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Jumpstart your day with a serving or two of savory shakshouka toast with feta fried eggs. Drizzle pesto on top and sprinkle red chili flakes for an amazing breakfast!



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What makes this dish special
I still remember the first time I saw feta fried eggs on TikTok. Since I'm a professional chef, I tend to be skeptical about viral food recipes, but this one was different. This one I had to try. So I grabbed some chili crisp, crumbled feta, and eggs, and gave it a go. Needless to say, I'm no longer a skeptic of viral food recipes. This one won me over.
I still make feta fried eggs often, and it never gets old. There are so many ways to dress it up. My latest obsession is shakshouka toast with feta fried eggs. Imagine shakshouka eggs, but instead of poached eggs, you have crispy feta fried eggs. And instead of enjoying the brunch dish with a side of bread, you have it all served on crusty bread. It's simple, but boy, is it delicious!
For another dish similar to shakshouka, check out my eggs in purgatory with potatoes.
Recipe
Shakshouka Toast with Feta Fried Eggs
Ingredients
Shakshouka sauce
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
Remaining ingredients
- ½ cup chili oil or olive oil divided
- 5 ounces crumbled feta divided
- 8 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- salt and pepper
- 8 slices toasted bread
- ½ cup pesto
Instructions
- Make shakshouka sauce. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large sautepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 1 more minute.
- Add paprika, coriander, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and canned crushed tomatoes, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Heat ¼ cup chili oil or olive oil in a nonstick saute pan over medium heat. Add 2 ½ ounces crumbled feta in an even layer and heat for 30 seconds or until feta starts to melt. Crack 4 eggs directly on top of the feta and season with a pinch of oregano, salt, and pepper. Continue to cook until the desired degree of doneness and the feta has browned. Remove from heat and repeat with the remaining 4 eggs.
- Spoon shakshouka sauce on toasted bread. Top each slice with a feta fried egg and drizzle pesto on top. Serve immediately.
Notes
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Make shakshouka sauce
There are three components to this shakshouka toast: the shakshouka sauce, the eggs, and the pesto. But since we're using store-bought pesto, we only need to prepare two of the components. Sounds easy enough, right?
You can also use homemade pesto or jalapeno pesto featured in my egg salad avocado toast for a little extra kick.

Start by preparing the flavorful shakshouka sauce. I call this sauce shakshouka sauce because it's similar to the tomato base of the original dish.
If you have never had shakshouka before, it's a breakfast dish consisting of poached eggs in a tomato sauce simmered with onions, garlic, and spices. It sounds so simple, but it's very comforting.

In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil and sauté finely chopped onion and red bell pepper until softened, approximately 5 minutes. Add minced garlic and sauté for an additional minute.
Then, add paprika, coriander, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and canned crushed tomatoes, ensuring a thorough mix. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for 25 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper as needed, and set the sauce aside.
Feel free to prepare the sauce the day before. In fact, it tastes better as it sits.
Step 2: Fry feta eggs
Now that the sauce is finished, we can move on to the crispy feta fried eggs. These eggs are the same eggs that went viral on TikTok. As soon as I saw it on social media, I knew I had to give it a try. And you know what? It's a good reason they went viral - yes, they are fantastic.
To cook the eggs, heat ¼ cup of chili oil or olive oil in a nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add 2 ½ ounces of crumbled feta in an even layer and heat for about 30 seconds, or until the feta starts to melt.

Crack 4 eggs directly onto the melting feta, and season with a pinch of oregano, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking until the eggs reach your desired level of doneness, and the feta develops a golden brown hue.
Now, if you want each egg to have its own ring of crispy feta, it might be easier to cook them one at a time. If you cook 4 eggs at once, it's a little trickier to evenly distribute the feta amongst each egg.

If you do choose to cook the eggs one at a time, you can keep them warm on a warm plate, loosely covered.
When I was working as a catering chef and would have to prepare large amounts of fried eggs, I would slightly undercook the eggs. Then, right before service, I would heat them in the oven to ensure that they are warm.
Step 3: Assemble toasts
Now that our two elements are done, we can assemble the toasts. Toast your choice of crusty bread either in the toaster or on the stovetop. I like to brush my slices with olive oil and toast them in the pan to get a beautiful golden brown crust.
Spoon the prepared shakshouka sauce onto the toasted bread slices and top each slice with a feta fried egg. Drizzle a generous amount of pesto on top, and if you're feeling fancy, garnish with fresh basil.

Serve the shakshouka toast with feta fried eggs immediately, and relish in the delightful combination of flavors.
From the salty, crispy edges of the eggs to the spiced tomato sauce to the savory pesto, this toast is a perfect combination of flavors and textures. If this toast doesn't jumpstart your day, I'm not sure what will!
For another great breakfast toast recipe, check out this avocado toast with smoked salmon!

Make-ahead and storage
- Make-ahead: The shakshouka sauce can be prepared the day before and stored in the fridge until ready to use. Reheat the sauce before serving.
- Store: The toast is best served immediately, but you can hold leftovers up to 1 day in the refridgerator in an airtight container.
More breakfast toast recipes
Looking for more breakfast toast ideas? Try these:

Work with me
All images shot and styled by Christine Ma. Available for food photography, styling, and recipe development.











Esther says
This was incredible!! I could eat this toast every day, it's so flavorful and easy to make.
Christine Ma says
I love to hear that, thank you so much!