Turkish Menemen Recipe
Menemen is a Turkish dish that consists of eggs, sweet peppers, tomatoes, onions and spices. The vegetables are sautéed first, the eggs are cracked over them then scrambled. It’s served as a main meal.
It’s often called the Turkish omelet, though it’s more akin to a scrambled egg and eating it is not reserved for just breakfast; it is eaten at any meal. The real Turkish omelet is called Kaygana.
Menemen is compared to the shakshuka – another tomato and egg dish from nearby regions. While using almost all the same ingredients, shakshuka is the more spiced of the two dishes.
Meneman can be enjoyed alone but the traditional way to make it a hearty meal is by having it with bread and tea. Variations include with or without onions and using more tomato for a wetter dish.
The spices used are based on personal preference. The eggs can be cooked while simultaneously scrambling them, but some methods cover the dish and let the eggs cook without too much agitation. It is flavored with a combination of herbs, spices like chili, butter, olive oil or fresh cheese.
Origin and Cultural Significance
Menemen is believed to have originated from the Aegeon region of Turkey where villagers prepared it from ingredients that were readily available to them or as a way to use up an abundance of fresh vegetables and eggs.
Others believe that menemen is from the similarly named town of Menemen while other believe they just happen to share the same namesake, coming from the Greek word menemenos, meaning overflow or flood.
Turkish Menemen Recipe
Menemen is a Turkish dish that consists of eggs, sweet peppers, tomatoes, onions and spices.
Ingredients
- Eggs (large, free range eggs) - 4
- Tomato (large, finely chopped) - 1
- Onion (sweet, peeled & finely chopped) - 1
- Sivri biber pepper (or 1 small green bell pepper deseeded & finely chopped) - 2
- Parsley (freshly chopped) - 1 bunch
- Hot chilli flakes (or Aleppo pepper) - 2 tsp
- Sweet paprika - 1 tsp
- Cumin (ground ) - 1 tsp
- Thyme (or oregano) - 1 tsp
- Salt - to taste
- Pepper - to taste
- Sunflower oil (for frying) - 2 tbsp
Instructions
- Add the sunflower oil to a frying pan and heat gently over a medium heat.
- Add the onions and sauté for a few minutes until they become translucent.
- Add the green pepper and stir for a few minutes until it starts to soften.
- Stir in the chopped tomato and add the herbs, spices, salt and pepper.
- Simmer over a low heat until the tomato cooks down to form a thick sauce.
- Crack the eggs into the pan and stir them until they are scrambled into the mixture.
- Remove from the heat and garnish with parsley.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 321Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 373mgSodium: 462mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 15g
Nutrition is provided and calculated by Nutritionix. It is for general information purposes and is only a rough estimation.
