Shakshuka is a wonderful Middle Eastern dish that can be eaten for brekkie, lunch or dinner.
It is a basic mix of onion, red peppers, chilli (optional), garlic and tomatoes cooked into a sauce, into which eggs are placed and then baked. What a winner! It is perfect served with toasted or grilled sourdough, or to make a dinner meal go further then add a large green salad, or extra baked veggies, which can be cooking in the oven whilst you are preparing the Shakshuka.
This dish is best made in a large pan, one that can go into the oven for the final baking of the eggs and feta. Last year for Mother’s Day I bought myself a Chausseur pan (see main page for link) and it is perfect for this … as well as many other dishes … so perhaps that might be an option for you too. With Mothers’ Day right around the corner consider putting in a request to the family … or treat yourself.
This is a perfect dish for sharing so place the Shakshuka into the middle of the table, along with whatever you decide to serve with it, and people can help themselves. If you have a large group then it is easy enough to prepare a double lot of the tomato base, add that to a preheated large baking dish (place the baking dish into the oven to preheat along with the oven), into which you can then place the eggs and return to the oven for the final bake.
All ovens are different but I have found the eggs take exactly 12 minutes in my oven, so the first time you do this just keep an eye on the dish and decide when you are happy with the eggs … the first time my eggs were solid (totally overcooked!), but the last few times I have worked out my timing correctly for my oven.
Whilst there are many versions of this famous dish, my version was inspired by a recipe from Melissa Clark (see main page for link to video of Melissa preparing this dish).