Turkish “Menemen” inspired scrambled eggs

If you read my previous post, you would know how much I loved Turkish breakfast. Every single breakfast I had in Turkey was incredible, but there is one dish that I had to make my own version of. I am not a huge fan of having sweet things in the morning, so my choice usually involves eggs. My favorite is always a fried egg (with crispy edge if I make it myself at home), but in Turkey I had been cheating on my sunny side up with a traditional egg dish called “Menemen”. This dish has everything I love; tomatoes, eggs, peppers, and warm spices. It is delicious, satisfying and comforting, kinda perfect breakfast I must say :-).

I had a few different types of menemen, some were more like tomato stew, some had melted cheese on top, some were more like scrambled eggs. But no matter what, they were always piping hot and served with tasty Turkish breads. It was impossible to pick the best version to base my dish on, they were all great in their own ways. But scrambled egg like menemen seems to be a simpler and healthier option than others. So after a little bit of research online, I came up with a recipe that includes all my favorites, and things I have in my cupboard. And I tried to make it as quick and easy as possible, hence not including onion, (crying and chopping onion is not my idea of a good morning). I still love my sunny side up with crispy edge, but this scrambled egg dish is quickly becoming a serious contender for my favorite breakfast.

• Prep and cook for 25-30 minutes
• Serves 2

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Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 green bell pepper
• 3 medium size tomatoes (about 250g)
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 2-3 cloves. garlic
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. dried or fresh thyme leaves
• a few pinches of salt for seasoning
• A handful of crumbled feta (optional)

Finely chop pepper, tomatoes and garlic and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat.

Add green pepper and cook for 4-5 minutes or until they are soften.

Turn the heat down to medium-low, stir in tomatoes, spices, and herbs.

After gently simmering for 4-5 minutes, add garlic and cook for a few more minutes until tomatoes have soften and released their juice. You can gently crush the tomatoes if you want even softer texture.

Gently add beaten eggs, and season with salt. Swirl the pan around a little (do not stir) until the bottom of eggs starts setting.

When the bottom is set, turn off the heat. Scramble and mix the eggs with the rest.

Serve with bread and crumbled feta. Enjoy!