Shakshuka

My 15-year-old son, Miles, spends an inordinate amount of time watching videos on his phone. I guess he’s a typical teenager. Most of the videos he watches deal with gaming – like watching other people play video games like Minecraft. While I may find this rather droll to watch myself, he finds this rather riveting. Maybe I’m missing something here.
 
But occasionally, he’ll come to me with a recipe he wants me to make simply because he watched a cooking channel on YouTube. He’s certainly not watching The Food Network and requesting anything from those cooks, but he does request things he sees made on the internet. Maybe the Food Network should take note of this…
 
Anyway, each week I ask what everyone wants for dinner. This week, his suggestion, based on a YouTube video, was shakshuka. I’ve heard of shakshuka but never made it before. So… why not try it? Turns out, that yes, Miles has an eye for spotting good food online.
 
The dish originates from Northern Africa where they mainly eat it for breakfast. It would make a great dish for brunch and we ate it for dinner. So, basically, you can have this dish at any time you want it. The simplicity of it is what makes it delicious – eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce. That’s it.
 
Shakshuka
Adapted from the NY Times
Serves 4-6

• 2-3 tablespoons oil of choice (olive, canola, safflower, etc)
• 1 onion or shallot, sliced or diced
• 1 red, yellow, or orange bell pepper, sliced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• ½-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, aleppo pepper, or cayenne pepper (depends on how spicy you like things)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground paprika (mild)
• 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 6 large eggs
• ½ cup (roundabouts) crumbled feta
• Chopped parsley or cilantro

 
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
 
Heat the oil in an ovenproof skillet (12 inch diameter) over medium low heat. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic. Saute until the vegetables are soft, about 5-10 minutes. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Add the red pepper flakes, cumin, and paprika. Saute for another couple of minutes to bring out their flavors. Stir in the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Simmer until the tomatoes thicken slightly, about 10 minutes.
 
Crack the eggs, one at a time over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with the feta cheese and season the top with salt and pepper. Bake until the eggs are set – 7-10 minutes for runny egg yolks, 10-15 minutes for firmer egg yolks. Sprinkle with chopped parsley to serve. Serve hot with fresh bread. If it’s served with dinner, add a fresh salad on the side.
 

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Close up of the egg -- cook until set. Touch the top of it to see how set it is.