Bowl of Chakchouka with Egg
(click to enlarge)

Chakchouka


Tunisia   -   Chakchouka
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 4
***
1-1/4 hr
Most		 Pronounced "ShaShouka" this is a dish of eggs poached over Vegi Sauté. Variations are made from Turkey to Morocco, but always with eggs over a base of Onions, Tomatoes and Peppers.
The Tunisian version features hot peppers. I sometimes make up a batch (including the optional potatoes and sausage) and refrigerate it. In the morning I heat some up in a pan and poach an egg over it for breakfast.




------
1
8
2
12
2
1/2
1/4
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2
1/4
1/2
1/4
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4
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8
8
---
#
oz
cl
oz

t
t
---
T
t
t
c
---

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---
oz
oz
-- Vegies
Tomatoes
Onions
Garlic
Bell Peppers (1)
Red Chili (2)
Caraway seed (3)  
Cumin seed
-- Cooking
Olive Oil
Pepper, Black
Salt
Water
-- Finish
Eggs, large
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-- Options
Sausage (4)
Potato (5)

PREP   -   (25 min)
  1. Scald TOMATOES 1 minute in boiling water, peel and cut into 3/4 inch dice.
  2. Blast BELL PEPPERS and CHILIS black with your propane torch and brush off skins (see Note-6). Cap and seed Chilis, leaving the membranes in, and chop fine. Cut Bell Peppers into narrow strips about 1-1/2 inch long. Mix.
  3. Cut ONION in quarters lengthwise, then slice thin. Crush GARLIC and chop fine. Dice POTATO 1/2" (if used). Cut SAUSAGE into chunks about the same size as the Potatoes (if used). Grind Caraway and Cumin. Mix all with Bell Pepper mix.
RUN (or Prep-2)   -   (55 min)
  1. In a spacious sauté pan, heat Oil and fry Onion mix, stirring until Onions just starts to color.
  2. Stir in Tomato, Salt, Pepper and Water. Simmer covered until vegetables are very tender (20 minutes).
    - - - You can cool and refrigerate at this point. - - -
  3. Simmer uncovered until excess liquid evaporates (some free liquid should remain). Make 4 depressions and break an EGG into each. Cover and simmer until whites are set but yolk is still soft.
  4. The moment Eggs are ready, scoop out onto dishes, keeping the egg on top of each, and serve immediately.
NOTES:

  1. Bell Peppers:

      A combination of red and green is popular, but either would work.

  2. Red Chili:

      Around here we all use Red Fresnos, but others will work. Some recipes call for Harisa, a red chili paste, rather than fresh chilis. 2 Fresnos will provide noticeable heat, but feel free to go hotter if you wish. For details see our Chilis page.

  3. Spices:

      Some recipes call for caraway and cumin, others use only black pepper. I prefer the extra flavor.

  4. Sausages:

      Muslim authenticity calls for lamb or beef sausage, but we Infidels are free to use any sausage we please. They tell us we're all going straight to Hell anyway, so why not? Actually, my favorite sausage for this dish is Soujuk, a beef sausage popular from Central Asia through the Caucasus and most of what was the Ottoman Empire. It's widely available from markets serving Armenian, Turkish or Levantine communities. For details, see our Sausage page.

  5. Potatoes:

      White Rose or Red Potatoes will work well here. Avoid "Yukon Gold" type potatoes - they turn to mush if cooked a little long. For details see our Potatoes page.

  6. Skinning Peppers:

      Most recipes don't require this, but, with the long cooking, and especially if it is reheated, stiff pepper skins make the dish less pleasant than it might be. For details see our Torch - Map Gas or Propane page.
  7. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch, ar=as required tt=to taste
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