shakshuka recipe with greens - Beyond spoonful of spices (2024)

FAQs

How do you thicken shakshuka? ›

Options for the latter include adding flour, cornflour mixed with cold water, a beaten egg, cream cheese, or making a beurre manié from equal parts softened butter and flour. Stir well and give your thickener of choice a few minutes to work its magic.

shakshouka, a Maghrebi (North African) dish, popular throughout the region, featuring poached eggs in a spicy tomato sauce, seasoned with peppers, onion, garlic, and various spices. The word shakshouka comes from Maghrebi Arabic dialect and means “mixed.”

Cover and allow to cook for a few minutes until the whites are set. If you don't like the eggs runny, cook for an extra minute or two. Garnish with dried mint or parsley/cilantro and enjoy with lots of bread! That's it.

After breaking the eggs into the sauce, gently spoon some of the sauce over just the whites. This helps the whites cook faster so they set before the yolks overcook. Cover and rotate. Covering the skillet allows the eggs to steam-cook, which moves things along.

Liquids: If the sauce exudes a lot of liquid, cook it until most of the liquid has evaporated. By the time you add the eggs there should be no more than two tablespoons of liquid left in the pan.

Crack in the eggs and simmer

Ottolenghi advises using a fork to swirl the egg whites around in the sauce, all the while being careful not to break the yolks. Simmer until the egg whites are just set and the yolks are still slightly runny. Remove from the heat and let stand about 2 minutes before serving.

Even though many people today associate shakshuka with Israel, it actually originated in North Africa and the Ottoman Empire: the only reason shakshuka is eaten in Israel is because North African Jewish immigrants brought it there.

Shakshuka is a staple of Tunisian, Libyan, Algerian, and Moroccan cuisines traditionally served up in a cast iron pan with bread to mop up the sauce (most important). It is also popular in Israel, where it was introduced by Tunisian Jews. These Sephardic Jews came from Spain, Portugal and the Middle East.

In Jewish culture, a large batch of tomato stew is made for the Sabbath dinner and the leftovers used the following morning to make a breakfast shakshouka with eggs.

They're done when the egg whites are an opaque white and the yolks have risen a bit but are still soft. They should still jiggle in the centers when you shimmy the pan. (Keep in mind that they'll continue cooking after you pull the dish out of the oven.)

What goes well with shakshuka? ›

You can't go wrong with pita bread, but slices of crusty bread are delicious as well.

When properly cooked, the white and yolk should harden, and the inside should be firm rather than rubbery. An overly hot batch of water or overcooking can give the yolks a green tinge. You can store the eggs in their shells or peeled.

Yes! Shakshuka is one of my favorite recipes to meal prep because it reheats beautifully. Honestly, it may even taste better the next day…

The best way to salvage an under-boiled egg is to get it back into hot water. You can either reboil them directly on the stove, or put them in a bowl that can handle boiling water and pour hot water over the eggs. Note: Do not cook boiled or partially boiled eggs in the microwave; this will cause them to explode.

Make a cornstarch slurry for a fast and easy thickener.

Use one tablespoon of cornstarch per cup of liquid you would like to thicken. Stir out all the lumps. A few minutes before your casserole is done, add it a little at a time until you are happy with the thickness. Then, let the casserole finish baking.