Spicy tomato eggs brunch (Print version)

Eggs simmered in spiced tomato sauce with bell peppers and herbs, perfect for a cozy brunch.

# What You Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 1 medium yellow onion, diced
02 - 1 red bell pepper, diced
03 - 1 green bell pepper, diced
04 - 3 garlic cloves, minced
05 - 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
06 - 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced (optional)

→ Pantry

07 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
08 - 2 tablespoons tomato paste

→ Spices

09 - 1 teaspoon ground cumin
10 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
11 - ½ teaspoon ground coriander
12 - ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
13 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

→ Eggs

14 - 6 large eggs

→ Garnish

15 - ¼ cup fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped
16 - ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)

→ To Serve

17 - 1 loaf crusty bread or pita, for serving

# How To Make It:

01 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add diced onion and bell peppers. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes until softened.
02 - Stir in minced garlic and jalapeño; cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
03 - Add tomato paste, ground cumin, smoked paprika, coriander, and cayenne pepper. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
04 - Pour in diced tomatoes with juices. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens.
05 - Taste the sauce and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
06 - Create six wells in the sauce and crack one egg into each well.
07 - Cover the skillet and cook for 6 to 8 minutes until egg whites are set and yolks remain runny, or longer for firmer eggs.
08 - Remove skillet from heat. Sprinkle chopped herbs and crumbled feta on top if using. Serve immediately with warm crusty bread or pita.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It looks fancy enough to serve guests but honest enough to make on a Tuesday night when you're tired.
  • The eggs cook right in the sauce, so there's one skillet to cleanup and infinite dipping opportunities.
  • You can adjust the heat and flavors to match your mood, which means it never gets boring.
02 -
  • The sauce needs to simmer long enough to thicken and lose its raw tomato taste, but not so long that it reduces to nothing—this is where taste and adjust comes in.
  • The heat of the sauce will continue cooking the eggs after you take it off the flame, so err on the side of slightly underdone if you love runny yolks.
03 -
  • Don't skip the step of letting the spices toast in the oil before adding the tomatoes—it deepens the flavor in ways that feel almost magical.
  • If your sauce is too thin when it's time to add the eggs, let it simmer a bit longer before you crack them in, so the eggs have a thick base to nest in.
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