A spicy, garlicky, saucy shakshuka with aubergine (eggplant) that makes a substantial breakfast, brunch or dinner. Serve with salad, and pita bread to soak up the sauce.
When I attended Gefiltefest, a highlight of my day was watching Itamar Srulovich of Honey & Co cooking up a delicious shakshuka. I found myself craving shakshuka for days afterwards, until something had to be done. I took decisive action, and headed into the kitchen to make shakshuka!
Don’t hold back
When I set out to make my own shakshuka, I remembered that Itamar had used 15 cloves of garlic in his, saying, “It sounds like a lot of garlic….. and it is!” Well, who am I to argue with an expert? I used 15 cloves of garlic.
However, after that, our shakshuka paths diverged. Itamar’s was a simple sauce of garlic, spices, tomato puree and water. However I decided to make mine more substantial by the addition of a couple of aubergines (eggplants) and tinned chopped tomatoes rather than puree. I did use a similarly generous hand with the spices though.
Aubergine shakshuka – ingredients
Shakshuka is a relatively simple dish, with a relatively simple list of ingredients. To make this tasty aubergine shakshuka you will need:
- aubergine (eggplant) – obviously!
- garlic – lots of
- olive oil
- tinned tomatoes for the lovely sauce
- eggs – you can’t make shakshuka without breaking eggs!
- spices – cumin, smoked paprika, cinnamon, cayenne
- fresh herbs for sprinkling – I used Greek basil, but torn basil leaves, fresh parsley or coriander (cilantro) would also be delicious.
Aubergine shakshuka – Something on the side?
Shakshuka is usually served with some kind of bread, which is perfect for soaking up the delicious sauce.
My daughter Kipper used a pitta to dip and scoop her shakshuka. Meanwhile DH simply shovelled his aubergine (eggplant) shakshuka into a tortilla wrap, rolled it up, and ate it! I’m not sure what he was saying through mouthfuls of delicious shakshuka, but it sounded appreciative, and it certainly disappeared very quickly!
Kipper polished hers off too – aubergines and eggs are among her favourite foods, so I’m not surprised she enjoyed it. I’d toned down the heat for her benefit, which DH complained about – you can’t please all of the people etc. – so adjust the cayenne to your liking if you prefer it hotter.
Scattered herbs
I scattered what I thought was a generous handful of chopped basil over the top, although in retrospect it could happily have handled more. Use plenty, and maybe throw a little parsley on there too.
This aubergine shakshuka was extremely tasty, and the eggs added plenty of protein and made it a very satisfying and filling meal. Although we ate this for dinner, in Israel shakshuka is more commonly served for breakfast or brunch, so you can enjoy it any time of day! Just be sure to have some bread to soak up the sauce, and ideally a dish of chopped Israeli salad alongside.
We scoffed the lot! This serves 2-4.
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📖 Recipe
Aubergine (eggplant) shakshuka
Ingredients
- 2 small/medium aubergines (eggplants)
- 6-7 tablespoon olive oil
- 15 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1½ teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
- 4 eggs
- Generous handful of Greek basil leaves, torn basil leaves, or chopped parsley
- Pita or crusty bread to serve (optional)
Instructions
- 2 small/medium aubergines, 6-7 tablespoon olive oilCut the aubergines (eggplants) into 1cm (½ inch) dice. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan or skillet and saute the aubergine pieces for a few minutes until they soften and begin to colour.
- 15 cloves garlic, 2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1½ teaspoon cinnamon, pinch cayenne pepper (or to taste)Peel and crush the garlic and add to the aubergines with the cumin, smoked paprika, cinnamon and cayenne. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until the spices are toasted and fragrant.
- 400 g (14 oz) tin chopped tomatoesAdd the tinned tomatoes and stir well. If the sauce seems very thick, add a splash of water to thin it down slightly.
- 4 eggsCook the sauce for around 15 minutes until the tomatoes are cooked and the sauce has darkened. Make four indentations in the sauce with the back of a spoon, and crack an egg into each one.
- Cover the pan and continue to cook for another 4-6 minutes until the egg whites are cooked – the yolks should still be soft.
- Generous handful of Greek basil leaves, torn basil leaves, or chopped parsley, Pita or crusty bread to serveScatter over the basil/parsley and serve at once with some pita or crusty bread to mop up the sauce (optional).
Notes
Nutrition
More delicious shakshuka recipes
Other shakshuka recipes you might enjoy include:
- Easy green shakshuka from Family Friends Food.
- Shakshuka with mushrooms from Family Friends Food.
- Braised eggs (shakshuka) from Ceri Jones Chef.
- Chokshuka – chocolate shakshuka with goats cheese from Choclette at Tin and Thyme.
Sian Lambert
Thanks for this – I will be making this as soon as our veg dodger is out for the evening!
Helen
LOL! I hope you enjoy it.
S. Winder-Geary
Made this for supper last night and found it to be both a surprisingly filling and highly nutritious meal!
Dee
LOVED! I actually added some tomato paste cause I thought my DH would want it but…. not so necessary! Passed the link on to all I thought would enjoy!
I did not use 15 cloves i used about 8 cloves and garlic powder…
Thanks for a great recipe!
Helen
Thanks Dee! So happy to hear you enjoyed it ?
Helen Minn
I just made it and it was delicious, especially with the aubergines, but I only used 12 garlic cloves as 15 seemed too excessive, but will definitely up the garlic next time!!
Even better it is Slimming World friendly and was polished off between two of us!
Helen
Thanks Helen – really happy to hear you enjoyed it ?
Darryl
Delicious. I just made it and ate it for brunch. Many thanks.
Natalie Crossan
Wow this looks really interesting 🙂 I’m looking for some good egg recipes 🙂
Helen
Thanks Natalie. I love eggs and this is a delicious way to eat them! You might also like this crustless quiche or these omelette muffin bites. 😀
the foodie couple
Love the use of aubergines in this, and all the garlic!!
Helen
Thanks! Anything with plenty of aubergines and garlic is bound to be a big hit here!
Jemma @ Celery and Cupcakes
So many garlic cloves!!! This looks amazing though and I’m a massive fan of runny egg yolks, it’s the only way to eat them.
Helen
Thanks Jemma. When the runny yolks mix with the spicy sauce…. Mmmmmmmm.
evolvewithmary
I’m making this for breakfast tomorrow, it looks scrumptious. 🙂
Helen
Thanks! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
choclette
Ooh I do love shakshouka and although aubergines aren’t my favourite things, I’d happily tuck into this. Next time I make it, I shall definitely up my garlic addition.
Helen
Thanks Choclette. I think more garlic can only be a good thing 🙂
sus @ roughmeasures.com
Love the addition of chickpeas here!
Helen
Do you mean aubergines?!
Ceri @Natural Kitchen Adventures
Wow 15 cloves of garlic, that’s one dish to keep the vampires away! ha. Love the idea of adding aubergines to this dish – yum!
Helen
It was actually not overpoweringly garlicky (to DH’s disappointment, I think!).