Vegan Shakshuka

Shakshuka is a popular, one-skillet Middle Eastern dish featuring eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce. Unfortunately, being vegan, I've never been able to sample it for myself. However, my new found addiction to vegan poached eggs has led me to incorporating them into many, varied meals, and this shakshuka was a hit with the whole family! (I know I sound a bit egg obsessed lately, I'll make sure my next post is egg-free, promise!)

First of all, make 8 vegan poached eggs. You can find the recipe here.

The assembly process might seem prohibitively time consuming and fiddly at first, but, believe me, once you get the hang of them you can whip them up quickly and easily.

While the eggs are poaching, make the sauce. Heat 2 tbsps of extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan (I used a thick-based baking tray) then add:

1 large finely diced brown onion

1 bulb of minced garlic

When the onions begin to look 'glassy', add:

2 medium sized green capsicums, diced

1 medium sized red capsicum, diced

Continue to fry and regularly stir for a couple of minutes, then add:

1 tsp of paprika

1 tsp of ground coriander

½ tsp of ground cumin

¼ tsp of chilli powder

Stir well, then add:

4 tins of diced tomatoes (or the equivalent in fresh tomatoes)

2 heaped tbsp of tomato paste

1 tsp of sea salt

1 tbsp of coconut sugar (or a sweetener of your choice. This can be totally omitted if you prefer)

Stir again, then allow the mixture to simmer for ten minutes. After that time, have a little taste and decide if you need to add more salt (tomatoes tend to need lots of salt).

Next, place the 8 poached eggs, evenly spaced, in the sauce and let the mixture simmer for 5 more minutes.

Finally, top with chopped fresh parsley and/or vegan feta (I use Sainsbury's vegan feta cheese, which we all love, but I'm hoping to create my own feta soon!)

Traditionally, it's served with warm pita, but I serve it with mountains of garlic bread, just because my family loves it!

This recipe would make a generous meal for 4 adults, allowing 2 eggs each, but was perfectly satisfying for our family of 2 adults and six children, with 1 egg each.

Enjoy!