Shakshuka Recipe: Eggs Poached in Spiced Tomato Sauce

Shakshuka is a one-pan dish of eggs poached in a spiced tomato and pepper sauce, eaten across North Africa and the Middle East, often for breakfast or lunch. Our shakshuka recipe serves 4 in about 45 minutes: soften onion and peppers in olive oil, simmer them with tomatoes, cumin, paprika and Aleppo chilli, then cook the eggs in the sauce under a lid.

What is shakshuka?

Shakshuka, also spelled shakshouka, is what Britannica calls a Maghrebi (North African) dish: a standard breakfast and lunch in Libya, Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt, whose name comes from Maghrebi Arabic and means “mixed”. It is closely associated with the Middle East too: Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich of Honey & Co, quoted by Felicity Cloake in the Guardian, describe it as the dish “most people conjure up when they think of a Middle Eastern breakfast”. Turkish şakşuka, Britannica notes, is a different dish: fried aubergine with tomatoes, peppers and garlic, and no eggs.

Shakshuka recipe (serves 4)

Prep: 10 minutes. Cook: about 35 minutes. Total: about 45 minutes. Six eggs serve 4 with bread. You need a 26–28cm frying pan or shallow casserole with a lid; a glass lid lets you watch the eggs.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons of Palestinian extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
• 1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 red peppers, deseeded and cut into thin strips
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1½ teaspoons of ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons of sweet paprika
• ½–1 teaspoon of Aleppo chilli flakes, plus extra to serve
• 2 × 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
• ¾ teaspoon of salt, and black pepper
• a pinch of sugar, if needed
• 6 eggs (see egg safety, below)
• a small handful of flat-leaf parsley or coriander, chopped
• 1–2 teaspoons of za’atar or ½ teaspoon of sumac
• 100g feta, crumbled (optional)
• for the tahini drizzle (optional): 2 tablespoons of tahini, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, a pinch of salt and 2–3 tablespoons of cold water
• warm bread, to serve

Method

1. Soften the vegetables. Heat the oil in the pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and peppers with a pinch of the salt and cook for 10–12 minutes, stirring now and then, until soft and just starting to colour.
2. Add the garlic and spices. Stir in the garlic, cumin, paprika and chilli flakes for about 1 minute, until fragrant. Turn the heat down if they start to catch, as paprika scorches easily.
3. Simmer the sauce. Add the tomatoes, the rest of the salt and some pepper. Simmer uncovered for 12–15 minutes, stirring often, until thick enough that a spoon dragged across the pan leaves a gap that closes slowly. Taste, and add the sugar if it is sharp.
4. Make the tahini drizzle. While the sauce simmers, whisk the tahini with the lemon juice and salt; it will thicken and look grainy. Whisk in the cold water a tablespoon at a time until smooth and pourable.
5. Add the eggs. Turn the heat to low. Make 6 hollows in the sauce with the back of a spoon and crack an egg into each; cracking each into a cup first makes stray shell easy to fish out. Spoon a little sauce over the edges of the whites, leaving the yolks bare, and season lightly.
6. Cover and cook. Put the lid on and cook gently for 6–10 minutes, until the whites are opaque all over but the yolks still wobble; check from 5 minutes, as hobs and pans vary. For firm yolks, allow about 10–12 minutes, until the white and yolk are both solid.
7. Finish and serve. Take the pan off the heat. Drizzle with olive oil and the tahini, scatter with the herbs, za’atar or sumac, feta and a pinch of chilli, and serve at once from the pan with warm bread.

Tip: spooning sauce over the whites helps them set before the yolks firm up. America’s Test Kitchen found that the hot sauce passes heat to them faster than the steamy air under the lid.

Runny yolks and egg safety

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) says young children, people who are pregnant, older people and people with an underlying health condition “can now safely eat raw or lightly cooked hen eggs” if the eggs have a British Lion mark or are produced under the Laid in Britain egg assurance scheme. The advice does not cover people who are severely immunocompromised and on medically supervised diets, who should follow their medical team’s advice.

For anyone in those groups, cook other eggs thoroughly. In October 2026 the FSA repeated that eggs that are “thoroughly cooked and handled hygienically should not present a food safety risk”. In shakshuka, we suggest keeping the lid on until the white and yolk are both solid, about 10–12 minutes. Look for the red lion stamped on the shell, or the Laid in Britain logo on the box.

Shakshuka spices

Every recipe in Felicity Cloake’s comparison uses chilli, and Britannica also lists cumin, paprika and harissa. Here is what ours add:

You’ll find the cumin, paprika and Aleppo chilli in our spices and herbs range.

Toppings: za’atar, sumac, herbs, feta and tahini

Add two or three once the eggs are cooked:

• Za’atar: our Za’atar Baladi, a blend of thyme, sumac and sesame, is herby and tangy with a gentle nuttiness. Our za’atar guide compares four blends.
• Sumac: lemony sourness without extra liquid; see our sumac guide.
• Herbs: flat-leaf parsley, or coriander, which Britannica says is frequently sprinkled over before serving.
• Feta: salty and creamy against the sweet sauce.
• Tahini drizzle: nutty and lemony. Our tahini guide explains why tahini sauce thickens before it loosens.

Tahini and olive oil are in our pantry range.

What to serve with shakshuka

Bread, above all: Cloake calls it “the essential accompaniment”, and Britannica says shakshuka is typically scooped onto bread, sometimes toasted, and shared from the pan. Warm pitta, flatbread or crusty bread all work. For a bigger breakfast spread, add homemade hummus, olives, labneh and a bowl of ful medames, Egypt’s classic fava bean breakfast. Britannica notes it is occasionally served for dinner with a side salad; try our tabbouleh, a parsley salad with a little bulgur.

Shakshuka variations

• Green shakshuka: a version that, in America’s Test Kitchen’s words, “trades the red sauce for hearty greens and herbs”, such as chard, spinach and parsley.
• Baked with feta: Britannica notes that the pan sometimes goes into the oven so crumbled feta melts on top. British Lion Eggs’ recipe bakes it at 180°C (160°C fan) for about 5 minutes, once the whites start to set, until the eggs are cooked but still runny. Use an ovenproof pan.
• Extra vegetables: Cloake quotes Claudia Roden on Tunisian versions, where “a variety of vegetables, from potatoes and broad beans to artichoke hearts and courgettes” are fair game.

Storing leftovers

The sauce keeps; the eggs are best eaten fresh. The FSA’s advice to caterers is to serve egg dishes straight away, or cool them quickly and keep them chilled, so we suggest cooking only as many eggs as you will eat. Cool spare sauce and refrigerate it within two hours, then follow the FSA’s leftovers advice: “Eat leftovers within 48 hours or freeze them if you think this won’t be possible.” Its freezing advice is to defrost food in the fridge overnight and use it within 24 hours. Reheat the sauce only once, until steaming hot throughout, then add fresh eggs.

Allergens: this recipe contains eggs, sesame (in the tahini and za’atar) and milk if you add feta, and most breads contain wheat (gluten). All four are among the 14 allergens that must be clearly labelled on prepacked food, as GOV.UK explains. Our Za’atar Baladi contains sesame and is packed in an environment that may also handle nuts and other seeds. Greenfields, which makes our Aleppo chilli flakes and sumac, says some of its blends are made in a facility that also handles sesame, mustard and celery, so check every label.

Frequently asked questions

How long do eggs take to cook in shakshuka?

Usually 6–10 minutes, covered, over a low heat, for set whites and runny yolks, or about 10–12 minutes for firm yolks. Hobs and pans vary, so check from 5 minutes: the whites should be opaque all over, with no clear, jelly-like patches near the yolk.

Can you eat shakshuka when pregnant?

Yes, with the right eggs. The FSA says people who are pregnant can safely eat raw or lightly cooked hen eggs with a British Lion mark or from the Laid in Britain scheme, so runny yolks are fine with those. The FSA advises cooking other eggs thoroughly; we suggest keeping the lid on until the white and yolk are both solid, about 10–12 minutes. If you are severely immunocompromised, follow your medical team’s advice instead.

Is shakshuka spicy?

Not very, the way we make it. Sweet paprika adds colour without heat and Aleppo chilli is mild and fruity, so the sauce is warm rather than fiery. For more heat, swap in hot paprika or add harissa. Cooking for children or anyone who dislikes chilli? Leave it out of the pan and serve it at the table.

Can you make shakshuka with fresh tomatoes?

Yes, when they are ripe and full of flavour, as in late summer: use about 800g, chopped, and simmer a little longer until thick. Out of season, tinned tomatoes are the better choice; Felicity Cloake found that out-of-season vine tomatoes gave a watery flavour.