SHAKSHUKA

i forced 2 eggs into fitting in this small bowl, resulting none of them to be visible in the picture..haha. so check out Smitten Kitchen's blog for better visualisation...anw, still have a long way to learn the composition :P

Shakshuka is one of the staple dishes in Israeli breakfast menu. I found the recipe when browsing through Google, hoping for an epiphany to come as I’ve reached a point where I’d lose appetite just by thinking of cereals and toasts for breakfast again (I know, first world problem…Astaghfirullah!). So I was surprised when uncle Google led me to one of my fave food blogs: Smitten Kitchen. Apparently I've missed this post from back in April.

The thought of eating bread as a companion to a heart-warming dish got me jumping up and down in the kitchen (yes, sometimes I’d stand for hours browsing through recipes on the kitchen counter). Anyway, I just knew that I’d fall in love instantly with this dish. However the original recipe from Smitten Kitchen didn't call for turmeric, while almost in every other recipe I found includes turmeric...so I decided to add 1tsp. I also substituted parsley with coriander leaves...just because I liked them better. And I was glad I did, because I knew it would've tasted incredible with the spicy sour tomato sauce.

This dish has the most amazing combination of flavours, given how incredibly easy and incredibly tasty it is! So far I've cooked it for three times...in a week. Yep, that good.

Shakshuka (Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce)
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Serves 4 to 6

1/4 cup olive oil

5 Anaheim chiles or 3 , stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped (if you're nervous about the spicy level, you can always decrease the number of chiles but gradually add cayenne pepper powder according to taste)

1 small yellow onion, chopped

5 cloves garlic, crushed then sliced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained

Kosher salt, to taste

6 eggs

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled (optiona)

1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves

Warm pitas or turkish rolls, for serving

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add chiles and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, turmeric, cumin, and paprika, and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is soft, about 2 more minutes.

Put tomatoes and their liquid into a medium bowl and crush with your hands. Add crushed tomatoes and their liquid to skillet along with 1/2 cup water, reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly, about 15 minutes. Season sauce with salt.

Crack eggs over sauce so that eggs are evenly distributed across sauce’s surface. Cover skillet and cook until yolks are just set, about 5 minutes. Using a spoon, baste the whites of the eggs with tomato mixture, being careful not to disturb the yolk. Sprinkle shakshuka with feta and coriander leaves and serve with your choice of bread for dipping.