Once Europeans understood that the strange New World plant called “tomato” was not poisonous, after 1705 it gradually started making its way onto plates thanks, in part, to an unpublished manuscript by one Francesco Guadentio called Levitico. The combination of spicy eggs with tomatoes has versions all over the world, from Mexico to Tunisia, the latter location being the so-called home of this dish. Whether this dish has Sephardic origins may come into question, but we advise that those doubts not overwhelm the seriously delicious dish that is called Huevos kon tomat by some, and shakshouka by others. This easy and fast stove-top stand-by consists of eggs poached in a fresh, thick tomato sauce and served hot in the same frying pan in which they were cooked. For a vegan alternative, some tofu that has been grilled and cut into triangles may substitute the eggs.

 

Ingredients:

 

For the sauce:

2 T olive oil

1 small red onion, chopped

2 cups ripe, peeled and chopped tomatoes or 1 can chopped tomatoes

½ fresh bell pepper: red, green or orange, chopped

4 small garlic cloves, diced

1 T tomato paste

1 t sea salt

3 turns of black pepper, or more or less to taste

½ t sugar (optional)

1 t smoked paprika

½ t ground turmeric

½ t ground cumin

½  t ground coriander

1 t Turkish red pepper (pul biber)

2 teaspoons lime juice

2-4 eggs

Bread to accompany

 

To serve:

1 T of roughly chopped flat leaf parsley

Pul biber, a few sprinkles

¼ cup crumbled feta

 

Method:

 

Make the sauce:

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and cook the onion and pepper until soft, about 4 minutes.
2. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, all the spices, salt, and sugar (if using). Simmer for about 7 minutes over a low heat until thickened and well reduced. Taste to test seasoning at this stage sauce cannot be stirred or season once the eggs are in.
3. Make small indentations in the surface of the sauce. Carefully crack an egg and one by one slide into each hollow. Stir the whites gently with a fork so they are thinly spread over the tomatoes.
4. Partly cover with a lid and simmer for a minute or two over a low heat. Cook until the eggs are just set but both the white and the yolks are still soft. Turn off heat and keep covered for a few more minutes.

 

To serve:

1. Sprinkle with parsley, toss on some pul biber and crumbled feta and serve hot in the pan.
2. In the Izmir fashion, a slice of cheese and a bowl of cold yogurt accompany this dish.
3. This dish also looks quite wonderful if served in individual cast iron skillets for each diner.
4. No matter how you serve it, make sure you have some fresh and delicious bread to soak up the sauce.

 

Alternatives:

1. Either stir and blend the eggs into the tomato mixture rather than leaving them whole.
2. Instead of a red tomato base, saute a pound of greens such as spinach and poach the eggs onto the spinach bed.
3. Use a variety of vegetables, from potatoes and fava beans to artichoke hearts to zucchini to serve as the vegetable bed.