Fridge Friend Recipes
Aubergine and Pepper Shakshuka recipe
A hearty, spiced tomato and pepper dish with softly cooked eggs, lifted by sweet aubergine and red onion. It is comforting, colourful and ideal for brunch or a light supper.
35 min · Easy · Middle Eastern Jump to method
Ingredients
- 1 medium Aubergine
- 1 large Pepper
- 150g Mushroom
- 1 Red Onion
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- 1 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 400g Tinned Chopped Tomatoes
- 4 Eggs
- 2 tbsp Parsley
- 40g Feta Cheese
- to season Salt
- to season Black Pepper
| Nutrition | Per servingEstimated |
|---|---|
| Calories | 422 kcal |
| Protein | 17 g |
| Carbohydrates | 26 g |
| Fat | 26 g |
| Saturated fat | 6.8 g |
| Fibre | 9 g |
| Sugar | 14 g |
| Sodium | 520 mg |
Why this works
Moderate-calorie, vegetable-rich shakshuka with good fibre and protein, but with moderate fat and sodium from oil, feta and added salt.
High in protective plant nutrients. Aubergine, pepper, onion, mushrooms and tomatoes provide fibre plus vitamin C, carotenoids and polyphenols, supporting overall nutrient density.
Good source of protein and choline. The eggs contribute high-quality protein and choline, which support muscle maintenance and normal cell function.
Watch the salt and saturated fat. Feta and added salt raise sodium, while eggs, feta and olive oil contribute a moderate amount of saturated fat and total fat.
Method
- Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the red onion and cook for 4–5 minutes until softened.
Keep the heat at a steady medium so the onion turns translucent and sweet rather than catching at the edges; if it starts to colour too quickly, lower the hob a touch. A soft, glossy finish with no raw crunch is the cue to move on.
- Add the aubergine and pepper, then cook for 6–8 minutes, stirring often, until starting to soften and colour. Add the mushrooms and cook for another 2 minutes.
Give the vegetables space in the pan so they fry rather than steam, which helps the aubergine absorb less oil and the pepper develop a little char. If the pan looks crowded, cook in batches to keep the colours vivid and the texture distinct.
- Stir in the garlic, ground cumin and smoked paprika, and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
Stir constantly once the garlic and spices go in, because they can burn in under a minute and turn bitter. You are looking for the spices to bloom and smell warm and aromatic, not darken.
- Pour in the tinned chopped tomatoes, season with salt and black pepper, and simmer for 10 minutes until thickened slightly.
Let the sauce bubble lazily rather than boil hard, or it may spatter and reduce too aggressively. It should thicken to a spoon-coating consistency, with the tomatoes losing their sharp raw edge.
- Use a spoon to make 4 small wells in the sauce. Crack the eggs into the wells, cover the pan and cook gently for 5–7 minutes, or until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny.
Make the wells deep enough to cradle each egg white so they set neatly without running all over the sauce. Keep the lid on and check from the side towards the end, stopping as soon as the whites are opaque with only a slight wobble in the yolks.
- Scatter over parsley and crumble over feta cheese, then serve immediately.
Add the parsley and feta at the very end so the herbs stay bright green and the cheese keeps its crumbly texture. Serve straight away, as the eggs continue to cook in the residual heat if left sitting in the pan.
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