This fabulous version of spicy North African shakshuka includes merguez spiced meatballs in a rich tomato and pepper stew topped with eggs.
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.
Transfer the seeds to a pestle and mortar and grind. Use a rolling pin or electric grinder if you have no pestle and mortar.
Add the smoked paprika, cinnamon, chilli or cayenne powder to the ground seeds, mix well and set aside.
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.
Add the rest of the meatball ingredients to the bowl, except for the olive oil.
Using your hands, combine everything together really well, squeezing so that the mixture becomes quite smooth.
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.
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.
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.
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).
Add the peppers, garlic and chilli to the pan and cook until the peppers are starting to wilt (8 - 10 minutes).
Add the cumin, coriander and smoked paprika, season with salt and pepper and stir well. Saute for 2 - 3 minutes.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.