Inn on the Creek Favorite Recipes- Mexican Shakshouka

One of our favorite recipes to make is a dish called Shakshouka.  It is a Middle Eastern dish that is used both for breakfast and dinner.  Traditionally it is a saute of tomatoes, garlic and onion, warmed with Middle Eastern spices such as cumin, paprika and a hint of nutmeg.  Eggs are then poached in the hot tomatoes until over easy and then served with a sprinkle of cilantro and parsley.

While the traditional is delicious, I like to mix it up by putting a Mexican spin the dish. You’ll need to following ingredients:

1 yellow onion, small dice

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 28oz can of diced tomatoes

1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 pasilla pepper, fine diced- a pepper that adds lots of flavor and more smoke than spice to the dish.  Or a green bell pepper works just fine too.

1 lime, cut in half

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon oregano

Salt to taste

5-6 eggs

Cilantro for garnish

Avocado slices for garnish

First, get a large frying pan and pour about 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in the bottom and let it heat on Medium High while you chop your onion.  Once you finish your onion, immediately scrape it into the hot frying pan.  You should hear a sizzle the minute they hit the pan.  Cook until the onion turns a slight golden brown- this brings out amazing flavor when they get a little color.  Then add your minced garlic and continue to cook until the garlic also develops a little color.  Next add your pasilla pepper and cook until tender.

Next, empty the tomatoes into the frying pan, along with the drained black beans, cumin and oregano. Squeeze 1 half of the lime into the mix too for a little fresh zing. Stir all together until entire mix is hot and some of the water from the tomatoes has evaporated.  Carefully taste the mix and add more spice or salt if necessary.

Next, using a spoon, create 5-6 holes in the tomato and bean mix—they will be loose and not perfect—that’s ok, we just want most of the egg to end up here.  Once you have the holes made, carefully crack eggs into the holes and cover the pan with a lid. Check after 8 minutes.  You’re looking for an over easy egg, so whites will be cooked and there will be a wiggle in the yolk.  You are always able to cook your eggs to your desired doneness—just cover the pan back up and check every 3 minutes until you’re happy.

Scoop an egg, along with a nice portion of the tomato saute into a bowl and garnish with lime wedges from the 2^nd half of the lime, avocado and cilantro.  You could even throw warm tortilla along the side.

This is such an easy dish, but with so much flavor and will keep you going far into the afternoon.  Cheers!