Easy Shakshuka Recipe with Herbs

This easy Shakshuka recipe is a must-try!

Whether you’re looking for a savory egg dish, an excellent family meal, or a meal prep idea, look no further than this delicious, healthy, and easy Shakshuka recipe.

Shakshuka is a savory egg dish that originated in North Africa and the Middle East. It’s now enjoyed around the world as a family favorite. The end result looks fancy, but it’s one of the easiest baked egg recipes you can make.

Shakshuka typically consists of baked eggs nestled in a sauce made of crushed tomatoes, onions, peppers, and various spices such as cumin, paprika, and coriander. Shakshuka is often garnished with fresh herbs and served with bread, making it a popular choice for breakfast, brunch, or any meal of the day!

Shakshuka Ingredients

• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: This heart-healthy fat is rich in antioxidants and helps control cholesterol levels. You can use any cooking oil that works for you. Some extra-virgin olive oil is cut with lesser-quality oils; I get mine on Thrive Market to save on high-quality pantry items.
• Yellow Onion: A fantastic source of Vitamin C, onions are also packed with fiber and antioxidants.
• Garlic: Not only does it add flavor, but garlic also boosts the immune system and has anti-inflammatory benefits.
• Crushed Tomatoes: Tomatoes are full of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that’s great for heart health. I prefer the San Marzano variety at the store for its mild sweetness and low acidity. They do cost a little extra, so use what works for you. While you can use fresh tomatoes, using a large can of crushed tomatoes is the easiest way to make a great Shakshuka. If you use fresh, roast your tomatoes first then crush them by hand or pulse them in a blender.
• Red bell pepper (optional): Shakshuka recipes are often made with peppers, but my family asked for a dish without peppers. I like bell peppers in other dishes, but I also prefer my Shakshuka without peppers. Try it both ways and see how you like it.
• Ground Cumin: This aromatic spice aids digestion and has anti-inflammatory properties.
• Sweet Paprika: Loaded with vitamins and antioxidants, paprika adds a flavor punch and aids in eye health. You could also use smoked paprika if you’re looking for a smoky flavor.
• Kosher Salt or fine-grain sea salt: From a culinary perspective, salt enhances the flavor of each ingredient. From a health perspective, salt helps maintain fluid balance in our bodies. I use Real Salt.
• Black Pepper: Black peppercorns not only add great flavor, but they also aid digestion and have potent antioxidant properties. Always use freshly ground black pepper.
• Eggs: A high-quality protein source, eggs also provide us with essential vitamins and minerals.
• Herbs (Cilantro, Chives, and Basil): These are not just garnishes, but powerhouses of vitamins and antioxidants. I love this with cilantro, chives, and basil, but you can use any herbs you’d like.
• Lemon Zest + Juice: Excellent sources of Vitamin C, these enhance flavor while boosting your immunity.
• Feta or Real Parmesean Cheese: The cheese is optional in Shakshuka. It’s become a popular fusion recipe and many people include feta cheese or hard Italian cheeses such as Parmesan Reggiano (cow’s milk) or Pecorino Romano(sheep’s milk). Depending on what I have in the fridge, I often include one of the cheeses at the end. The cheese provides calcium and protein. Plus, they make everything delicious! Omit the cheese to make this dairy-free.
• Toasted Bread: High-quality bread can be a good source of carbohydrates to provide energy for your day. I like it with a ciabatta or bakery bread. Use whatever works for you.

See the recipe card below for the full recipe.

How to Make Shakshuka

You’ll need a 12-inch oven-safe skillet. Most skillets are oven-safe so long as they don’t have any plastic or rubber parts. A cast-iron, hard anodized, or any other oven-safe skillet works. Shakshuka starts on the stovetop and finishes in the oven.

The printable recipe card is at the bottom of this post.

Step 1:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190C). Heat your olive oil in an oven-safe 12-inch skillet (see skillet tips below) over medium-low heat. Then, add your diced onion (and diced bell pepper, if using) and cook gently until very soft but not brown, about 15 minutes. Next, add your thinly sliced garlic and cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in your ground cumin, sweet paprika, salt & black pepper, and cook for another 2-3 minutes until fragrant.

Pour in your can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes, and season with 1 teaspoon salt and 5-6 spins of freshly ground black pepper. Let this simmer on low until your tomatoes have thickened, which should take about 10 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Turn off the heat.

Step 2:

Using the back of a spatula, make small wells in the tomato mixture and gently crack your eggs into each tomato well. You want the egg to go into the well so it can “poach” in the oven, but it’s okay if they’re not perfect. Season the eggs with a sprinkle of salt. Transfer your skillet to the oven and bake until the egg whites are just set and the yolks are cooked to your liking, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Carefully remove the skillet from the oven, sprinkle with your chosen herbs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and a few spins of freshly cracked black pepper.

Voilà! Your Shakshuka recipe is ready. It often looks perfectly imperfect with some of the egg whites spreading. Don’t fuss over it! Serve with a sprinkle of feta or a few grates of a hard cheese (such as Parmigiano Reggiano) and toasted bread if you’d like.

Storage Tips

Storing leftovers, if you have any, is easy. Simply cover your skillet with a lid or transfer the leftovers to an airtight container. They can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.

To reheat, gently warm the Shakshuka on the stove or in a microwave until heated through. Please remember, the eggs will continue to cook when reheating, so reheat for the minimum time.

Meal Prep Shakshuka

Shakshuka is great hot, room temp, or cold and makes for a great meal prep meal to have for breakfast or made into a sandwich to take for lunch. For food safety rules, cooked eggs shouldn’t sit at room temperature for more than an hour, so if you pack it to go store it in the fridge at work.

If you’re cooking for 1, think about how many servings you’ll need over the next 3-4 days. 2 eggs in this Shakshuka recipe is typically 1 serving. You can make an 8-egg Shakshuka on Sunday for breakfast, then have enough for breakfast or lunch for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

Or, if you’re cooking for a family, you can double the recipe, or even sneak 2 more eggs into the recipe below to stretch it out. Have it for breakfast the next morning. or put the eggs and some of the sauce into some good bread for a sandwich to take to school or work the next day.

Shakshuka Variations

Everyone has unique taste preferences, and the beauty of this Shakshuka recipe is that it is highly adaptable. Let’s look at some delicious variations:

1. Veggie-Loaded Shakshuka: Want to add more fiber and vitamins to your meal? Feel free to mix in a variety of diced vegetables such as bell peppers, zucchini, or spinach. Just add them in with the onions to ensure they cook properly.
2. Spicy Shakshuka: If you’re a fan of heat, add a diced jalapeño or a pinch of cayenne pepper with the tomatoes to kick things up a notch!
3. Protein-Packed Shakshuka: Add in cooked chickpeas or black beans for an additional protein punch.
4. Size up or down: I almost would never make this dish smaller because I’d want the leftovers, but you can half this dish and make it in 8-inch skillet. Or, if you have a 14-inch skillet (lucky you!), add 1.5x the ingredients here (for the tomaotes, add another 12-ounce can), and add in 4-6 more eggs to make one great big Shakshuka.

Experiment with these variations to make the recipe your own. Remember, cooking should be a joyful and creative process, so have fun with it!

With this Shakshuka recipe, you’re not just cooking a meal, you’re creating a nutrient-rich culinary experience. Now, enjoy this Northern African & Middle Eastern dish, right from your kitchen.

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Recipe Tips:

Is it ok to cook a shakshuka recipe in a cast iron skillet?

Absolutely, it’s not only okay but also recommended to use a cast iron skillet for making Shakshuka. Cast iron pans distribute heat evenly, making them ideal for cooking the tomato sauce and eggs. Furthermore, they’re oven-safe, which is crucial for this recipe as it involves transferring the pan from the stovetop to the oven. Just make sure that the handle of your pan is also oven-safe.

One thing to note when using cast iron, though, is that they can react with acidic foods like tomatoes if not well-seasoned. This can potentially lead to a slight metallic taste in the food and minor damage to the pan’s seasoning. However, the short cooking time for Shakshuka typically isn’t long enough to cause this reaction.

I go back and forth between my cast iron and (teflon-free) non-stick skillet.

How do I use fresh tomatoes in shakshuka?

Shakshuka is a flexible dish. The tomatoes are often cooked before making the sauce, which is why canned crushed tomatoes works so well here as canned tomatoes are cooked before canning. Most can liners are BPA-free now. However, if you want to use fresh tomatoes, I suggest slow-roasting the tomatoes in the oven (learn how here), then blending them. Shakshuka has a lot of different flavors added that can over-shadow the amazing flavor (and hard work) of slow-roasted tomaotes. If I make slow-roasted tomatoes, then I want to enjoy them as-is as the star ingredients. But you do you!

How do you get the egg yolks that golden color?

I typially buy farm-fresh eggs or eggs that are pasture-raised. How the eggs are raised dertermines their yolk color.

Enjoy!