One of my favorite Turkish dishes is menemen, a flavorful combination of onions, peppers, tomatoes and eggs. Menemen is highly adaptable — you can easily tailor it to your taste by adding ingredients such as spices, potatoes, or cured meats. Its versatility is similar to English bubble and squeak: comforting, simple, and open to variation.
Traditionally served for breakfast, menemen also works well for lunch or dinner. In this instance it was accompanied by handmade bread (which was a little too firm for my liking), a plate of home-grown black olives, a drizzle of olive oil, and a small portion of thyme. Together these elements complemented the dish and made it especially tasty.
Recipe for Menemen
- Finely chop onions and peppers. Gently fry them in olive oil over low heat until softened and fragrant.
- While the onions and peppers are cooking, peel the tomatoes by briefly placing them in boiling water. The skins will loosen and remove easily.
- Chop the peeled tomatoes and add them to the pan with the softened onions and peppers. Simmer until the tomatoes break down and create a saucy base.
- Break eggs into the pan and gently scramble them into the tomato mixture. Alternatively, make small wells in the sauce and drop the eggs in whole so they cook as fried eggs; if you choose this method, add a splash of water or stock and cover the pan briefly so the whites set without drying out.
- Season to taste with salt, pepper, and optional spices such as red pepper flakes or ground cumin. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and scatter fresh herbs like parsley or thyme if desired.
- Serve immediately with crusty bread and olives to soak up the sauce.
