Noshin’: Shakshuka Recipe, Two Ways

Aren’t you tired? I know I am. The High Holy Days must have worn me out, not to mention everything that the new “school year” brings. You don’t have to be currently enrolled to know what I mean — I tend to think that summers in Minnesota can’t get any busier, and then we up the ante every September, getting to all those things we (thought we) didn’t have time to get to June through August. And that’s when the avalanche begins.

I don’t know if I’ve had a legitimate evening off since August.

Crazy, isn’t it? So what have I been eating? Shakshuka, basically.

It’s funny — I didn’t know I had been eating some variation of this quintessentially-Israeli dish all summer until I was planning my cooking class curriculum this fall, and Alisa, St. Paul’s Israeli emissary (and my co-teacher for the class) informed me that if there is one dish everyone in Israel eats, it’s shakshuka. Everyone. I, of course, knew I was eating something involving unmeasured amounts of vegetables cooked over medium-ish heat, topped at the end by an egg (or two!), I just didn’t know it had a name, nor that there was anything remotely Jewish about it.

And so, I share it with you, in case you’re as exhausted as I am. I bet you have vegetables and eggs on hand. If you don’t have the ones I suggest, try whatever (preferably juicy) vegetables that are available to you (heck, if they aren’t juicy, add some broth, water, or wine and you’ll still be fine). Better yet, it’s cheap, healthy, vegetarian-friendly, and quick.

The first version is a classic, Israeli shakshuka, which includes tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and parsley. The second version (which I doubt you’d ever see made in Israel) uses cabbage, a vegetable that will be readily available for awhile, since it’s a late-fall crop, and ingredients that store well (cheese, soy sauce, sriracha sauce, etc.). It may be helpful to think of shakshuka as a cooking technique, instead of an actual dish.  It does mean “all mixed up,” after all.

Israeli Shakshuka

Makes: 1 hefty serving
Ingredients:
1 large or 2 small tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 – 1 bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1/2 medium onion, chopped
OR about 2 cups of chopped vegetables of your choosing; don’t forget to add some liquid if your veggies are dry, like eggplant)
1+ garlic cloves, minced (or ~1/2 tsp jarred minced garlic); adjust amount to your liking
Fresh herbs of your preference (I recommend parsley; dried will also work); optional
Salt & pepper
Hot sauce or crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1-2 eggs, depending on how hungry you are

Directions:

1. In a saute pan (wide with low sides) over medium-high heat, add a little bit of oil (maybe 1-2 tsp) and all the ingredients except the herbs (unless you’re using dried herbs, in which case you should add them now) and egg(s). Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently, until you have what looks a little like a chunky sauce.
2. Carefully crack your egg(s) over the sauce, keeping the yolks intact (although you certainly could scramble this all together). Recover the pan and cook for another 6-8 minutes, or until the egg whites are opaque and the yolk is cooked to the consistency you’re comfortable with.
3. Top with herbs and serve hot.

Sriracha “Shakshuka”
Inspired by Orangette
Makes: 1 hefty serving
Ingredients:
1-2 tsp canola oil
1/4 head of cabbage (I like green, but any kind will do) cut into 1/4-wide strips
1/4 medium onion, diced
1 tsp sriracha sauce (or other hot sauce), adjusted to taste (1 tsp is probably about one decent squeeze, if you don’t want to measure it)
2-3 good shakes of soy sauce (probably about 1 1/2 tsp)
Black pepper (you’ll get enough salt from the soy sauce)
1 wedge Laughing Cow cheese (I prefer the French Onion flavor)
1-2 eggs, depending on how hungry you are

Directions:

1. Heat the canola oil in a saute pan over high heat. Add the cabbage and onions, stirring to coat. Covering the pan will speed up cooking time at this point, but isn’t necessary. Leave them alone for a few minutes (2-4 should be just fine), so the vegetables get a little brown and caramelized on the edges.
2. Add the sriracha, soy sauce, and black pepper, then stir. You’re going to want to turn on your fan/vent if you aren’t cooking near an open window, as the fumes from the sriracha can be overwhelming to both you and your smoke detector.
3. Cook the vegetables until they have wilted a little. Try to scrape up the brown bits (Mmm… brown bits…) on the bottom of the pan and incorporate them into the mix.
4. Add your cheese. Stir.
5. Gently crack your egg(s) over the mixture, keeping the yolks intact (although you certainly could scramble this all together). Cover the pan and cook for another 6-8 minutes, or until the egg whites are opaque and the yolk is cooked to the consistency you’re comfortable with.
6. Serve hot.