Shakshuka: Eggs Poached in Spiced Tomato Sauce

Eggs cooked in tomato sauce travel all around the Mediterranean: from Lazio and Campania to Lebanon, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, and during the Ottoman Empire the dish reached Israel.

It is a very simple and widespread dish. The North African version uses spices and green chili, eggs of course, tomato sauce and, in some variations, peppers or other vegetables such as potatoes.

The word shakshuka comes from a Berber word meaning "mixture", while the Italian name, uova in purgatorio ("eggs in purgatory"), refers to the classic image of souls (the eggs) wrapped in red flames (the tomato).

As I have often written, this is a traditional dish and as such it has countless variations, probably one for every family! I discovered it a few years ago at a lunch with Iranian and Afghan friends, who served it as a big shared dish in the middle of the table, with everyone dipping in with a piece of pita.

Here is my spiced, flavourful but not too hot version, refined over the years to get the balance of flavours just right.

4 eggs
250 g peeled tomatoes (if you want to make them at home, have a look here, in Italian)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 fresh green chili
1 handful of parsley
1 onion
3 garlic cloves
salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil

Chop the garlic and onion and sauté them in a heavy-bottomed pan (cast iron if you have one), stirring often. After 5 minutes add the cumin and the sliced chili. Cook for a few more minutes, taking care not to burn the spice. Add the tomatoes, salt lightly and cook for about 20 minutes, until the tomatoes break down and most of their water has evaporated.

When the sauce has thickened, use a spoon to make 4 wells and crack an egg into each one, as for fried eggs. Salt each egg lightly, cover with a lid and cook for a few minutes.

You can leave the yolks quite runny or cook them a little longer until creamy: it's up to you. Turn off the heat and sprinkle with pepper and plenty of roughly chopped parsley.