Ingredients

　　

Step 1

Prepare hard-boiled eggs in the usual way. Peel them, cut them in half, and sprinkle with salt and ground cumin. Or serve whole, accompanied by a small bowl of salt mixed with about twice as much cumin to dip the eggs in. Serve as an appetizer.

　　

Step 2

Vendors sell the eggs in the street accompanied by little cornets of rolled-up newspaper filled with a thimbleful of seasoning—a mix of salt, cumin, and sometimes coriander—to dip in. In North Africa, the eggs are peeled, then gently simmered in water with a little saffron or turmeric and salt. This gives them a brilliant yellow color.

　　The New Book of Middle Eastern Food Copyright © 2000Knopf