Šataraš - Bell peppers, onions and tomato Balkan inspired stew with scrambled eggs Recipe
Šataraš (pronounced Satarash) is a stew like dish made with fresh bell peppers, ripe sweet tomatoes, onions, and scrambled eggs, it is similar to Shakshuka which has a sunny-side up eggs and makes a perfect main meal choice in the summer when the vegetables used for the dish are in full season. This dish is very well known in the Balkan regions but not so much to the rest of the world.
Eating šataraš just make you happy, and it feels like having a sunshine on a plate, as the addition of the eggs makes this dish colourful, extra flavourful and filling, it is also healthy and fresh.
This is one of my absolute favourite childhood dishes and if you like bell peppers this recipe is one of those you will come back to it time and time again as the recipe is very easy to make and the base can be cooked well in advance.
This dish is normally homemade and not found in the restaurants, it is typically served for lunch or dinner but it is also a great choice for breakfast or brunch.
Šataraš travelled from the neighbouring Balkans and stayed in Slovenian Istra, where it has been a very welcomed guest and has been enjoyed by the generations of locals in the area where gastronomy has been strongly shaped and enriched by the Balkan culinary traditions as well as Venetian and Austro-Hungarian.
I am sharing here my mother's recipe for šataraš with which she has delighted us during long hot summer months. If you do try it, then I think you will soon realize how delicious this dish truly is in its humble simplicity.
Ingredients
Serves 4
4 bell peppers, a combination of yellow and green (each bell pepper weighing about 200g), wash, dry, remove the seeds and white filaments, and cut into strips (you can use more or less peppers according to your preference)
4 vine tomatoes (each weighing about 150g) or other types of sweet and ripe tomatoes, washed and roughly chopped (use more or less tomatoes according your liking)
1 onion (about 170g), peeled and finely sliced
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 eggs
sea salt
black pepper
fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped, for serving, optional
Method
Place extra virgin olive oil in a fairly large frying pan, add sliced onions, a pinch of sea salt and cook for about 10 minutes on a gentle heat until the onions become soft and translucent, stirring occasionally.
Add strips of bell peppers and stir in with the onions. Cover with the lid (the steam will help to cook down and soften the peppers) and cook on a gentle heat for up to about 30 minutes.
Add chopped tomatoes, cover with the lid, and cook on a gentle heat, stirring occasionally, for about 20-30 minutes, or until tomatoes are cooked down and soft.
If the mixture has too much liquid (this will depend on how watery the tomatoes you are using are) take the lid off and cook further for a few minutes or until all of the liquid evaporates.
In a small bowl crack the eggs, slightly whisk, add sea salt and pepper.
Pour the egg mixture over the pepper stew, mix and stir and cook until desired consistency.
Sprinkle with roughly chopped fresh parsley, optional, and serve immediately with plenty of rustic crunchy bread.
Just a thought
This dish is best served hot, equally delicious at room temperature.
You can prepare pepper, onion and tomato stew well in advance, keep it in a fridge in an airtight container for about 3 days, and pour the whisked eggs on a pepper base just before you want to complete the dish and ready to serve it.
The pepper stew (without the egg) is also great served with grilled and barbecued meats, a great base for a risotto or a pasta dish, and it can also be enjoyed with polenta or an egg frittata.
Pepper, onion and tomato base is suitable for freezing.