Ingredients
Vegetables
- 4red or green peppers
- 4ripe tomatoes
- 1onion, chopped
- 3 tbspsunflower oil, or butter
Eggs
- 6eggs, lightly beaten
Cheese
- 200 gsirene, white brined cheese, crumbled
To season
- salt and black pepper
- 1 tsppaprika, if wanted
- a handful of parsley, chopped
To serve
- bread
- a tomato and cucumber salad
Directions
- Turn them until the skin is blackened all over. This takes roughly ten minutes. Put the charred peppers in a bowl and cover it with a plate. Let them steam in their own heat for ten minutes.
- Rub the blackened skin off with your fingers. Do not rinse them under the tap, which washes the flavour away. Pull out the stem and the seeds. Tear or chop the flesh into strips.
- Keep any juice that has collected in the bowl. Peel the tomatoes if you can, since the skins curl up unpleasantly. Score a cross in the base and drop them in boiling water for thirty seconds. Chop them roughly and keep the juice. Cooking the base is done before the eggs go anywhere near it. Warm the oil in a wide frying pan over a medium heat.
- Add the chopped onion and cook it for six minutes until soft. Add the chopped tomatoes and their juice. Cook them down for eight minutes, stirring. This is the step people rush and should not. Add the roasted pepper strips and their juice.
- Cook for another five minutes until the pan is thick and dry. Stir in the paprika if you are using it. Season it with salt and black pepper. Adding the eggs is quick and needs a low heat.
- Pour the beaten eggs over the vegetable mixture. Let them sit for twenty seconds without touching them. Keep the heat low, since eggs go rubbery over high heat. Scatter the crumbled sirene over the pan. Fold the cheese through gently. The cheese should soften rather than melt completely.
- Take the pan off the heat while the egg still looks slightly underdone. The finished dish should be soft and creamy, not dry. Scatter chopped parsley over the top. Serve it straight from the pan with plenty of bread. It does not keep and is made and eaten at once.
Technique
- Roast and peel the peppers rather than using them raw, which is what gives the sweetness.
- Cook the vegetable base until thick and dry, or the scramble goes watery.
- Take it off the heat while it still looks slightly underdone.
Substitutions
- Feta in place of sirene.
- Butter in place of oil, which some households prefer.
Variations
- With sliced sausage added to the base.
- Made hotter, with a chopped chilli.
- Without cheese, which is the plainer version.
History
Summer scramble of eggs with peppers, tomatoes and sirene, cooked when the pepper crop is at its peak.
Frequently asked questions
What is Mish-mash?
Mish-mash is a breakfast from Bulgaria: scrambled eggs with peppers, tomatoes, sirene. Summer scramble of eggs with peppers, tomatoes and sirene, cooked when the pepper crop is at its peak.
How long does Mish-mash take to make?
Mish-mash takes 15 min of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Mish-mash?
Yes, within limits. Feta in place of sirene. Butter in place of oil, which some households prefer.
What is the most important thing to get right in Mish-mash?
Rub the blackened skin off with your fingers. Do not rinse them under the tap, which washes the flavour away. Pull out the stem and the seeds. Tear or chop the flesh into strips.
