Cheese Shakshuka that tastes just like pizza

Cheese shakshuka tastes just like pizza. Made with stringy Jarlsberg cheese, this is the vegetatrian shakshuka you'll make again and again!

This post is a partnership with Jarlsberg Cheese. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible; I am proud to only work with companies that I truly believe in.

Memories of Dr. Shakshuka

When I was 16, my friends and I started a new tradition, and Dr. Shakshuka was at its epicentre.

Every month or so, usually on Tuesdays, we would skip school, hop on a cheap bus and go to Tel Aviv. There we would visit the artisanal market in the morning, and then head on down to Jaffa, where we'd stroll for hours through art galleries and the stalls of Israel's largest flea market.

After bargaining for bell bottoms or vintage dresses, we would usually end our tour with a meal at Dr. Shakshuka.

While there, we always shared a large salad and, depending on the number of girls, one or two shakshukas. Large and overflowing with toppings, these were the best shakshuka we ever had.

It was there I fell in love with eggplant shakshuka. Discovered green shakshuka. And most importantly, tasted the wonder that is cheese shakshuka: a dish that tastes just like pizza.

Why you have to try this shakshuka with cheese

Shakshuka with cheese is not a well known way to eat shakshuka. But once you taste it, you will wonder why: how come people didn't clue in that a shakshuka that tastes just like pizza can only be AMAZING??

I invite you to turn your shakshuka into a real treat with the addition of stringy, melted cheese! Shakshuka with cheese is like a regular shakshuka - only with less seasoning and more cheese. In fact, it tastes just like pizza. What's not to love??

The only thing that could make this better is adding even more cheese, which will melt in the sauce and give your easy vegetarian shakshuka a great texture and delicious taste.

I urge you to try this shakshuka with Jarlsberg cheese recipe. It is:

• Cheesy (so much cheese!)
• tastes just like pizza
• full of homemade tomato sauce
• easy
• quick to make
• gluten-free and grain-free
• keto
• vegetarian main dish
• low carb
• feels like a guilty pleasure without being bad for you

If you are looking for more food from Israel like this cheese shakshuka, check out my Jewish recipes section.

Ingredient Spotlight: Jarlsberg Cheese

If you've been here a while, you KNOW I love cooking with Jarlsberg. It's a cheese I always have in the fridge for cooking, because its mild flavor means it pairs beautifully with many foods while still holding its own. It's a versatile cheese that's good in vegetarian dishes and even with meat.

In my house, we eat a lot of Jarlsberg cheese. My son is a huge fan of its nutty flavor, and cat eat 100 grams all by himself! No joke, the rate at which that child goes through cheese is alarming.

And most importantly, we love Jarlsberg for how well it melts! There's nothing like biting into a Jarlsberg grilled cheese or even a lasagna, and getting those stretchable strings of cheese pulling from your mouth! Just look at how it melts in this cheesy shakshuka - how could you not love that??

Jarlsberg shakshuka may quickly become our fave breakfast, ever.

For more Jarlsberg cheese recipes:

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need for this easy shakshuka recipe:

• Eggs
• hot pepper
• Onion
• Garlic
• Tomatoes
• Tomato paste
• Jarlsberg cheese
• Salt & pepper
• Canola oil
• Water

Equipment

• One large pan, preferably non-stick
• One spatula
• Liquid measuring cup
• Cutting Board
• Chef's Knife

Directions for making shakshuka with cheese:

Prep the vegetables

Dice the onion coarsely. Dice the hot pepper finely. Mince the garlic. Dice the tomatoes into cubes.

Fry onions and peppers

Set your pan to medium heat. Add oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and saute until it becomes translucent, 5 mins. Add the hot pepper and garlic and saute until it softens, about 1 minute.

Make tomato sauce

Add tomatoes to pan. Continue sauteing, while stirring for a few minutes until the tomatoes soften and begin to break down into sauce, about 5 minutes.

Add salt and black pepper. Add the tomato paste and 50 ml of water, and stir.

Cook over medium-low heat for another 10 minutes.

Add the eggs to your cheesy shakshuka

Create little nests in your sauce, and carefully add the eggs, one egg per nest.

Close with a lid and cook for 2 minutes. Open the lid and sprinkle the grated Jarlsberg cheese between the yolks. Using a wooden spoon, carefully mix the cheese into the sauce.

Close again with a lid, lower the heat and cook for 5-10 minutes (or until the level of softness you like your yolks).

Serve with fresh cilantro and good bread

Sprinkle with freshly diced cilantro.

Serve cheese shakshuka with fresh challah or large focaccia.

What cheese goes with shakshuka?

For this cheesy shakshuka, I use 100% Jarlsberg cheese. I love how it stretches when it melts, which creates a beautiful effect when combined with the tomato sauce in this dish. I also really like its mild nutty flavour in cheese shakshuka!

Other than Jarlsberg, I also enjoy a shakshuka with feta or goat cheese.

Scaling the recipe

Feel free to increase the recipe as much as you need, depending on the size of your pan and how many people you're feeding. A person will usually eat 1-2 eggs each. If you increase the eggs, increase the amount of tomato sauce as well - I like to use one tomato per egg.

Can you store shakshuka with cheese for later?

I don't recommend keeping eggs from shakshuka with cheese for later, but the cheesy tomato sauce will keep very well and can be served with pasta, rice or cauliflower rice.

Top Tips for making vegetarian shakshuka

• Use as many tomatoes as you use eggs
• A typical adult will eat 1-2 eggs. I usually make 1 egg per adult, and a few extras.
• Don't skimp on the cheese! The stringy, stretchable Jarlsberg cheese is what makes this dish.
• The sauce keeps very well, and can be served atop pasta, cauliflower rice or regular rice.

What pairs well with shakshuka?

Many people wonder what to serve with shakshuka. I recommend serving this easy shakshuka recipe with salads (even a simple Israeli salad will do!), diced vegetables and hummus (especially alongside these apple and hummus pitas). In fact, even a good loaf of chunky bread, small batch cornbread, gluten free cornbread or challah is a very traditional pairing for shakshuka!

Try these dishes with shakshuka:

When to serve cheese shakshuka?

Well, the first and obvious answer is, shakshuka with Jarlsberg cheese makes the best brunch! Serve this dish for your family or friends for breakfast, and they'll love you forever. No, seriously, they will - cheese, tomato sauce and creamy eggs tend to have that effect.

But you don't have to relegate shakshuka to the realm of breakfast dishes. In Israel, eggs and cheese shakshuka in particular are often server as part of a light dinner, along with other dairy products.

I personally like to have it for holiday lunch as well, as part of a BIG spread focused on fresh veggies, cheeses and little Middle Eastern plates.

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Recipe

Tried and loved this recipe? Please leave a 5-star review below! Your reviews mean a lot to me, so if you've got any questions, please let me know in a comment.

Cheese Shakshuka that tastes just like pizza

Ksenia Prints

Turn your shakshuka into a real treat with the addition of stringy, melted cheese! Cheese shakshuka is like a regular shakshuka - only with less seasoning and more cheese. In fact, it tastes just like pizza. What's not to love?? The only thing that could make this better is adding even more Jarlsberg cheese, which will melt in the sauce and give your easy vegetarian shakshuka a great texture and delicious taste. Use as many tomatoes as you have eggs.

5 from 41 votes

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Cook ModePrevent your screen from going to sleep

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, brunch, Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine Israeli, Middle Eastern

Servings 6 people

Calories 196 kcal

Equipment

• One large pan, preferably non-stick
• One spatula
• Liquid measuring cup
• Cutting Board
• Chef's Knife

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 5 Eggs
• 1 hot pepper
• 1 Onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 5 Tomatoes
• 100 g Tomato paste
• 100 g Jarlsberg cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Ground black pepper to taste
• 2 TBs Canola oil
• 50 ml water

Instructions

 

• Dice the onion coarsely. Dice the hot pepper finely. Mince the garlic. Dice the tomatoes into cubes.
• Set your pan to medium heat. Add oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and saute until it becomes translucent, 5 mins. Add the hot pepper and garlic and saute until it softens, about 1 minute.
• Add tomatoes to pan. Continue sauteing, while stirring for a few minutes until the tomatoes soften and begin to break down into sauce, about 5 minutes.
• Add salt and black pepper. Add the tomato paste and 50 ml of water, and stir.
• Cook over medium-low heat for another 10 minutes.
• Create little nests in your sauce, and carefully add the eggs, one egg per nest.
• Close with a lid and cook for 2 minutes. Open the lid and sprinkle the grated Jarlsberg cheese between the yolks. Using a wooden spoon, carefully mix the cheese into the sauce.
• Close again with a lid, lower the heat and cook for 5-10 minutes (or until the level of softness you like your yolks).
• Sprinkle with freshly diced cilantro.
• Serve cheese shakshuka with fresh challah or large focaccia.

Notes

Adapted from a recipe by Asaf Cohen from Taimeod.

Nutrition

Calories: 196kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 11gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 148mgSodium: 685mgPotassium: 516mgFiber: 2gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 1497IUVitamin C: 30mgCalcium: 162mgIron: 2mg

One large pan, preferably non-stick

One spatula

Liquid measuring cup

Cutting Board

Global Knives 8" Chef's Knife (G-2) with 220/GB Knife Sharpener Set

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05/02/2025 10:37 am GMT

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