Quick Frypan Shakshuka (includes Vegan Option)
Shakshuka is a traditional North African and Middle eastern breakfast. It's a warming, delicious and nutritious breakfast option, so if you're sick of the same old breakfasts, give this a try for something different.
Ingredients
1 large red capsicum sliced
2 cans of tomatoes
1 cup spinach
dried thyme and oregano
garlic powder
salt and pepper
4 eggs (or 1 block of marinaded tofu)
goats cheese (optional) or nutritional yeast and cashew cheese
salt and pepper
fresh basil
Instructions
Heat a medium fry-pan with olive oil, add your sliced red capsicum, cook for 5 minutes
Add spinach and wilt for 30 seconds, also add your garlic powder, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper to taste, mix together
Add canned tomato, let cook for a few minutes to cook off a bit of water,
Use a ladle to make a small dent in your mixture and crack eggs into dents. If making a vegan version add tofu into dents.
Sprinkle cheese or nutrition yeast over top. Cover pan with lid and let cook until eggs are firm.
Serve with 1-2 slices of bread, fresh basil and cracked pepper. A dollop of cashew cheese for the vegan version.
Health Benefits of this Recipe
Tomatoes, especially cooked tomatoes contain a fabulous phytochemical called lycopene. Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant, and consuming it regularly has been shown to support heart health, and may lower the risk of certain cancers (Prybylska, 2020)
Eggs are a highly nutritious food being one of the best sources of easily digestible dietary protein. They are also rich in various other important nutrients such as choline, vitamin D, selenium, vitamin A, B12, iron. Eggs are rich in Lutein and Zeaxanthin which are antioxidants (Puglisi & Fernandez, 2022). Eggs are also rich in choline, some research has shown that choline may improve brain function, reduce the risk of nonalcholic fatty liver disease, and supports heart health (National Institutes of Health, 2022).
Nutritional Benefits of this Recipe
The standard version of this recipe contains approximately the following nutritional benefits per serving generated by a Foodzone Report:
24g of Protein
121mg of Vitamin C (270% of the RDI)
362μg of Folate (91% of the RDI)
106 μg of Iodine (71% of the RDI)
0.4mg of B1 (40% of the RDI)
0.5mg of B2 (43% of the RDI)
8mg of B3 (57% of the RDI)
0.3mg of B6 (24% of the RDI)
1.4μg of B12 (57% of the RDI)
32.9μg of Selenium (55% of the RDI)
328.5 μg of Vitamin A (47% of the RDI)
2.2mg of Zinc (27% of the RDI)
3.6mg of Iron (20% of the RDI)
273mg of Phosphorus (27% of the RDI)
8.4g of Fibre (30% of the Suggested Daily Target Minimum)
14.8mg of Vitamin E (106% of the Suggested Daily Target Minimum)
The vegan version of this recipe (eggs replaced with tofu, goats cheese replaced with cashew cheese) contains approximately the following nutritional benefits per serving:
28g of Protein
391mg of Calcium (39% of the RDI)
121mg of Vitamin C (270% of the RDI)
304μg of Folate (76% of the RDI)
4mg of Zinc (50% of the RDI)
124mg of Magnesium (40% of the RDI)
47μg of Iodine (31% of the RDI)
0.6mg of B1 (51% of the RDI)
0.4mg of B2 (33% of the RDI)
10.2mg of B3 (73% of the RDI)
0.6mg of B6 (42% of the RDI)
0.3μg of B12 (12% of the RDI)
5.2mg of Iron (29% of the RDI)
253μg of Beta carotene (36% of the RDI)
415mg of Phosphorus (41% of the RDI)
12g of Fibre (44% of the Suggested Daily Target Minimum)
6.4mg of Vitamin E (45% of the Suggested Daily Target Minimum
References
National Institutes of Health (2022). Choline: Fact Sheet for Consumers. Retrieved 19th December 2022 from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Choline-Consumer/#:~:text=Choline%20is%20a%20nutrient%20that,that%20surround%20your%20body%27s%20cells.
Prybylska, S. (2020). Lycopene - A bioactive carotenoid offereing multiple health benfits: A review. International Journal of Food Science and Technology, 55(3), 11-32. https://ifst.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ijfs.14260
Puglisi, M. J. & Fernandez, M. L (2022). The health benefits of egg protein. Nutrients, 14(14), 2904. https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/14/2904/htm?s=09