Shakshuka

History

Shakshuka is a dish of eggs poached directly in a simmered sauce of tomatoes, peppers, onions and spices (cumin, paprika), served piping hot in the very pan it was cooked in, to be eaten by dipping bread into the sauce.

Its exact origin remains debated: some trace it to North African culinary traditions (Tunisia, Morocco, Libya), from which it would have been brought by waves of Sephardic Jewish immigration to Israel in the 20th century, while it is today considered one of the most iconic dishes of contemporary Israeli cuisine, eaten for breakfast as much as for dinner.

Ingredients — serves 4

• 6 eggs
• 6 ripe tomatoes (or a can of crushed tomatoes)
• 2 red peppers
• 2 onions
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp cumin, smoked paprika
• Fresh cilantro or parsley

Shakshuka, step by step

1. Sauté the chopped onions and peppers in oil until soft.
2. Add the crushed garlic, cumin and paprika, and let the spices bloom for a minute.
3. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and let simmer over medium heat until you have a thick sauce.
4. Make small wells in the sauce and crack the eggs into them gently, one by one.
5. Cover and let the eggs poach over low heat until the whites are set but the yolks still runny.
6. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro or parsley and serve directly in the pan with bread.

Cooking method

Technique: poaching the eggs directly in the simmered tomato sauce, never cooked separately, so they soak up all the flavors.
Traditional equipment: a cast-iron pan or sauté pan, served and presented directly at the table.
Signs it’s ready: the whites should be firm and opaque while the yolks stay runny — take it off the heat as soon as that stage is reached.

A familiar shape, several claimed homes

For a reader used to huevos rancheros, Turkish menemen or Italian eggs in purgatory, shakshuka slots into the same family: eggs poached directly in a simmered vegetable sauce, eaten with bread rather than a fork. What sets it apart is the dispute over where it belongs — North African versions from Tunisia, Morocco and Libya are usually spicier and simpler, built on tomato and harissa, while the Israeli version that has become internationally famous tends toward a milder, more rounded sauce of tomato, pepper and cumin, often finished with feta or labneh on top.

Nutrition, per serving

Calculated from the raw ingredient quantities above, divided by four servings.

Notable amount: around 6 g of fiber per serving, driven by the large volume of tomato and pepper relative to the eggs — a vegetable-forward ratio compared to most egg dishes served at breakfast.

Economic context

Eggs, tomatoes and peppers are inexpensive, widely available staples in both Israeli and North African markets, which helps explain why shakshuka crosses the breakfast-dinner divide so easily — it’s cheap enough to make on a whim, at any hour.

Source: World Bank / FAO, Food Prices for Nutrition database (Cost and Affordability of a Healthy Diet) v4.0, 2024 data, CC BY 4.0, DOI 10.57966/41AN-KY81. Retrieved 29 July 2026. This figure describes the cost of a healthy diet in Israel generally — it is not a costing of this specific recipe.

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