Eggs in Hell (Italian Shakshuka)
This Eggs in Hell recipe is an Italian baked eggs dish with portabella mushrooms, red peppers and melty mozzarella! Serve with French bread for a hearty and inexpensive vegetarian dinner.
This Eggs in Hell recipe was inspired by the first time I tried Shakshuka! Have you tried Shakshuka yet? I just tried it for the first time, and it was love at first bite. Typically, Shakshuka is a Mediterranean breakfast dish of baked eggs in a tomato sauce that incorporates spices from that region; paprika, cayenne, cumin.
I’ve had modified versions of this dish that incorporated a variety of diced vegetables from sweet potato to eggplant and absolutely loved them. But each time I’ve eaten it, I’ve thought to myself, “I should make Italian Shakshuka.” Honestly, Italian flavors hit my palate a bit better!
It turns out I wasn’t the first one to think of adapting Shakshuka into Italian Shakshuka, but I didn’t let that stop me from making my own version of it! You mostly see it referred to as “Eggs in Purgatory,” or “Eggs in Hell.”
Basically, we’re baking eggs in tomato sauce here, nothing too crazy!
I perused a few recipes, but they were missing the addition of veggies and cheese that I had envisioned. So, I added portabella mushrooms, red peppers and little bits of mozzarella to the dish.
How to Customize Eggs in Hell
- Substitute eggplant for mushrooms
- Substitute roasted red peppers for raw bell peppers (add along with the heavy cream)
- Use an Italian blend cheese instead of mozzarella or parmesan (or use a little bit of everything!)
- In the summer months, add diced summer squash along with the other vegetables
- Omit red bell pepper and/or red pepper flakes to lessen spice
The result? This Eggs in Hell recipe is absolutely delightful!
Serving Suggestions
I serve this Eggs in Hell (Eggs in Purgatory) recipe about once a month for dinner. It makes a great “Meatless Monday” vegetarian egg dinner!
I love it because it’s super customizable to what you have on hand. It is best served with hunks of crusty bread that you use to scoop up the robust tomato sauce.
Or, you could serve this Italian-style shakshuka, Air Fryer Garlic Bread, Ricotta Crostini with Roasted Tomatoes or this Italian House Salad. Delicious!
For an after-dinner cocktail, try this Tiramisu Martini.
I hope that you love this baked egg recipe! If you give it a try, please let me know how it went in the comments below.
Eggs in Hell (Italian Shakshuka)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, medium, peeled and diced
- 1/2 cup portabella mushrooms, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- 1.5 teaspoons salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 28 ounces diced tomatoes, canned, with juices
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 6 large eggs
- 2 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded, or parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, or fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, mushrooms, garlic and bell pepper and cook, uncovered, for about 8 minutes, until softened. Reduce the heat if the vegetables start to brown.
- Add the onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes (optional),1 teaspoon of the salt, sugar, and tomatoes. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the sauce is slightly thickened.
- Add the heavy cream to the sauce and stir to combine, allowing to simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, set your an oven rack to the top position and preheat the broiler.
- Remove the skillet from the burner. Using a spoon, make 6 wells/indentations in the sauce. Carefully crack an egg into each well, then spoon a bit of the sauce over each of the egg whites. Be careful not to disturb the yolks.
- Sprinkle the eggs with the remaining salt, then sprinkle the mozzarella cheese around the eggs. Return the skillet to the stove over low heat and cover with a lid.
- Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the egg whites are mostly set but still a bit translucent on top.
- Remove the lid from the skillet and transfer the skillet to the oven. Broil until the eggs are cooked to your liking.
- Remove the pan from the oven and garnish with the fresh herbs. Serve hot with bread.
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It would be so lovely to wake up to a breakfast like this! However, since I am the only one in this house that cooks, I guess I am left with no other choice than to make it myself. Haha. I have never had Shakshuka before, but I think this is going to be another winner in our book.
This is a brand new recipe for me. It’s not often I run across a recipe I haven’t tried before, or at least something similar. Excited to give it a whirl!
I just tried this for the first time this year as well. I fell in love with it pretty quickly.
I’m not going to lie, I totes had to look up how to pronounce that. I felt a little silly since it’s apparently pretty common, ha!
I got a good giggle from the name eggs in purgatory. These eggs sound delightful and a great way to start my day with veggies. With the red & green, it’d be perfect for Christmas time.
I must be living under a rock, because I haven’t even heard of Shakshuka until today. Your recipe sounds amazing, I am printing out the recipe now to try this weekend. Thanks!
This is a unique dish! I love adding eggs to it. It looks absolutely delish!
I would love a big plate of that! It looks so delicious. This is the kind of thing that’s perfect on cold winter days.
In have never tried this recipe before but I might try it really soon. Such a great idea for a family dinner.