This week on our Afro Cuisine recipe is Ojja, also Known as Shakshuka. It is another #TastyThursday and we want you to savor a taste of Africa. You can search for the ingredients in African stores around you; or better still take a trip to Africa and give your tastebuds a treat.
Ojja (or shakshuka) is a delicious dish of Tunisian origin, also popular in the Maghreb and the Middle East, which is prepared with tomatoes and simmered peppers in which eggs are added to be poached at the end of cooking.
INGREDIENTS
- 6 ripe tomatoes , peeled, seeded and diced
- 1 red bell pepper , peeled, seeded and cut into strips
- 1 green bell pepper , peeled, seeded and cut into strips
- 1 green hot pepper , seeded and finely chopped
- 1 onion , diced
- 8 merguez sausages
- 8 eggs
- 2 cloves garlic , crushed
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 pinches ground caraway
- 1 tablespoon harissa
- ½ cup water
- Salt
- Pepper
INSTRUCTIONS-
In a heavy-bottomed skillet, heat the olive oil without smoking, and fry the onion for 2 minutes over medium heat.
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Add the garlic, mix well and cook for 3 minutes on low/medium heat, stirring regularly.
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Add the tomatoes, chili pepper, and bell peppers. Add water, spices, harissa, salt and pepper and mix.
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Cover and cook for 15 minutes over low heat.
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Place the merguez in the tomato mixture, cover and cook for 25 minutes over low/medium heat.
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When the merguez is cooked, break the eggs directly into the pan over the entire surface of the sauce.
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Cover and cook until the egg white is cooked to the desired texture.