Menemen

Menemen: Step by Step

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1. Heat the olive oil in a wide, shallow pan over medium heat and cook the chopped peppers for 8 to 10 minutes until completely soft and beginning to colour.

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2. Add the tomatoes, pul biber, oregano and half the salt. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring, until the tomatoes have collapsed into a thick sauce and the oil separates at the edges.

   Mark done Start 8 min timer

3. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting.

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4. Crack the eggs directly into the pan and season with the remaining salt and the black pepper.

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5. Stir slowly with a wooden spoon, folding the eggs through the tomato, for 3 to 4 minutes. Take the pan off the heat while the eggs still look slightly underdone and glossy.

   Mark done Start 3 min timer

6. The residual heat will finish them. Menemen should be soft and saucy, never dry.

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7. Scatter with the crumbled cheese and parsley and serve immediately in the pan, with bread (optional) for scooping.

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Related guide: Ingredient substitutions.

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Keep an Eye on These

1. Low and slow with the eggs. Menemen is not a fast scramble.
2. Whether the eggs are stirred through or left whole is a regional argument in Turkey; both are correct.
3. Peel the tomatoes if you have the time — the skins curl into unpleasant strips otherwise.

Ingredient Swaps

• Fresh herbs work in place of the dried oregano at roughly three times the quantity — a teaspoon of dried is about a tablespoon of fresh, chopped.

A Little Background

The eggs go in over very low heat and are stirred slowly so their proteins set into soft, loose curds suspended in the tomato rather than firming into dry lumps. Cooking the peppers down for a full ten minutes first drives off water so the finished dish is saucy, not watery.

To Go With It

Turkish tea, served in a tulip glass · Serve with olives, cucumber, white cheese and bread · Follow with fresh fruit

Storing Leftovers

Best immediately. The pepper and tomato base keeps 3 days refrigerated — reheat and add fresh eggs.

What's in a Serving

Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: part of the energy comes from foods, or weights per item, with no recorded source. How the figures are worked out.

Gluten-free when served without the crusty bread.

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