Dukkah- Egyptian Spice Mix

Last week we went to this restaurant called Cichetti and although it was quite a rip-off, the Egyptian fried egg and the lamb keftas were extremely delicious. It was quite a rip-off however. Oh wait, I said that already. 

The Egyptian fried egg was basically a soft boiled egg, coated with a beautiful nutty, spicy mixture, placed on a bed of tender asparagus, drizzled with olive oil. It was aromatic, delicious, addictive, and was gone in less than thirty seconds. It was that outer spice coating that took the dish to a whole new level. 

Upon googling I learned that it is called Duqqa or Dukkah, not to be confused with dukkha i.e. suffering (hey, just clarifying!). The Egyptian spice mix Dukkah is made with toasted nuts, seeds, and herbs. They usually use hazelnuts, but pistachios, almonds, and pine nuts can be used too.

Recipe for Dukkah aka Duqqa, Egyptian Spice Mix:   

This is my version, and it tastes pretty darn good. Feel free to experiment. The ingredients that you absolutely need are nuts (hazelnuts or almonds or pistachios), coriander seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, and black peppercorn.

Ingredients: 

Almonds- 2 tbs

Coriander Seeds- 2 tbs

Cumin Seeds- 2 tbs

Sesame Seeds- 2 tbs

Fennel Seeds- 2 tbs

Nigella Seeds- 2 tbs

Caraway Seeds- 2 tbs

Black Peppercorn- 2 tsp (increase or decrease qty to taste)

Green Cardamom- 2 pods

Dried Oregano*- 1 tsp 

*A tsp of Italian seasoning will work just fine

Salt to taste

Optional: Red pepper flakes

Dukkah Spice Mix with almonds

Method: 

1. Toast all the ingredients, starting with the nuts. Cool.

2. In a spice grinder (coffee grinder works fine too), give it all a quick pulse, about a couple times. Need not be very fine. 

That's it! 

Dukkah Spice Mix

Ways to incorporate Dukkah in your cooking: 

*Mix with some olive oil and use as dip or spread on toast. 

*Coat boiled eggs with the mixture and make your own Egyptian fried eggs at home. 

*Sprinkle on pasta, baked potatoes and other veggies. 

*Use as a dry rub on meats and grill. Yum! Goes well with seafood too. 

*Use in curries. That's what I did this weekend. I made chicken curry, and instead of using garam masala, I used Dukkah. The result was extremely aromatic, flavorful, and simply delicious.

Dukkah Chicken Curry

Corny Joke Alert:

Try Dukkah in your cooking today. It is guaranteed to reduce some of your dukkha!

Yeah, yeah, I know that was pathetic........