Menemen
Kahvaltı (The Sprawling Weekend Morning)
Blister the green peppers in a 10-inch skillet until their skins crack, stirring in Aleppo pepper as the tomatoes collapse into a sweet jam, olive oil pooling around soft egg curds. In Turkey, they'll argue to the death over whether to include onions, but for a table crowded with feta and olives, we skip them to let the sweet tomatoes and mild peppers shine. The real secret? Cooking the tomatoes down until their water evaporates entirely before gently folding the eggs through. Grab a torn hunk of bread and drag it through the pan before the yolks set.
Before you start
Peel the tomatoes using the hot-water blanch method.
Do not skip peeling the tomatoes, or the skins will roll up into tough slivers that ruin the soft texture of the eggs. Score a shallow X on the bottom of the tomatoes and submerge them in boiling water for 45 seconds. Plunge them into cold water, and the skins will slip off effortlessly.
Ingredients
- extra virgin olive oil2 tbsp
- unsalted butter1 tbsp
- Anaheim or Cubanelle peppers2 med
- Roma tomatoes3 large
- kosher salt1/2 tsp
- black pepper1/4 tsp
- Aleppo pepper1/2 tsp
- sugar1/8 tsp
- eggs4 large
Method
- 01
Blister the peppers in olive oil over medium heat.
Heat the olive oil in a wide skillet, preferably cast iron or copper, and sauté the chopped peppers until they soften and release their sweet aroma, about 4 to 5 minutes.
- 02
Add the tomatoes and aggressively reduce the mixture into a jammy paste.
Stir in the diced tomatoes, salt, black pepper, Aleppo pepper, and sugar. Do not rush this step. Let the tomatoes cook uncovered until their water fully evaporates and the oil begins to sizzle at the edges of the pan, about 8 to 10 minutes.
- 03
Melt the butter into the concentrated tomato base.
Lower the heat to medium-low and stir in the butter until it creates a rich, glossy emulsion.
- 04
Crack the eggs directly into the skillet and let the whites begin to set.
Space the eggs out over the tomato mixture and leave them untouched for 30 to 45 seconds until the whites turn opaque.
- 05
Gently fold the yolks through the sauce using broad, sweeping strokes.
Using a wooden spoon, pierce the yolks and drag them through the pan in a figure-eight motion. You are not scrambling them into curds; you are folding ribbons of custard into the sauce.
- 06
Remove from the heat while the eggs are still slightly wet and runny.
The residual heat of the heavy skillet will finish cooking them to a perfect, soft consistency by the time you reach the table. Serve immediately, straight from the pan, alongside thick crusty bread.
Notes
The Great Onion Debate.
Half of Turkey demands caramelized onions in their menemen. The culinary consensus, however, is that onions are strictly for lunch or dinner variations. If you are cooking this for a quick weeknight dinner rather than a weekend breakfast, feel free to finely dice half an onion and sauté it with the peppers.
Winter Tomato Authenticity.
Do not stress about using canned tomatoes in the dead of winter. Turkish grandmothers famously can huge batches of summer tomatoes—a tradition known as kışlık—specifically to make menemen during the colder months. Substituting a 14.5 oz can of high-quality petite diced tomatoes, drained of excess water, is a completely authentic move.
Avoid Green Bell Peppers.
Standard American green bell peppers are too thick and watery for this dish. Anaheim or Cubanelle peppers have the thin walls and mild, grassy flavor that perfectly mimics the native Turkish sivri biber.
From Cook Turkish in America.