A gem from Yotam Ottolenghi…
Serves 2 as a substantial meal on it’s own
3 x oven roasted tomatoes or 1 cup fresh cherry tomatoes
olive oil
1 large leek, halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise
4 x cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3/4 lb ground lamb
2 tsp sumac
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp za’atar
salt and black pepper
2 x generous handfuls roasted pistachios, roughly chopped
1 tbsp harissa paste (store bought is fine)
1/2 preserved lemon, flesh discarded & skin finely diced
1 cup chicken stock
4 x extra large free range eggs
Yoghurt sauce
1/2 cup Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp tahini
juice of half lemon
1 tbsp water
pinch sea salt
To finish
Sumac
1 tbsp green harissa or a handful fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
If using cherry tomatoes, heat a small , cast iron grill pan over high heat until very hot. Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat for about 4 to 5 minutes until starting to blacken on the outside. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Heat a generous slosh of olive oil in a heavy based frying pan over medium heat.
Add the sliced leeks and garlic to the pan and saute, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften and turn slightly golden.
Add the lamb to the pan, increase the heat slightly, and cook for a further 5 minutes or so until the lamb is browned.
Add the sumac, cumin, za’atar, pinch of flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Stir to make sure everything is well coated with all the seasonings and cook for a further minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped pistachios, harissa paste and preserved lemon.
This dish could be prepared ahead up to this point.
Return the pan to the heat, adding the tomatoes and chicken stock.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to low, make 4 small wells in the mixture and break an egg into each well.
Cover the pan, and continue to cook over low heat until the egg whites are set but the yolk is still runny – about 5 minutes.
While the eggs are cooking, make the yoghurt sauce by mixing all the ingredients together and whisking until smooth.
The mixture should be quite thick, but thin with a little more water if it’s too thick.
Once the eggs are cooked, remove the pan from the heat, dot dollops of the yoghurt sauce over the top, sprinkle over a little sumac and finish with a drizzle of green harissa or a sprinkling of fresh cilantro sprigs
Serve immediately