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Sweet potato shakshuka with sriracha butter and pickled onions
Serves 4 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 1kg sweet potatoes, skin on and scrubbed clean
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced into rounds
- 2tbsp lemon juice
- 3tbsp olive oil
- 150g mature cheddar or other meltable cheese, roughly grated
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1tsp cumin seeds, roughly crushed with a pestle and mortar
- 8 medium eggs
- 25g unsalted butter
- ¾tbsp sriracha
- 2tbsp fresh coriander leaves, some stem attached
Method
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C F/Gas 7. Line a medium baking tray with baking parchment.
Poke the sweet potatoes all over with a fork (about 8–10 times) and put them on the lined baking tray. Bake for 45–50 minutes or until cooked through and softened. Set aside to cool and turn the oven temperature down to 200C/180C F/Gas 6.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix together the onion, 1tbsp lemon juice and a pinch of salt and set aside to pickle.
Remove the cooked potato skins and tear them into roughly 4cm pieces. Transfer the flesh to a large bowl and set aside. Put the skins back on the baking tray and toss with 1tbsp oil, ¼tsp salt and a good grind of black pepper. Bake for 8 minutes or until nicely coloured and starting to crisp up. Set aside to cool and crisp up further.
Use a fork to mash the potato flesh until smooth, then add the cheese, garlic, cumin, another 1tbsp oil, the remaining lemon juice, 1tsp salt and a generous grind of pepper, and mix to combine.
Pour the remaining oil into a large frying pan with a lid and swirl around to coat the bottom. Spoon the mashed potato mixture into the pan, using your spoon to distribute it evenly.
Set over a medium-high heat and leave to cook for about 7 minutes, for the bottom to start to colour. Turn the heat down to medium and use a spoon to make 8 wells in the potato mixture, then break an egg into each. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper, cover with the lid and cook for 4–5 minutes, rotating the pan, or until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny.
While the eggs are cooking, put the butter and sriracha in a small saucepan on a medium heat and cook until the butter has melted, whisking constantly to emulsify. Remove the mixture from the heat before it starts to bubble – you don’t want it to split.
When ready, spoon the sriracha butter all over the eggs, then top with a good handful of the crispy potato skins, half the pickled onion and all the coriander leaves. Serve right away, with the rest of the potato skins and pickled onion to eat alongside.
This recipe was taken from the Christmas 2021 issue of Food and Travel. To subscribe, click here.
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