Sandhya Raghavan
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Written By: Sandhya Raghavan | Published : February 16, 2017 5:10 PM IST
Eggs are a universal breakfast favourite. Easily one of the cheapest sources of proteins, eggs can be found even in some seasoned vegetarian households today. We have so many varieties of preparing eggs in India, each of which can be tweaked and improvised to suit individual palates. But there are times when we are bored of the same old bhurji pav and omelette. So here s a tried-and-tested recipe for the breakfast favourite done up in a novel style. This is my adaptation of Shakshouka, an easy-to-prepare Middle Eastern egg breakfast flavoured with cumin, coriander leaves and paprika in a tangy tomato gravy. Pair it with some toasted slices of bread or rotis for a scrumptious and nutritious breakfast.
Ingredients:
3 eggs
3 ripe tomatoes
1 whole onion chopped finely
2 cloves of garlic
A small pinch of dried Italian spice mix (dried thyme, basil, oregano, sage)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon paprika or chilli powder
1 tablespoon cooking oil (olive or sunflower)
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Salt to taste
Method:
Carve an X mark on the tomatoes with a knife. Immerse the tomatoes in hot water for two minutes and place them in ice cold water. The skin will start separating from where the X mark was made. Remove the skins of the tomatoes. Roughly chop them and keep them aside. Reserve the juices.
Heat a tawa or a cast iron pan on high flame. When it is sufficiently hot and smoking, turn off the flame and put cumin seeds on the pan. Stir continuously till they change colour to a deep brown hue. Leave it aside for two minutes to cool. Grind the seeds with a mortar and pestle and keep aside. Heat the oil in a flat pan. Once the oil is hot, add the Italian seasoning. Once it stops sizzling, add the chopped garlic followed by the chopped onion. After the onions have browned, add the roughly chopped tomatoes. Season with salt. Break the eggs one by one into three small cups.
With a spoon, make three small pits in the tomato gravy. Drop the eggs into the pits one by one. Add half a cup of water to the gravy and cover the pan with a lid for two minutes. Cook until the egg whites are no longer translucent. Garnish with the roasted cumin powder, salt and paprika. Add the coriander leaves last.
Ideally, the egg yolks should be runny when you dig into the Shakshouka with a piece of bread. But if that is not how you like your eggs, cook it for longer till the yolks harden. Shakshouka is best eaten straight out of the pan.
Image source: Shutterstock
