Shakshuka
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Shakshuka: As fun to say as it is to eat! Savor this North African dish of eggs poached in a smoky, spicy tomato sauce—perfect for brunch, lunch, or dinner.
Shakshuka (pronounced shak-shoo-kah) is a beloved dish throughout the Middle East and North Africa, and it holds a particularly special place in Israeli cuisine, where it stands alongside falafel and hummus as one of the country’s most-loved dishes. The name “shakshuka” means “mixture” in Arabic. Originally brought to Israel by Jewish immigrants from North Africa, this dish features poached eggs in a smoky, spicy tomato and vegetable sauce. While I stay true to the classic recipe, I enhance it with a splash of heavy cream to balance the tomatoes’ acidity and a sprinkle of crumbled feta for added flavor and richness—these little changes really make all the difference!
Shakshuka is traditionally prepared in a cast iron pan and is simple to make. Begin by simmering the sauce on the stovetop, then gently crack the eggs into little wells in the sauce. Allow the eggs to cook just briefly, then finish everything off under the broiler. It’s a fantastic breakfast-for-dinner option, though it’s wonderful at any time of day. Be sure to serve it with toasted buttered bread—it’s essential for soaking up the delicious sauce and runny yolks.
Table of Contents
“I have lived in Israel, and it is hard to find a better shakshuka than this recipe!”
What You’ll Need To Make Shakshuka
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: Used as the base for sautéing onions, garlic, and bell peppers, providing flavor and richness.
- Yellow Onions and Garlic: Fundamental for flavor base; onions add sweetness and garlic adds a pungent depth to the sauce.
- Bell Pepper: Adds sweetness and contributes to the heartiness and texture of the sauce.
- Smoked Paprika, Cumin, Coriander, Red Pepper Flakes: This spice blend imparts warmth, smokiness, and a touch of heat, giving the dish its signature flavor profile.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes: The main body of the sauce, providing moisture, acidity, and rich tomato flavor.
- Chopped Greens, such as Swiss Chard, Kale, or Spinach: These add color, texture, and nutritional value, and help mellow out the acidity of the tomatoes.
- Heavy Cream: Used to balance the acidity of the tomatoes, adding a creamy richness that complements the eggs.
- Feta Cheese: Adds a tangy, salty element when sprinkled on top.
- Eggs: The centerpiece of the dish, poached directly in the sauce, providing protein and a creamy texture when the yolks are broken.
- Cilantro: Used as a garnish, adding a fresh note that brightens up the dish.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by chopping the onions, peppers, and garlic. Be sure not to chop the garlic too finely or it will burn.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and bell pepper.
Cook, uncovered, for about 8 minutes, until softened.
Add the smoked paprika, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, 1-1/4 teaspoons of the salt, sugar, and tomatoes.
Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened.
While the sauce cooks, chop the greens.
Add the chopped greens and heavy cream to the sauce, and continue cooking, uncovered, until the greens are soft and wilted, about 10 minutes more.
Turn off (or remove the pan from) the heat. Then, using a spoon, make 6 wells/indentations in the sauce.
Carefully crack an egg into each well, then spoon a bit of the sauce over the egg whites (this will contain them and also help them cook a bit faster than the yolks), being careful not to disturb the yolks. Sprinkle the eggs with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. And then sprinkle the feta around the eggs.
Set the pan on the stove over low heat and cover with a lid. Cook until the egg whites are mostly set but still translucent on top, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and broil until the eggs are cooked to your liking, 1 minute or less for runny yolks. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the cilantro over top.
Serve hot with bread.
Video Tutorial
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Shakshuka
Shakshuka: As fun to say as it is to eat! Savor this North African dish of eggs poached in a smoky, spicy tomato sauce—perfect for brunch, lunch, or dinner.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 small yellow onions (or 1 medium), peeled and diced
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 bell pepper (red, orange or yellow), diced
- ¾ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1½ teaspoons salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes, with juices
- 2 cups finely chopped greens, such as Swiss chard, kale, or spinach, tough ribs removed, gently packed
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- 6 eggs
- Handful chopped cilantro
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and bell pepper and cook, uncovered, for about 8 minutes, until softened. Do not brown; reduce the heat if necessary.
- Add the smoked paprika, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, 1¼ teaspoons of the salt, sugar, and tomatoes. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened.
- Add the chopped greens and heavy cream to the sauce, and continue cooking, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the greens are soft and wilted, about 10 minutes more. While the greens are cooking, set an oven rack in the top position and preheat the broiler.
- Turn off (or remove the pan from) the heat. Using a spoon, make 6 wells/indentations in the sauce. Carefully crack an egg into each well, then spoon a bit of the sauce over each of the egg whites (this will contain them and also help them cook a bit faster than the yolks), being careful not to disturb the yolks. Sprinkle the eggs with the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, then sprinkle the feta around the eggs. Set the pan on the stove over low heat and cover with a lid. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the egg whites are mostly set but still translucent on top (check frequently towards the end as cook time can vary). Remove the lid, transfer the pan to the oven, and broil until the eggs are cooked to your liking, 1 minute or less for runny yolks (see note below on cooking eggs further). Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the cilantro over top. Serve hot with bread.
- Note: You can cook the dish entirely on the stovetop for just a few minutes longer (without using the broiler) if you like your egg yolks cooked through. If you like your eggs runny, however, I find that the stovetop-to-broiler method is the only surefire way to cook the egg whites thoroughly without overcooking the yolks.
- Make Ahead: The tomato sauce can be made up to 2 days ahead of time and refrigerated, or frozen for up to 2 months. Reheat the sauce on the stovetop and proceed with the recipe when ready to serve.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 254
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated fat: 9 g
- Carbohydrates: 12 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 10 g
- Sodium: 636 mg
- Cholesterol: 200 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This was great! Loved the flavors and it was surprisingly easy to make. We added crumbled sweet Italian sausage and used goat cheese instead of the feta. Not sure why but my sauce turned out very thick, so the bread was nice to have but couldn’t really use it to sop up any sauce. While this was still amazing, I am hoping for a little more sauce-like consistency for next time — any suggestions on how to do that?
Glad you liked it, Kathryn! You could add a bit of chicken stock to the pan to make it a little more liquidy/saucy.
Have you ever used cod instead of egg!? Saw a recipe that used cod instead of egg and thought intetesting
Can’t say I have but it sounds like an interesting take on this dish. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
Where I live in Central America it’s very difficult to find greens…I hunted for spinach yesterday but was unsuccessful. Do u think cabbage would work instead? I know the flavor is kind of strong but I really want to try this!
Hi Grace, I probably wouldn’t use cabbage but it’s perfectly fine to omit the greens (or you could always use frozen, if that’s available).
This was very yummy, the flavor was delicious. There are only 2 of us so I only made 4 eggs. I was going to freeze the extra sauce but when my husband saw me taking chicken cutlets out of the freezer he asked if I could make them smothered “in the sauce from the other night.” It was very good that way as well.
We just finished dinner and this was amazing!!!! I love so many of your recipes. The only change I made was using fire roasted diced tomatoes with garlic because that was all I had on hand. We served it with naan bread and it was amazing. We will definitely have this again.
Like Jenny, I was skeptical as I was putting all the ingredients together. I even told my husband I wasn’t sure we’d like it, however, it all comes together amazingly! It is absolutely delicious!
Thank you Jenn for another winning recipe!
We are trying to eat more veggies and less meat so this was a perfect start for us. The flavor is great and I love that I can make the tomato sauce ahead of time. I didn’t have smoked paprika so I used regular, but I think I will use smoked next time. We like firm yolks so left the pan on the stove top for about 12 minutes until they were just firm. I served it was crusty multigrain bread to sop up the extra sauce. My 2 year old son who has suddenly become picky finished his bowl and asked for more!
Simply amazing! Made this for dinner tonight for our 5 children ages 9-20 and they all loved it. They were skeptical watching all the ingredients go in but the flavors are just perfect. We served it with a huge platter of pita bread and your feta dip. I have made several of your recipes and they are always a huge hit with the family. Our 20 year old is leaving on Sunday for Israel and the timing is perfect for all your new recipes. Can’t wait to try more! Thank you!
FABULOUS! Made this for dinner the other night and my family is STILL talking about it! I did manage to squeeze in an additional egg in the pan as we are soft yolk lovers 😉 Thanks Jenn!!
Wondering if you think 8 eggs would be too much? We are big egg eaters! 🙂
You should be able to squeeze another one in, Flo. Enjoy!
Amazing as always! Only thing I changed was fat free ricotta for the heavy whipping cream. So delicious! Thanks as always…you’re my go-to!
Wow! This was so so so good and easy! Thank you for the delicious recipe!!!!