In a tiny alley in old Jaffa there’s a little restaurant serving food to customers sitting outside at shared shabby tables. The place is heaving around lunchtime and everybody, more or less, is eating the same thing. The place is called Dr. Shakshuka, after its signature dish, and this is, obviously, what everybody’s tucking into.
Shakshuka is a North African dish with many variations. Some add preserved lemon, others feta and different herbs and spices. It is my ideal brunch fare! Cook and serve it in individual pans, if you have them, or in one very large one. Chunky white bread on the side is a must.
Ingredients
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ¾ cup light olive oil or vegetable oil
- 2 large onions, sliced
- 2 red bell peppers, cut into ¾-inch strips
- 2 yellow bell peppers, cut into ¾-inch strips
- 4 tsp muscovado sugar
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 thyme sprigs, leaves picked and chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro, plus extra to garnish
- 6 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
- ½ tsp saffron threads
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- salt and black pepper
- up to 11/8 cups water
- 8 eggs
How to Make It
- In a very large pan dry-roast the cumin seeds on high heat for 2 minutes. Add the oil and onions and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the peppers, sugar and herbs and continue cooking on high heat for 5 to 10 minutes to get a nice color.
- Add the tomatoes, saffron, cayenne and some salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. During the cooking keep adding water so that the mix has a pasta sauce consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning. It should be potent and flavorful. (You can prepare this mix well in advance.)
- Remove the bay leaves, then divide the pepper mix among four deep frying pans, each large enough to take a generous individual portion. Place them on medium heat to warm up, then make two gaps in the pepper mix in each pan and carefully break an egg into each gap. Sprinkle with salt and cover the pans with lids. Cook on a very (!) gentle heat for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the eggs are just set. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.