Kefta Tagine with eggs is probably one of the first Moroccan recipes I learned how to make. On my second trip to Morocco, we were staying in a rental apartment in Essaouira. Neither MarocBaba nor I really knew how to cook (we were 19!) so we depended on really simple foods. We were also broke so the cheaper the better!
This recipe quickly became one that I used to make very often because it is easy to do and doesn’t take long to cook. It’s truly a very simple Moroccan recipe.
While there are no slow cookers or other “fast” tools used to make this, if you have a few pantry items and a bit of meat on hand, you can pull this together in 30-45 minutes!
Do You Have to Use Ground Beef for This Tagine?
Instead of ground beef, which is traditionally used, I often substitute ground turkey or ground chicken. Any ground meat will work so feel free to experiment or use what you have on hand. The spices I’ve listed are a guide as well. If you prefer your food a little spicier, go ahead and add in some hot peppers or serve some harissa on the side. I’ve also mixed green peas into this before to add a little more vegetables to the meal and that was a hit too!
Do You Need a Tagine to Make This?
No!
This is another reason we really like this recipe. You can very easily make it in a skillet or frying pan. I would go for one that has slightly higher edges, because it will give you a little more room. Make sure you cook your meatballs first and brown on all sides before cooking the sauce, I think it makes the flavor a little better and keeps them from falling apart.
What to Serve with Kefta and Egg Tagine
The traditional way to eat this is with pieces of Moroccan bread that are used as utensils to scoop up the contents. You can also eat this with a fork if you really want but honestly, it just tastes better with bread!
Moroccan Recipe: Bread or Khobz
Make Your Own Moroccan Spiced Olives
Libyan Sharmoula {Tomato and Cucumber Dip}
Add your favorite juice, coffee or tea to the items above. I think this is a great savory breakfast option so some cheese, a cucumber salad, and olives also round out the dish nicely.
Kefta and Egg Tajine
A great breakfast or dinner dish using ingredients you likely have on hand.
Ingredients
Meatball Ingredients
- 1 lb ground lamb or beef
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1/2 onion finely diced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- Small handful chopped Italian parsley
Tomato Sauce Ingredients
- 2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 onion finely diced
- 3 large tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoons spicy paprika (sudaniya in Morocco)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 teaspoon chopped Italian parsley
- 1 teaspoon garlic crushed
- 3 eggs
Instructions
Using 1 pound of ground meat mix in 1 tbsp crushed garlic, 1/2 onion diced finely, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp paprika, and a small handful of chopped Italian parsley. Mix well with your hand to combine all of the ingredients.
Roll into small balls slightly larger than a grape. You can really make these any size you would like, we just prefer them smaller - they also cook faster when they're smaller.
In your tajine add 2-3 tbsp olive oil and 1/2 onion minced finely.
Place the tajine on the stovetop on medium heat, using a diffuser if you have an electric range.
While this is heating up grate the insides of 3 large hothouse tomatoes (or a similar variety) into a bowl and discarding the skins.
Mix into this 1 tsp turmeric, 2 tsp spicy paprika (sudaniya in Morocco), 1/2 tsp salt, 1 1/2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp chopped Italian parsley, and 1 tsp garlic crushed. Pour this into the pre-heated tajine.
Arrange the meatballs in the tajine so that they each have a little space to soak up the sauce. If you have more meatballs than space in the tajine reserve them for another dish. You do want to make sure there is enough room for some sauce to remain.
Cover the tajine and continue to cook on low to medium heat. Check after 30 minutes.
Once the meatballs are cooked through, crack 3 eggs and place them on top of the meatballs and sauce. Cover the tajine again so that the eggs can cook through.
Some people like the eggs to be steamed just until they are set but the yolk still is runny, however, I cook mine until the yolk is hard.
Eat by scooping up bites with crusty bread, like this Moroccan bread!
Notes
Like things a little spicy? You can add some cayenne pepper or harissa to this dish too!
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Moroccan Brunch Ideas
This recipe is a great example of a dish perfect for a Moroccan brunch. If you’re hosting a brunch try some of these recipes as well.
Judith Humphrys
Monday 25th of May 2020
I have made this dish often but I do not add the eggs as my husband is not fussy about eggs. This is such a flavourful dish and so easy to make. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes on your site. We worked in North Africa for 5yrs and on one of our leaves we did a road trip through Morocco, it was fabulous, we even did a day trip on horseback into the Atlas mountains and saw how people lived there. Most interesting, but boy we were sore as we hadn’t ridden in years. Loved our trip and all the delishes foods we sampled.
Lisa
Wednesday 5th of June 2019
Instead of using fresh tomotos can you use canned so you can skip the grating of the inside of the tomotos?
Amanda Mouttaki
Thursday 6th of June 2019
You can but it really doesn't give it the same taste. The canned tomatoes have it taste a bit metallic in my opinion.
Julia
Sunday 16th of December 2018
Instead of cracking the into the tagine would it also work to whisk the egg as if you were going to make a scrambled egg and then drop it into a well in the tagine? I only eat scrambled or hard boiled eggs. However I could just leave the eggs out and enjoy the tagine. Thanks from Vancouver WA USA
Amanda Mouttaki
Sunday 16th of December 2018
yes of course - you can do the eggs however you would like, won't affect the flavor.
Wendy Awai-Dakroub
Monday 13th of June 2016
We made this tonight for iftar... It was delish! We were craving it since the last time we had it together....
5 Kitchen Shortcuts to Make Meals Easier - MarocMama
Friday 4th of July 2014
[…] 1) Canned Tomatoes. It doesn’t sound like a big deal but I have found countless uses for canned tomatoes. Is fresh best? Of course. But try finding a fresh tomato in the Midwest that has any flavor and doesn’t cost a fortune. I opt for organic whenever possible. How can these make meals quicker? So many recipes call for diced tomatoes, tomato sauce or some variation of these. Need tomato sauce but only have a can of diced tomatoes? Toss them into the blender and you have tomato sauce! Tired of buying pizza sauce? Send the diced tomatoes through a food processor or blender and add some Italian seasonings and it’s tomato sauce for 1/2 the cost. Some recipes to try; Crockpot Paleo Lamb Stew, Zucchini Za’alook, and Egg and Ground Meat Tajine. […]