Green Shakshuka
Updated. Originally 5th May 2019
This Green shakshuka was inspired by the fresh and delicious flavours found in spanakopita or Greek spinach pie. It’s loaded with greens, leeks, and fresh herbs. Transforming those flavours into a green shakshuka is a fun and delicious way to enjoy shakshuka
What is Shakshuka?
Shakshuka or sometimes spelled Shakshouka is a dish from North Africa and the Middle East made with eggs poached in a simmering, aromatic chunky bell pepper / Chile tomato sauce, with tons of flavour from the spices which often include cumin, paprika, coriander, oregano, red pepper flakes, and garlic. In Arabic it means “all mixed up” and the dish lives up to it. It is a wonderful savory one-pan dish commonly served for breakfast or brunch with crusty bread for dipping. Shakshuka is traditionally made with runny eggs particularly egg yolks. The runny yolk is meant to blend with the sauce to create a rich, creamy texture. But you can cook the eggs to your liking. There are so many variations out there and this one is a Greek’ish Green version I love to make.
Green Shakshuka Recipe Ingredients
- EGGS: We usually use medium or large eggs for this recipe.
- SPINACH: We are doing a spanakopita mash up here so we always use spinach but really you can use Swiss chard leaves, kale or your fave greens or combo - we just love how quick cooking spinach is. Some recipes use other shredded veggies in it like Brussels sprouts or even zucchini. We always recommend using fresh spinach/ fresh greens.
- LEEK, ONION & GARLIC: We love the flavor of the leeks but if you don’t have leeks no problem, substitute the leek with 4 green onions or scallions. We use a small yellow onion or shallot for extra flavor plus garlic. Use as much or as little garlic as you like.
- BELL PEPPER & JALEPENO: We add one green bell pepper (we are staying on theme here) and one jalapeno for some heat - any green Chile would work for a bit of heat or skip it for a milder flavor.
- FRESH HERBS: We like to do a combination of fresh parsley, fresh dill and fresh mint. We use dried oregano as well. For more of a TexMex flavor feel free to use fresh cilantro
- LEMON JUICE: Typically we add lemon juice to spanakopita filling and we add it here too for flavor but it also helps keep the greens greener longer.
- SALSA VERDE: Salsa verde is made with tomatillos, onion, jalapeño, lime, and cilantro. I always have a jar in my pantry because I use it to make my Green Chicken Chili and my salsa verde lentil soup. I almost always use store-bought for convenience but if you like to make yours from scratch that is great. You will need 1 cup. For a saucier shakshuka increase the amount to 1 1/2 cups. Chose the spice level of your salsa verde to taste - we usually use a medium spice.
How To Make Green Shakshuka
- Saute Aromatics: Saute leeks, peppers, onion and garlic in a large skillet.
- Cook Greens: Add the spinach and herbs and cook stirring just until wilted
- Stir in Salsa Verde: Stir in salsa verde and the lemon juice and bring to a simmer
- Create Wells: Flatten mixture a little in the pan then make well according to how many eggs you are adding
- Drop Eggs in Wells: Place eggs into prepared wells and lower heat and cover pan and cook eggs to desired doneness.
- Serve: Once done uncover and serve warm with crusty bread, sprinkled with more fresh herbs, feta cheese, chili flakes and a drizzle of olive oil.
Should I cook my shakshuka stove top, covered, uncovered or in the oven?
This all depends on how you would like your eggs cooked and also how quickly you want it to cook. Here is the breakdown:
- STOVE TOP (covered): This is a fast, convenient one pan method that keeps the yolks runny while the steam sets the whites. A lot of steam gets created because the dish cooks covered so you might end up getting some extra liquid in the sauce. But this is the method I almost always use to cook my shakshuka.
- STOVE TOP (uncovered): This method makes it easier to monitor the doneness of the eggs, but it usually takes longer for the eggs to cook especially egg whites, with the potential of overcooking or burning the bottom of the sauce.
- OVEN: This method is best if you want the most even cooking. The oven creates a more indirect or gentle heat that cooks the whites without drying out the sauce. It usually takes a little longer and you will need to use an oven safe skillet to cook the dish in.
Green Shakshuka Make Ahead & Storage
- MAKE AHEAD: The green sauce/veggie layer can be made ahead up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container. Reheat before adding the eggs. The greens will not stay as vibrant as when served when made but it is doable and will still taste delicious. Make recipe up until you add the salsa and lemon juice. Reheat the sauce on the stovetop over medium heat, adding fresh eggs only when serving to avoid overcooked eggs/yolks
- STORAGE: Transfer any leftovers to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator and consume within 1-2 days for best quality. You can easily reheat in a skillet stove top or simply in the microwave. It will cook the egg more but we still enjoy our leftovers.
Recipe
Servings: 4
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, seeds and stems removed, diced
- 1 jalapeño, seeds and stems removed, diced
- 1 leek, white and light green parts only, cleaned, sliced in half and then chopped (or 4 green onions)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 cups baby spinach or kale or a mix of both, loosely packed and rough chopped
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh mint
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 cup salsa verde (store-bought or homemade)
- 4-6 large eggs
For Serving
- ¼ cup of crumbled feta or more
- Fresh chopped herbs (parsley, dill, mint)
Directions
- Heat olive oil in large 10 inch non stick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Once heated, add the leeks, bell pepper, jalapeno, and garlic, and cook until softened, 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add all the spinach, herbs and a pinch of salt and black pepper and cook tossing, 2-3 minutes just until wilted.
- Stir in lemon juice and salsa verde to combine. Bring it all to a simmer.
- Once at a simmer, stir everything well then flatten the mixture with a spatula or the back of a spoon and create 4-6 small wells or shallow indentations (depending on how many eggs you are using), then crack the eggs into each well. (We like to crack the eggs into small bowls beforehand and simply drop them into the wells)
- Turn heat down to medium low, cover the skillet with a lid, and cook 3-6 mins or until the eggs whites and yolks are cooked to your liking. It takes about 3 minutes for runny yolks and 5 minutes for firm yolks. You can leave it uncovered as well but it will take longer to cook the eggs and watch that the bottom of the sauce doesn’t burn.
- Garnish with a sprinkle of fresh herbs and serve warm with crumbled feta over top.
Recipe Notes
- Recipe Update: We have recently updated this recipe because we personally found that it was slightly drier than we liked it and we wanted to add more veggies in particular peppers to it as well as more spinach. We wanted it saucier and so we updated it by adding some salsa verde. We love it - saucier more flavorful and the salsa verde goes well with all the herbs and spices as well. We also added a green bell pepper and for a little heat a jalapeno. We feel we really made this a better shakshuka. But we realize some of you might disagree and are happy with the original recipe. No problem, for the original recipe - omit the bell pepper, jalapeño, and salsa verde, and decrease the greens to 4 cups and eggs to 4. Saute the greens along with 2-4 tablespoons of water.
- If you prefer to finish cooking the shakshuka in the oven, simply preheat the oven to 325°F before you get started. Once you drop the eggs into the wells, turn off the heat stove top then transfer the skillet to the oven to bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the whites are set and the yolks are cooked to desired temperature. Cooking in a cast iron pan / skillet pan is ideal for this method as it easily can be transferred from stove top to oven.
- Each pan/skillet is different and distributes heat differently so cooking times will vary
