Shakshuka with Merguez Spiced Meatballs

Whether you’re new to the spicy North African dish of Shakshuka or already love it, you’ll want to try this incredible version. To the rich pepper and tomato stew with its topping of eggs, I’ve added merguez spiced meatballs to make it extra special.

SHAKSHUKA

I’ve been making Shakshuka (sometimes spelt shakshouka, chakchouka or chakchuka and meaning ‘shaken’ in Hebrew and ‘mixture’ in Arabic) for quite a few years now. Each time, it’s different, but at its heart are always peppers and onions stewed in a spicy tomato sauce, rich with cumin and coriander. Into some little hollows you make in the stew, you crack eggs and cook until they’re just set. It’s lovely to then take your spoon, break into the yolk and let it trickle out and merge with the tomatoey, spicy juices.

That simple, vegetarian, version is the one I first learnt to cook and is perhaps most well known. But other vegetables can be added such as aubergine, courgette, potatoes, peas or green beans and I’ll sometimes add a few of these to mix things up a bit.

One of the traditional variations is to add a few slices of spicy merguez sausage to the shakshuka. Because merguez sausages are not so easy to come by, I sometimes add Spanish chorizo which makes a good alternative. Actually, shakshuka is very similar to Spanish huevos a la flamenca: stewed vegetables, often containing chorizo or other meat, with eggs baked on top.

But for this recipe, I want to turn back to the North African merguez sausage and show you how to recreate their flavour in tasty meatballs.

MERGUEZ SPICES

I first ate merguez sausage at a tiny cafe in Toulouse where the North African owners made fantastic pizza. At a pavement table I ate a thin and crispy one topped with slices of merguez and a baked egg. We were in Toulouse for a week and that delicious pizza is one of my abiding memories of the holiday.

Merguez sausages are wonderfully spicy, usually flavoured with cumin, coriander and fennel seeds, paprika, cinnamon and cayenne. For my spice mix, I lightly toasted the seeds and roughly ground them before mixing with the other spices. I used smoked paprika as I love it, but regular paprika is fine too.

SPICED MEATBALLS

Because of merguez’s North African origins, they’re made from lamb, beef or a combination of these, rather than pork.

For my Shakshuka I decided to capture that flavour in a meatball. As I’ve written about before, I love meatballs of all kinds. They’re so easy to make, can be flavoured in endless ways, and are often pretty economical too.

For this recipe, I used lamb mince from Troutsdale Farm, just a few miles from where I live.  I’d bought one of their fabulous mature lamb boxes and I’ve found it perfect for loads of recipes. The lamb comes from traditional Shropshire Breed sheep which is full-flavoured so stands up to spicing really well.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY POST ABOUT TROUTSDALE FARM

The lovely folk at Troutsdale will arrange for your lamb to be butchered in whatever cuts you want. From my half a lamb I had the hocks turned into mince and used half of it in my meatball recipe.

To make the meatballs, you combine minced lamb with merguez spice mix, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. I like to keep the meatballs bite-sized, not much bigger than a hazelnut.

I always brown my meatballs first, frying a few at a time in a little olive oil. This gives the meatballs extra flavour and you can also cook the vegetables in the fat released. This will give a lovely richness to the Shakshuka.

Don’t overcrowd the pan when you fry the meatballs. This will create too much steam and they won’t get that tasty, appetizing crust.

MAKING THE SHAKSHUKA

Next, I add a little water, some seasoning, give it all a good stir and bring to the boil. Once it’s boiling you can tip the browned meatballs into the Shakshuka, put the lid on and bring it down to a simmer.

It should take 10 minutes or so to finish cooking the sauce, vegetables and meatballs. If after 10 minutes the sauce looks a little thin, take the lid off and bubble to reduce it.

THE EGGS

For the next step in making Shakshuka, it’s difficult to give precise timings. That’s because we add the eggs and people are oh-so-particular about what constitutes a perfectly cooked egg. For me, I want the white to be completely set while the yolk is still runny. No easy task. Of course, if you like your eggs fully cooked and hard, then you’re laughing. Not literally. Laughing at eggs is weird.

First, you need to make little hollows in the stew, into which you’ll crack the eggs. One hollow, one egg. Pop the lid back on and cook until the eggs are done to your liking. That’s easier said than done, but with a little practice you’ll get there. The thing to note is that the egg yolks have a habit of cooking quicker than the whites. To help prevent this, make sure the whites are surrounded and even a little covered by the sauce. You can also try putting the pan under a hot grill after cooking on the hob for  7 minutes.

VERSATILE & GOOD AT ANY TIME

One of the things I love about Shakshuka is that you can make it as simple or as indulgent as you like. The basic, vegetarian, version (just leave out the meatballs) is great for lunch or, as they serve it in Israel, at breakfast. Add your favourite, seasonal vegetables and mix and match the spices to create an endless variety of options.

But, if you want a real feast, try my Shakshuka with Merguez Meatballs.

Print

Shakshuka with Merguez Spiced Meatballs

This fabulous version of spicy North African shakshuka includes merguez spiced meatballs in a rich tomato and pepper stew topped with eggs.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Middle Eastern, North African

Keyword shakshuka

Servings 2 - 4

Ingredients

For the merguez spice mix

• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 0.5 tsp chilli or cayenne powder

For the meatballs

• 500 g minced lamb (or beef or a mix of the two)
• 1-2 tbsp merguez spice mix
• 2-3 cloves garlic finely grated
• 1 tbsp parsley finely chopped
• 0.75 tsp salt
• 0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil

For the vegetables, sauce and eggs

• 1 tbsp olive oil may not be needed, depending how much fat comes out of the lamb
• 1 large onion skinned, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 medium red pepper cut into medium strips
• 1 medium yellow pepper cut into medium strips
• 3 cloves garlic roughly chopped or thinly sliced
• 1-2 fresh chillies deseeded & sliced
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 400 g tinned tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1-2 tsp honey, pomegranate molasses or sugar
• 2 tbsp parsley or coriander roughly chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 eggs

To serve (optional)

• 10 g butter
• 0.5 tsp ground cumin
• 0.5 tbsp chopped mint

Instructions

For the merguez spice mix (makes approx 2 tbsp)

1. Put cumin, coriander and fennel seeds into a small frying pan over a medium heat. Toast the seeds until the aroma rises, stirring to prevent burning.
   

2. Transfer the seeds to a pestle and mortar and grind. Use a rolling pin or electric grinder if you have no pestle and mortar.
   

3. Add the smoked paprika, cinnamon, chilli or cayenne powder to the ground seeds, mix well and set aside.
   

For the meatballs:

1. Put the lamb mince into a large bowl and add the merguez spice mix. I recommend using all 2 tbsp of the spice mix, but reduce the amount if you wish.
   

2. Add the rest of the meatball ingredients to the bowl, except for the olive oil.
   

3. Using your hands, combine everything together really well, squeezing so that the mixture becomes quite smooth.
   

4. Using slightly damp hands, form the meat into small balls, slightly larger than a hazelnut. Place them on a plate or tray as you go. The mixture should make approximately 46 small meatballs.
   

5. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and, working with a batch of meatballs at a time, brown them well all over. Don't crowd the pan. As each batch browns, transfer them to a clean dish or plate. Continue until all the meatballs are browned, adding more olive oil if needed. Set aside.
   

For the vegetables, sauce and eggs:

1. Take a large saute pan or similar, with a lid, and transfer into it approx 1 tbsp of the fat in which you browned the meatballs. Alternatively, use another 1 tbsp of olive oil.
   

2. Set the pan over a moderate heat and when hot add the onions. Cook until the onions are starting to wilt and brown (5 - 8 minutes).
   

3. Add the peppers, garlic and chilli to the pan and cook until the peppers are starting to wilt (8 - 10 minutes).
   

4. Add the cumin, coriander and smoked paprika, season with salt and pepper and stir well. Saute for 2 - 3 minutes.
   

5. Add the tinned tomatoes to the pan, half fill the empty tin with water, swish it around to get the rest of the tomato out, then add it all to the pan.
   

6. Add the honey or other sweetener to the pan, half of the parsley or coriander then season with salt and pepper and stir well to combine.
   

7. Bring everything up to the boil (putting the lid on will speed this up) and then stir in the browned meatballs. Bring it up to a simmer then put the lid on and cook for 10 minutes.
   

8. After 10 minutes, remove the lid. If the sauce is a little thin, turn up the heat to bubble and reduce the sauce but don't let it go dry.
   

9. Stir in the rest of the parsley or coriander then, using a spoon, make 4 hollows in the stew. Crack an egg into each hollow, replace the lid and leave to bubble gently for 7 minutes.
   

10. After 7 minutes, check to see if the eggs are done to your liking. Cook a few minutes more if necessary - this can be done under a medium grill if liked. Serve immediately.
    

Optional: to serve

1. Heat the butter in a small pan, add the cumin and heat for 1 minute. Stir in the mint then drizzle the flavoured butter over the cooked eggs before serving.
   

Recipe Notes

If you want to make Shakshuka with merguez sausage instead of meatballs, then make up the spice mix as directed, but instead of using it to flavour lamb mince just add as much as you like to the sauce instead of the listed cumin, coriander and paprika.

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