Colm O'Gorman: Feed the whole crew with this harissa and butter-bean shakshuka recipe

"This is a gorgeous one-pot dish that is perfect for feeding a crowd..."

Shakshuka is a classic dish from the Middle East and North Africa, a gorgeous one-pot dish that is perfect for feeding a crowd. 

Despite its exotic-sounding name and origins, it is a simple dish to prepare with relatively few ingredients all of which are readily available in local shops. 

No wonder then that it has become such a popular brunch dish in recent years. 

I make it regularly for family and friends, and it is always a huge hit. 

The name comes from the Arabic for ‘a mixture’, which perfectly describes this lovely combination of eggs poached in a pan of spiced vegetables in tomato sauce.

Variations abound — some I think a bit less successful than others. For example, I have yet to be convinced that a green shakshuka made with kale and spinach is a good thing, but each to their own I suppose.

Shakshuka is usually a mildly spiced dish, I use just cumin and sweet paprika with a grind of black pepper in my more traditional shakshuka recipe. 

This week however I am bringing you something with a little more heat, a white bean shakshuka spiced with harissa and cumin.

Harissa is a hot chili pepper paste, native to Middle East and North Africa. It is made from roasted, chillies, garlic and spices such as caraway, coriander, and cumin. 

It is readily available in most supermarkets and a lovely ingredient to have in your fridge. 

I use it a lot, for example in my Harissa Chicken Sandwich with Lemon Slaw and Chilli Mayo that has previously featured in this column.

Harissa brings a lovely depth flavour and spice to this shakshuka recipe. If you want more heat, add another teaspoon of harissa, but I think this recipe works best with just a lovely, warming hint of chilli.

I always use aubergine in my shakshuka, it is one of my favourite vegetables and is fabulous with middle eastern flavours. For this recipe I also use butter beans. 

One of my favourite pulses, butter beans are creamy and substantial, and very nutritious. They work beautifully in this dish, but any white bean such as cannellini beans would also work well.

Add the tinned cherry tomatoes and the harissa. Stir well and bring the pan to a soft boil. Drain the butterbeans and stir those into the mixture. Add in the sugar, turn down the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer for about twenty minutes

Lidl and Aldi both stock own-brand versions which are excellent. If you do use regular chopped tomatoes, add two tablespoons of tomato puree to intensify the flavour of the sauce.

Serve this shakshuka with fresh bread to mop up the sauce and dip into the eggs. Some flatbreads, toasted pitta, or warm crusty baguettes would all be perfect.

Some creamy Greek yoghurt is also lovely on the side. I make up a honey and lemon yoghurt which works beautifully with this shakshuka. 

Simply add the juice of half a lemon, a teaspoon of honey and a pinch of sea salt to 250g of Greek yogurt and whisk it all together. Heaven.

Harissa and Butter-Bean Shakshuka

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

Shakshuka is a classic dish from the Middle East and North Africa, a gorgeous one-pot dish that is perfect for feeding a crowd.

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 30 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 50 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 1 medium white onion

• 150g feta

• 2 bell peppers

• 2 aubergines

• 6 garlic cloves

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 2 tins cherry tomatoes

• 2 tsp harissa

• 1 tin butter beans

• 3 tsp sugar

• 1 tsp flaky sea salt

• A good grind of black pepper

• Juice of a lemon

• 1-2 eggs per person

• A small bunch of flat leaf parsley

Method

1. Peel and thinly slice the onion, chop the peppers and the aubergine into three-centimetre chunks. Peel and grate the garlic. Heat the oil in a large lidded heavy based frying pan over a medium heat and add the onion. Cook until soft and a little golden, then add the peppers and the aubergine. Fry for about five minutes until the vegetables begin to soften, then add the garlic and the cumin seeds. Stir those in and cook for another two to three minutes.

2. Add the tinned cherry tomatoes and the harissa. Stir well and bring the pan to a soft boil. Drain the butterbeans and stir those into the mixture. Add in the sugar, turn down the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer for about twenty minutes.

3. Next, add the lemon juice, salt and a good grind of black pepper and stir that in. Taste and add more seasoning or lemon juice if required.

4. Use a serving spoon or a ladle to make a hollow in the sauce. Crack in an egg and repeat until you have all the eggs you need in the dish, one or two per person is perfect. Cover the pan and turn the heat down as low as possible. Cook for another five to six minutes, until the eggs are perfectly poached. You want the eggs set, but the yolks should still be nice and runny. Crumble the feta and sprinkle that over the top of the shakshuka. Wash and roughly chop the herbs and sprinkle those over now too. I usually use flat leaf parsley for this recipe, but coriander also works well, and a little chopped mint added to either the chopped parsley or coriander would be lovely.

5. Serve the Shakshuka in the pan in the middle of the table, with some Honey and Lemon Greek Yogurt and lots of fresh bread on the side, and let everyone help themselves.