- Vegetables
Ingredients
- 500g canned tomatoes (pieces or whole)
- 500ml tomato sauce
- 100g mixed pickles (e.g. gherkins, Pearl onions, pumpkin)
- 9 eggs
- 4 stalks of celery
- 1 aubergine
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 piece of ginger (the size of a thumb)
- 1 pickled lemon
- 1 lime
- 1 flatbread
- 4 chillies, dried (e.g. Aleppo Pepper)
- 100ml olive oil
- Oil for deep-frying
- 100g flour
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp star anise whole
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp lavender (or other dried flowers)
- 1 tbsp zatar (or oregano + sesame)
- 1 bunch of parsley
- 1 bunch of dill
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Method
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1Begin by grinding the dried chillies and all the spices except the lavender and the zatar in a mortar. Then, peel and chop the ginger and garlic and dice the celery.
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2Place half of the olive oil in a Le Creuset roaster and sauté the ginger, garlic and celery over a medium heat until translucent.
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3Once translucent, add the canned tomatoes, the tomato sauce, brown sugar and the ground spices. Let everything simmer for 30 minutes with the lid closed until the brown sugar creates a subtle caramel note. Stir frequently to prevent burning.
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4Meanwhile, cut the aubergine into approximately 2x2cm cubes and season with a little salt and pepper and heat the oil in a deep saucepan to around 180 degrees. Hold a wooden stick in the hot oil, if bubbles form on the stick, the oil is hot enough.
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5After having boiled, allow the auberinge cubes to dry.
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6Once dry, turn the aubergine cubes in flour, then in the egg and then again in the flour and fry them in the oil for 1-2 minutes until they are nice and crispy. Drain on kitchen paper.
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7Put the 8 eggs (without shell) in the tomato sauce and close the lid for 6-7 minutes. The goal is to cook the eggs in the tomato sauce so that the yolk is still slightly runny inside.
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8In the meantime, begin to chop the pickles and pickled lemon.
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9Place the fried eggplant cubes in a bowl or deep plate. Carefully lift 2 eggs per plate with a wooden spoon and plenty of tomato sauce out of the Le Creuset roaster and place on the aubergine cubes.
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10Garnish the plates with the pickles, the pickled lemon, the zatar, the flowers and the herbs - the hearty and aromatic Beirut Breakfast is ready! Of course, it goes well with heated flatbread and a large glass of iced tea!