something in our kitchen. Makes up a quick and easy dish that stuffs our empty bodies. :)

xoxo