Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs with Oven-Dried Tomatoes (North Indian Zoomru Tool and Ruwangan Hach)

Hard-cooked eggs get a golden sheen from frying in bright mustard oil and are served in a rich, spicy sauce made from oven-dried tomatoes. There is one road that connects the Vale of Kashmir to the rest of India, and historically, in wintertime, that road was snowed in. Isolated from the ingredients of southern climes, Kashmiris took to sun-drying the vegetables they grew in the warm months, slicing them and setting them out to dry to preserve them for their cold-weather pantries.

6 plum tomatoes, cored and halved lengthwise
2 Tbsp. Canola oil
sea salt
6 eggs, room temperature
¼ cup Canola oil
1 tsp. ground turmeric
2 small Asian shallots or 1 regular shallot, minced
1 small red onion, minced
½ tsp. Kashmiri chile paste or 1½ tsp. red chile powder or cayenne
1 tsp. ground fennel
3 cloves garlic, mashed into a paste
1 (1") piece ginger, mashed into a paste

To Serve:
chapati or naan bread (optional)

Preheat oven to 300°F (150°C/130°C fan, Gas Mark 2).

Toss tomatoes with Canola oil and salt; spread cut side up on a baking sheet. Cook until dried out but still a little juicy, about 2½ hours.

Bring 8 cups water to a boil in a 4 qt saucepan. Add eggs; cook until soft- to medium-boiled (whites should be firm and yolks slightly runny), 6-7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer eggs to an ice bath until chilled, then gently peel.

Heat mustard oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high. Add turmeric and eggs; cook, gently turning eggs until golden in colour, 2-3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon; transfer eggs to a bowl.

Cook shallots and onion until slightly caramelized, 10-12 minutes. Stir in chile paste, fennel, garlic, and ginger; cook until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add reserved tomatoes and ½ cup water; simmer, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are broken down and sauce is thickened, 8-10 minutes. Add reserved eggs; cook until heated through, 1-2 minutes. Serve with bread, if you like.

Makes 2-4 servings.