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Have you ever wondered how to make shakshuka? This Israeli Shakshuka recipe with poached eggs made in a saucy tomato broth is the next best addition to your weekend brunch or easy recipe arsenal.
Table of Contents
Maven’s Quick Tips
Quick simmer. Simmer your veggies, tomatoes and spices to get all the flavors infused.
Make wells. Create 5 small walls in your tomato mixture for easy cracking right into the pan. Then poach to perfection. Roughly 10 mins for a runny eggs.
Don’t forget the toppings. Cheese, herbs, sauces. Lots of suggestions below for inspiration.
Want to change things up? Try out this green shakshuka!
The thought of brunch makes me happy, and thoughts of happiness make me think of brunch. Some of my best memories in life have happened over the brunch table. Yes, this post will absolutely be forcing you to take a walk down memory lane with me…
My earliest memories of brunch remind me of my Mom’s baked french toast and bagels and lox. As I got older I expanded my brunch repertoire to unfortunate hangover brunches at McGill pizza and bottomless brunches in NYC. I’ve brunched in Toronto, in San Francisco, in Israel, in Italy and pretty much everywhere in between.
I’ve gone sweet, I’ve gone savory, but more often than not I’ve shakshuka’ed. Because once you try a shakshuka recipe, you never go back.
What is Shakshuka?
In case you’ve never heard of shakshuka or made a shakshuka recipe, allow me to explain. It’s a traditional Israeli dish (also eaten in other regions of the middle east) that comes down to a few primary components:
- Poached (or baked) eggs
- Thick tomato broth
- Optional: fresh herbs, cheese crumbles etc…
It sounds like a complicated dish, but it’s actually incredibly easy…and fun to say!
It also leaves room for a ton of creativity – Green Shakshuka anyone?!
What Do You Need To Make Shakshuka?
- Olive oil
- Onion
- Garlic
- Diced tomatoes – 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
- Spices – chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper
- 5 large eggs
- Optional toppings– fresh parsley, feta, dried chili flakes
How To Make Shakshuka
Now that you have the basics down for this shakshuka recipe, let’s talk about how to make it at home.
STEP 1: COOK VEGGIES
Add your onions to a cast-iron pan (we prefer cast-iron for even cooking) and cook until translucent. Top with garlic, diced tomato (canned works well!) and spices and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer for 5 minutes.
STEP 2: POACH EGGS
Create wells for your eggs in the thick broth so you can easily crack the eggs into the dish. Don’t worry about being perfect! Cover the pan to allow steam to cook the eggs for about 10 minutes. Alternatively place the cast iron directly into the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes.
STEP 3: ADD TOPPINGS (if desired)
Top with your favorite toppings and don’t forget the bread or pita for dipping!
Shakshuka Toppings
Fresh herbs – I like topping shakshuka with fresh parsley but cilantro, dill, or any other preferred fresh herbs can be used.
Cheese – a sprinkling of feta (more traditional) or goat’s cheese is delicious.
Tahini – you can just drizzle some tahini right on top or use this delicious tahini sauce that I always keep on hand.
Hot sauce – try zhug (yemeni hot sauce), harissa or even this jalapeno hot sauce for a little kick. Red chili flakes also work great.
Chips + bread– I like using pita chips or some fresh bread for dipping.
Storage Instructions
Shakshuka tastes best fresh, but if you do have leftovers you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove top.
More Egg Recipes You’ll Love
- Green Shakshuka
- Baked Chili Shakshuka
- Sweet Potato Egg Boats
- Baked Eggs in Ramekins
- Easy Veggie Egg Bake
How To Make Shakshuka
Have you ever wondered how to make shakshuka? This wonderful This Israeli Shakshuka recipe with poached eggs made in a saucy tomato broth is the next best addition to your weekend brunch or easy recipe arsenal.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 3–4 servings 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- optional: pinch of dried chili flakes
- 5 large eggs
- 1–2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
- fresh black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Heat up oil in a 10 inch cast-iron (ideal) or large skillet over med-high heat.
- Sauté onions for 3-5 mins or until translucent.
- Add in garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add diced tomatoes and spices and bring to a boil then let simmer for about 5 mins or until broth has thickened.
- Create 5 small “wells” for the eggs and crack eggs directly into wells. There should be 4 around the edges and 1 in the middle.
- Cover with a lid, if available or lightly with tin foil and let cook for about 10 mins for over-easy eggs or longer for more well done. Watch closely until desired egg consistency has been reached as each pan/stove top is different.
- Top with fresh parsley and black pepper. Optional to top with feta or goat’s cheese.
- Serve immediately with fresh bread or pita for dipping.
I used your base recipe and added some more veggies (fridge clean-out). Mushrooms, chopped cooked green papaya, green pepper and a red-hot long pepper. It was delicious! I wonder if green Spanish olives might work in this dish? Also I love that the eggs are poached on the stovetop instead of the oven. I made someone else’s oven version long ago and the eggs took way to long to cook that way. Yours was great! Thanks for the recipe, it was a last minute dinner lifesaver!
So glad to hear that! Sounds like some delicious additions!
Looking forward to cooking shakshuka but could not find in your instructions what temperature oven should be set on to ensure correct cooking. Thank you
Hi Abby! No need to use your oven for this recipe. The eggs are poached in the tomato mixture so there is no baking involved.
This was SO good! YummY!
So happy you enjoyed!
I was in Peace Corps in Tunisia, North Africa, during the 1960’s. My Tunisian co-worker and I made shakshuka for lunch at least once a week. It is an ancient Middle Eastern dish, like couscous, pastilla etc. It’s made with harissa (paste made from ground red peppers), which the recipe given here leaves out. Definitely Middle Eastern, going back centuries.
That is simple to produce and a very healthful and delectable recipe to build this at home, Last time I visited that website for make the fantastic rice recipe.
I made this today and it was delicious! Added some falafel spice mix I had, coriander, extra garlic, and two green chilies to give it more flavor. Topped it off with cilantro. I will definitely be making this dish often!
it looks delicious
Quick question: after the step where you add the tomatoes and wait for boil, when you reduce to a simmer for 5 min do you cover the pan?
No need to!