Easy shakshuka with poached eggs and cream cheese
Though it is originally from Maghreb, the most North-western part of the Arab-speaking world, creamy shakshuka with cheese is popular across many different countries and cuisines. Against the red tomato sauce and green garnishes, the white eggs and cream cheese simply look stunning. Both enrich the dish and make it creamy and filling. In addition, this soft, creamy cheese has a mild, yet rich, taste that balances and mellows the spicy shakshuka sauce so everyone can enjoy it.
Make a homemade shakshuka with fresh tomatoes
No authentic shakshuka recipe is complete without a delicious tomato sauce in which to poach the eggs. When made with onion, garlic, green peppers, and fresh tomatoes in addition to a bit of intense tomato paste, this sauce gains a vibrant red colour, a slightly chunky texture with a bit of bite, and a perfectly balanced sweet-tangy flavour with hints of bitterness.
To ensure it is flavourful and perfectly spiced, it is seasoned with cumin, paprika, and chilli flakes. These shakshuka spices create heat and depth and give the tasty sauce its signature spicy and slightly smoky flavour.
Serve a quick and easy dish for suhoor
Though it tastes great any time of day, this dish is a perfect suhoor meal. With its rich vegetable sauce, beautifully poached eggs, and rich cream cheese it is quite filling. Served with crisp, crusted, French bread slathered with cream cheese, a breakfast shakshuka is sure to keep you full for many hours to come. Also, since it does not take long to prepare, it is well suited to the early morning hours before a day of fasting.
In case you are looking for more delicious and filling suhoor ideas, we suggest checking out our recipes for fluffy pancakes with labneh, paratha sandwich, and mushroom and cheese omelette.
Add your own touch
Although delicious as it is, you can easily make shakshuka with meat. A popular option is to make a lamb shakshuka with mince in the sauce. With a flavourful, gamey type of meat like lamb, a bit of additional sweetness can also be nice. If this appeals to you, you can add a few chopped carrots to the tomato sauce.
If you would prefer milder-tasting meat in the morning, a chicken shakshuka might be for you. You can either use minced chicken directly in the sauce or add cooked pieces of chicken breast or barbeque rotisserie chicken for the final few minutes of cooking to heat them.
Beef shakshuka also makes for a tasty breakfast. Rich, savoury ground beef mixed with the well-seasoned sauce of our original shakshuka recipe thickens and enriches it considerably. As such, a salty addition like crumbled feta cheese will also work beautifully.
