What Is Shakshuka, The Classic North African Egg Dish?
If you're craving comfort food that's a little spicy, a little saucy, and easy to throw together, look no further than shakshuka. At its core, shakshuka is a dish comprised of eggs poached in a spiced tomato sauce, often made and served in a cast iron skillet alongside flatbread or pita. It's a versatile dish that can be iterated on and scaled up or down as needed, serving a whole dinner table or making a happy little meal for one.
The sauce comes together by sweating onions and garlic, sauteeing tomato paste, and simmering tomatoes with bay leaves and spices. Some shakshuka recipes call for paprika and cumin, while others call for basil and turmeric. Harissa, a densely flavored North African chili paste, is a common ingredient. The result is a warming, slightly spicy, slightly smoky red sauce. The eggs are poached in this sauce until just set, with slightly runny yolks.
It's a one-pan wonder that not only satisfies your taste buds but also makes for a visually appealing and shareable meal. Whether you're a brunch enthusiast or in need of a satisfying dinner, shakshuka offers a delightful balance of flavors and textures that will leave you coming back for more.
What's the history of Shakshuka?
Historians don't know exactly when or from whom shakshuka originated. The name, which can also be spelled "shakshouka," is derived from the Maghrebi Arabic dialect and means "mixed." The Maghreb region (meaning "west" in Arabic) covers northwestern Africa and includes Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Western Sahara, and Mauritania, though at one time it also included Moorish Spain. Tomatoes, native to South and Central America, arrived in Spain in the 1500s and spread across Africa in the 1800s. Though it's possible that some variation of shakshuka could have existed before tomatoes crossed the Atlantic, the dish we know now — eggs poached in tomatoes — can't be older than the 16th century.
Jim Chevallier, a food historian and prolific food history author, explained on Reddit that he tracked references to the dish in papers from the late 1800s. In 1894, it was referred to as a Tunisian dish; in 1896, it was referenced as an Egyptian dish, and; in 1899, it was noted as a Turkish dish. In the book, "King Solomon's Table: A Culinary Exploration of Jewish Cooking from Around the World," renowned cookbook author and journalist Joan Nathan attributes its origin to Ottoman North Africa. Jews emigrating from the Mahgreb to Israel are said to have brought the dish to the Middle East. Today, it is an incredibly popular breakfast and lunch dish in the region — and increasingly popular worldwide.
Variations on shakshuka you might see
In Spain, shakshuka often includes spicy chorizo, trading the vegetarian aspect of the dish for some meaty heft. In Italy, there's a very similar dish called eggs in purgatory, which has the same basic principles but replaces the Maghreb seasonings like harissa and cumin with basil, red chili flake, and maybe oregano and parsley.
In Tunisia, there is a different dish that shares the same name; though it's spelled şakşuka, it still comes from the Arabic word for "mixed." Unlike the more globally well-known version, this Tunisian version doesn't actually include eggs, instead including a melange of eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, and garlic, and is typically served as a side to grilled meat. In her book, Joan Nathan discusses Israeli chef Ika Zaken's version of shakshuka, which combines the Tunisian şakşuka with Maghrebi and Spanish shakshuka in a dish that has eggplant, peppers, chorizo, and eggs. It's this version, with its melding of cultures, that Nathan herself makes again and again.