Fall Shakshouka

After Green, White & Red…. Here I am with a seasonal twist on my brunch staple Shakshouka - Poached Eggs on a Coconutty Orange and Butternut Squash Sauce with Sambal Vinaigrette and a delectable Curry Leaf Oil.

Half moon autumnal squash slices are braised in spices and orange juice until soft then thickened with coconut cream to form the base. Poached eggs are nestled in that rich aromatic sauce. Finished with a Sambal paste infused zingy vinaigrette for the acidity kick and Curry Leaf Mustard infused oil for the pizzazz. Tested and raved by many of my Instagram followers and friends, this one will soon become your fall favorite 🧡

Ingredients (serves 3-4 as Main)

Sauce

2.5 tbsp Coconut Oil (substitute with Olive Oil)

1 lb Butternut Squash, thinly sliced as half moons

1 Jalapeño, de-seeded and thinly sliced

4 scallions, julienned; whites and greens separated

3 garlic, finally chopped

1.5 tsp ground Cumin

1/2 tsp ground Cayenne 

1/2 tsp ground Turmeric

1 tsp Salt

1 tbsp Tomato Paste

150ml Fresh Orange Juice (increase the quantity if looking for a looser consistency)

75ml Coconut Cream (NOT coconut milk)

Sambal Vinaigrette

2 tbsp Fresh Orange Juice

1 tbsp Lime Juice

1/2 tbsp Lime Zest

1 tbsp Sambal Oelek (substitute with sriracha or your favorite hot sauce, but it won’t be the same)

1 tbsp Olive Oil

Curry Leaf Oil

1/2 tbsp Olive Oil

1 tsp Mustard Seeds (substitute with caraway or cumin seeds)

8-10 Curry Leaves (substitute with Basil)

4-5 eggs

*Fried Shallots (optional)

Directions

💥Whisk all vinaigrette ingredients until well emulsified. Keep it aside

💥Heat up coconut oil in a large skillet (I have cast iron here but nonstick or stainless steel are fine too); add jalapeño, scallion whites and garlic. Fry for 1 min, then add Butternut Squash, salt and spices. Stir everything until really so that the squashes look well coated. Continue frying on a medium flame for 15-16 mins or until it starts caramelizing and sticking to the pan

💥Now add tomato paste and cook for a minute. Then add half quantity of Orange Juice (to deglaze the pan) and continue cooking for 5 mins. Add coconut cream and give it a good mix. Tip remaining orange juice while stirring everything so that the base sauce looks relatively homogeneous. Add more juice at this stage for a looser consistency. Cook for 2 mins, then make 4-5 indentations in the Sauce

💥Crack Eggs into each cavity and generously mix the whites into sauce (use a fork to do that). Let them cook uncovered until whites are set (about 9 mins). Meanwhile, combine all curry leaf oil ingredients in a small pan.  On medium flame fry for 1 min to 90 seconds (until it starts sputtering)

💥Once the eggs are done - Drizzle curry leaf oil and scatter reserved scallion greens on top. Divide into serving bowls, spoon some vinaigrette on top and serve alongwith Flatbreads (Scallion Pancakes are my favorite with this) or Rice. Enjoy!