Shakshuka

Terry Roberts

There are as many variations of this Middle Eastern dish as there are cooks in that part of the world. This one, from Melissa Clark of the New York Times, is my favorite.

Ingredients (4-6 servings)

¾ teaspoon salt, more to taste

3 tbsp olive oil

¼ tsp black pepper

5 oz Feta crumbled (1 ¼ cups)

1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

6 large eggs

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp sweet paprika

1/8 tsp ground cayenne or to taste

1 (28 oz) can whole plum tomatoes with juice, coarsely chopped

Chopped cilantro for serving

Hot sauce for serving

Directions

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-low.

Add onion and bell pepper. Cook gently until very soft, about 20 minutes.

Add garlic and cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes; stir in cumin, paprika and cayenne and cook 1 minute.

Pour in tomatoes and season with ¾ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper; simmer until tomatoes have thickened, about 10 minutes.

Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Stir in crumbled feta.

Gently crack eggs into skillet over tomatoes. Season eggs with salt and pepper.

Transfer skillet to oven and bake until eggs are just set, 7 to 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with hot sauce.

Add some garlic bread to sop up the sauce!