Shak(shuka)in' things up
Masala shakshuka with chunky raita and post-Christmas Vietnamese in Hoxton
Over the past year or so, shakshuka is what I make for people when they’re feeling ever-so worse for wear. Whether it’s for friends in the kitchen the morning after dancing the night away, or for my family after the rich indulgence of Christmas, it’s always been a nourishing, comforting winning brunch. I usually head to my favourite recipe in Ottolenghi’s Plenty (one of those used so often the pages are splattered with sauce and oil marks) but last weekend I had cravings in a different direction. Shakshuka? Yes. But with more spice, more chilli heat and a cooling raita. A sort of Dishoom-inspired take on the dish.
It’s got all the usual trappings - tomato sauce, baked eggs, peppers - but with the addition of generous spoonfuls of cumin, coriander and chilli powder. The raita is optional, but I think it adds great textural difference and a little zing (something all of us need in the mornings, some more than others…). It’s not a proper one really, but who has time/energy to be squeezing water out of cucumbers when you’re hungry and in need of post-night-out sustenance? Where I’ve used lime here you could easily use lemon - whatever you’ve got in the fridge. Equally, if you’re missing a spice or prefer another, feel free to switch in some curry leaves or ground fenugreek instead.
Masala shakshuka with chunky raita
Serves 2 generously
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 brown onion
1 red pepper
3 cloves of garlic
a thumb sized piece of ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 a tsp turmeric
1-2 tsp chilli powder (depending on your spice preference)
1 tsp light brown sugar
2 tbsp fresh coriander, plus a little extra for garnishing
400g can chopped tomatoes
4 eggs
1/2 a cucumber
100g natural yoghurt
1 lime
Heat the oil in a large deep-sided lidded frying pan on a medium heat. Finely slice the onions and add to the pan. Fry for 10 minutes, making sure they don’t brown too much. Slice up the pepper and add to the pan, frying for a few minutes until slightly softened. Then, finely chop the garlic and ginger and add to the pan along with the spices and sugar. If needed, add a drop of water to loosen. Fry for a few minutes until fragrant.
Finely chop the coriander, stalks and all, and add to the pan. Then add the chopped tomatoes and give it a good stir. Simmer for 10 minutes, adding water to loosen as you go depending on how saucy you want the dish. Then, turn the heat down to low and make 4 wells in the mixture with a spoon. Crack an egg into each well and put the lid on the pan. In a pinch, if you don’t have a lidded pan you can use tin foil.
Simmer for up to 8 minutes, depending on how runny you like your eggs.
While your eggs are cooking, make the chunky raita. Roughly chop the cucumber and add to a bowl. Add the yoghurt and a squeeze of lime. Season and set aside.
Serve with a scattering of fresh coriander, a squeeze of fresh lime and garlicky naan bread or sourdough toasts for dipping.
The quest for something good to eat post-Christmas is tricky. It’s cold outside, so you want something warm and comforting, but you’re tired of the rich flavours of festive food. To me, the answer to this specific conundrum was Vietnamese cuisine. Since touching down in London after a hectic, Guinness-filled New Year in Dublin, I had been craving rice noodles swimming in broth, squishy tofu and crunchy vegetables, the vibrant tang of lemongrass and the aromatics of mint and coriander. A visit to the bottom end of East London’s Kingsland Road was in order. At the top, there’s Sông Quê Café (one of my favourite restaurants, especially for a verrrry non vegetarian Pho), and at the bottom there’s Tây Đô, with a whole host of other Vietnamese eateries in between serving everything from fried frogs legs to Bánh mì. This weekend was Tây Đô’s turn, and after salt and pepper tofu, spring rolls, crispy seaweed and lemongrass, chilli and coconut rice noodles, I was a very happy eater indeed.