Skip to main content

Make brisket shakshuka, the ultimate Israeli breakfast combination

Dagon restaurant in NYC is perfecting this meaty combo

Breakfast spread at Dagon.
dagonnyc/Instagram - The breakfast spread at Dagon

From creamy labneh to fresh bread and spicy eggs, Israeli cuisine features some of the most delicious breakfast and brunch dishes anywhere. Because Israeli, as a country and culture, is influenced by a wide range of global cuisines from Eastern Europe to North Africa and the Middle East, breakfast dishes can take on endless flavor profiles and ingredients. One popular favorite is shakshuka, a rich tomato sauce topped with eggs that originated in North Africa. This hearty dish is excellent with plenty of bread and it’s also great for any meal besides breakfast, including lunch or dinner.

Recommended Videos

To help us navigate this breakfast classic is Dagon, a modern Israeli restaurant helmed by owner Simon Oren, his partners David Sasson and Gil Ohanaby, and Chef Ari Bokovza. Located in the Upper West Side in New York City, Dagon specializes in elevated Israeli food, serving some amazing mezze like chicken liver mousse with date syrup, mustard seeds, baharat spice, crispy shallots, and whipped eggplant with creamy tahini and vibrant preserved lemon compote. All the mezze is available during its stellar brunch, including its shakshuka dishes, a popular item that appears on almost every diner’s table.

Shakshuka at Dagon NYC.
dagonnyc/Instagram - Shakshuka with bread at Dagon NYC

‘Chamin’ Brisket Shakshuka

Shakshuka by itself is amazing, but what if that rich tomato sauce was upgraded with delicious and hearty brisket stew? At Dagon, one of its shakshuka recipe variations is the inclusion of chamin, a meaty Middle Eastern stew that combines beef with potatoes and beans. Also known as cholent, this slow-cooked stew is traditionally served for the Jewish Shabbat meal.

While Dagon does have a standard shakshuka on the menu, its specialty brisket version hits the craving for anyone looking for something meatier for breakfast. While brisket is best slow-cooked, you can also use other stewing beef cuts, such as chuck. Also, this stew can be made well in advance. When you’re ready to cook the eggs for the shakshuka, simply heat up the brisket stew and crack the eggs on top. Breakfast is served.

Ingredients:

  • 3-4 pounds brisket or chuck, trimmed of fat and connective tissue, seasoned with salt and pepper
  • 1 pound bone marrow, split
  • 1/4 cup chickpeas, soaked overnight
  • 1/4 cup gigante beans, soaked overnight
  • 1/4 cup cannellini beans, soaked overnight (Note: It’s OK to combine beans and soak together)
  • 2 tablespoons beef fat
  • 1/2 white onion, diced
  • 2-3 sweet potatoes, unpeeled and whole
  • 2-3 whole potatoes, unpeeled and left whole
  • 3 tablespoons silan (date syrup)
  • 5 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 6 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 1/2 green chili, sliced with seeds
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 quarts water
  • 5 whole eggs

Method:

  1. In a large pot, melt the fat, and sear all sides of the brisket until brown.
  2. Once browned, remove the meat from the pot, and add the onions and sweat until soft. Next, add the garlic and chili and sweat until soft. Add the spices and toast until fragrant.
  3. Add the tomato paste, bay leaf, and silan. Cook for a few minutes.
  4. Add the potatoes, sweet potatoes, bone marrow, beans, and browned brisket. Cover with water and bring to a simmer. Then, cover the pot, and put it into a 200-degree Fahrenheit oven for at least 2 hours or until tender.
  5. To add eggs, gently crack eggs onto the top of the stew. Then, cover it with a lid. Cook eggs to the desired doneness. Serve with plenty of fresh bread.
Topics
Hunter Lu
Hunter Lu is a New York-based food and features writer, editor, and NYU graduate. His fiction has appeared in The Line…
Sweet and tasty cocktails to make with your chocolate whiskey
Chocolate and whiskey is a classic combination - why not put them in one drink?
Love Bomb

Whiskey can be a love it or hate it sort of spirit. With its high abv, strong flavors, and often heavily peated notes, it's the kind of drink that some people are immediately drawn to while others find difficult to handle. If you're in the latter group, though, don't assume that all whiskeys are heavy peat bombs that you'll never enjoy.

There's a growing group of high quality flavored whiskeys available on the market now. These aren't the overly sweet Fireball-esque concoctions of your youth, but a more nuanced take on whiskey with careful additions that can be more welcoming to new drinkers. Options like Cocoa Bomb Chocolate Whiskey might appeal to those with a hankering for some chocolate goodness, and we have recipes for how to use this spirit in cocktails.
Love Bomb
Ingredients:

Read more
Whiskey can be for springtime too, as these easy to make cocktails show
Get out your fruits and your berries, as we're mixing for spring
Bear Fight Whiskey

Spring is officially here, at least in my area where the sun has been shining and the winter cold is finally (finally!) dissipating. That means it's time for spring cocktails, and some of the hottest cocktail trends for this time of year include bright colors and fresh fruits. That might sound like you'll be looking to spritzes, or perhaps clear spirits like gin or vodka, and certainly those can make for some delicious drinks.

But you can also turn these trends to the world of whiskey, which can happily be mixed with these on-trend flavors too. These cocktails from Bear Fight Whiskey for spring include options using either single malt or bourbon as you prefer.
Bear Fight Espresso Martini
Ingredients:

Read more
These are the cocktails to make with your high-end craft sakes
Sake is traditionally drunk neat - but you can mix it into cocktails too
Lavendaze

Sake is a beautiful drink, but one that some people can be intimidated by. While it's traditionally drunk neat, you should feel free to experiment with using it in cocktails too, as its delicate flavors can add a unique note to your drinks.

If you're unsure where to start, then craft sake brand Origami Sake has some suggested recipes to try, from delicate florals for spring from lavender syrup to a fun margarita variation which uses sake instead of tequila. There's also an unusual mocktail option which combines sophisticated flavors with Origami's non-alcoholic sake, making use of lots of fresh fruit juices to add zing and flavor.

Read more