Sucuklu Yumurta is a Turkish breakfast dish made with spicy sausage and eggs, cooked in a shallow copper pan. It takes about 10 minutes to prepare and works perfectly for breakfast, brunch, or even a light dinner.
It needs nothing more than sucuk, eggs, and good bread. Slice the garlicky beef sausage and fry it in its own fat, or add a little butter, then crack the eggs straight in.
Serve it hot with olives, tomatoes, cheese, and a glass of Turkish Tea for the ultimate Turkish breakfast feast!
Jump to:
- Why This Recipe Works
- What Is Sucuk?
- Buying Sucuk and Peeling the Casing
- Ingredients You'll Need
- How to Make Sucuklu Yumurta
- Which Pan to Use
- Three Ways to Cook the Eggs
- Recipe Tips From the Chef
- Common Mistakes to Avoid
- What to Serve with Sucuklu Yumurta
- Variations
- Storage and Make Ahead Instructions
- Recipe FAQs
- Related Recipes
- Sucuklu Yumurta - Turkish Sausage and Eggs
Why This Recipe Works
- The sucuk makes its own cooking fat, so in a non stick pan you do not need to add any at all.
- It is two main ingredients and one pan, on the table in about ten minutes.
- The eggs take on the garlic and red pepper straight from the sausage fat, so they are seasoned before you touch a spice jar.
- It works for breakfast, brunch, or a quick supper when you cannot face cooking.
What Is Sucuk?
Sucuk, also spelled sujuk and said soo-jook, is a dry cured sausage from Turkey. It is fermented rather than fresh, and you will find a version of it right across the Middle East and the Balkans.
Ours is made with beef, or beef and lamb, and a good amount of beef fat. The smell gives it away before you have even unwrapped it: garlic first, then sweet and hot red pepper, cumin, black pepper and allspice.
There are two kinds on the shelf and they behave very differently.
Fermente sucuk is the traditional one, fermented for a few days and then air dried, so it is firm and tastes strong.
Isıl işlem görmüş sucuk has been heat treated, which makes it softer and a lot milder.
Worth knowing before you pay: Turkish law keeps poultry out of proper sucuk but allows it in the heat treated kind, so turn the pack over and read it. For this dish, go looking for the fermented one.
Sucuk is a protected name at home. Kayseri and Afyon each have their own, with rules covering the cut of beef, the fat, the spices and the fermenting, and Afyon sucuğu made it onto the European Union register in 2025. None of this is new either. Evliya Çelebi was writing about the musk scented sucuk of Kayseri in the 1600s, and said it went to the sultans as a gift.
Sucuk is not only for breakfast; you can also use it for making Izmir Kumru or on top of Sucuklu Pide.
Buying Sucuk and Peeling the Casing
Turkish and Middle Eastern grocers are the easiest place to find it, and plenty of UK and US online shops carry it too. It comes as a kangal, the horseshoe shaped ring, as a straight baton, or as parmak, short fingers meant for the grill. Look for Kayseri or Afyon on the label. Sucuk contains no pork, and most brands sold abroad are halal certified.
Good sucuk holds together when you snap a piece rather than crumbling like mince. Slices that balloon up and flood the pan with grease mean a cheaper, fattier sausage.
The casing has to come off, because it goes tough and chewy in the pan. Score it lengthways with the tip of a knife and it slides off in one piece. Twenty minutes in the freezer makes the whole thing far easier to peel and to slice.
Cut the sucuk into slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick.
Ingredients You'll Need
Please scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredients list with measurements, complete recipe method, recipe notes, and nutritional information.
- Sucuk - I use the spicy kind, but there are mild ones too. Turkish and Middle Eastern shops are the easiest place to buy it.
- Eggs - Free range, and 1 to 2 per person depending on how hungry everyone is.
- Butter or Olive Oil - The sucuk gives off plenty of fat on its own, so you only need a little, and only if your pan is not non stick.
How to Make Sucuklu Yumurta
Peel the casing off and cut the sucuk into slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick.
Lay the slices in a single layer in a cold sahan or non stick skillet, then set it over medium heat. Starting cold gives the fat time to run out before the outside colors.
Cook for about a minute on each side, until the edges lift and there is a shallow layer of red fat in the pan. If your sucuk is dry, put the lid on for that first minute.
Spread the slices out to leave gaps and turn the heat down low, then crack the eggs straight into the gaps.
Leave the lid off if you want the yolks bright and clear, because covering the pan puts a white film over them.
Put it on for the last minute only if you want the whites fully set on top.
Once the eggs are how you like them, finish with black pepper and chili flakes. Taste before you add any salt, since the sucuk has already seasoned everything in the pan.
Serve straight away with fresh bread for the yolks and the fat.
Which Pan to Use
The traditional pan is a sahan, a shallow copper dish with a handle that goes from the hob straight to the table. Copper is not only for looks. It cools the second you turn the heat down and heats again the second you turn it up. That is exactly what eggs need.
Steel is slower to warm and then holds that heat, so it overshoots. A copper sahan is lined with tin on the inside, and as long as that lining is sound it is perfectly safe to cook in.
The pan you choose also decides whether you need any fat at all. In a non stick pan the sucuk releases plenty of its own and you can start with a completely dry pan.
In a tinned copper sahan or a stainless pan, add half a tablespoon of butter first so nothing catches before the fat starts running. Keep the pan small enough that the eggs and the sucuk stay close together.
Three Ways to Cook the Eggs
All three are normal in Turkish homes, so pick whichever you grew up with or fancy that morning.
- Whole and sunny side up, cracked between the slices and left alone. Leave the lid off and the yolks stay bright and clear. Put it on for a minute and the whites set on top, but a white film goes over the yolks too.
- Whole yolks with the whites stirred. Crack the eggs in, then gently move only the whites around with a spatula until they turn from clear to white, leaving the yolks whole. This is how it is most often done in Turkey and almost nobody outside Turkey writes it down.
- Stirred through, like scrambled eggs. Beat the eggs first, pour them over the sucuk, and stir until just set. In Turkey this has its own name, sucuklu omlet, and counts as a different dish.
Recipe Tips From the Chef
- Take the casing off, then cut into slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick.
- Take the casing off, then cut into slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick.
- Let the sucuk render properly before the eggs go in, so the eggs cook in that spiced fat rather than plain butter.
- Taste before you reach for the salt. Sucuk is salty enough that most of the time you will not need any.
- Get the bread and everything else onto the table before you start, because this is best eaten the minute it leaves the pan.
- If your sucuk is on the dry side, add a splash of water to the pan and put the lid on for a minute. It steams the slices soft instead of frying them hard, which is what Turkish cooks do with a lean sausage.
- If the pan floods with fat, lift the slices onto kitchen paper for a moment before the eggs go in, and pour off all but a thin film.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Cooking it too hot. High heat pushes all the fat out at once, so the sucuk burns rather than cooks and the eggs turn rubbery. Keep the pan on medium or a little below and give it time.
- Leaving the sucuk too long. About a minute a side is enough. Once the edges lift and the fat has run out, the eggs go in.
- Salting as you would any other eggs. Sucuk is cured with salt and spices, and Turkish cooks count extra salt as a mistake in itself, so taste first and keep whatever you do add off the yolks.
- Leaving the casing on. It is edible but it hardens in the pan and turns chewy.
- Cooking it straight from the freezer. A frozen slice browns on the outside while the middle stays raw, so let it thaw first.
What to Serve with Sucuklu Yumurta
Sucuklu yumurta is almost never served on its own. Turkish breakfasts cover the whole table, and this is what goes with it.
Bread first, because you need it for the yolks. Turkish Pide Bread - Ramazan Pidesi, Simit (Turkish Sesame Bagel), Butterzopf - Swiss Braided Bread and Dutch Oven Sourdough Bread all work.
Then sliced tomatoes and cucumber, a few olives, and white cheese, kaşar or tulum. And a glass of Turkish tea.
Variations
- Kaşarlı sucuklu yumurta is the most popular version in Turkey. Scatter grated kaşar over the top in the last minute and put the lid on so it melts.
- Add a chopped tomato and a green pepper to the pan before the eggs and you have Menemen. In Turkey that is a different dish, not a version of this one.
- Sliced mushrooms fried in the sucuk fat before the eggs go in make it more of a supper than a breakfast.
- Finish with pul biber, dried oregano, or a spoonful of yogurt on the side to cut the richness.
- For a milder version use heat treated sucuk rather than fermented, or swap in a beef merguez.
Storage and Make Ahead Instructions
Sucuklu yumurta is best eaten the minute it comes off the heat, so cook only what you plan to eat. Eggs turn rubbery on reheating and there is no way around that.
The sucuk itself is a different matter. A whole kangal keeps in the fridge for weeks, and once you have sliced it you can keep the slices in an airtight container for up to a week, or freeze them for 3 months.
Freezing is worth doing anyway, since sucuk slices far more neatly when it is part frozen. Let the slices thaw before they go in the pan though, because frozen ones brown on the outside while the middle stays raw.
If you do have leftovers, keep them covered in the fridge for a day and warm them gently in a pan rather than the microwave, which turns the whites to rubber.
Recipe FAQs
It has some heat, but it is more garlicky than hot. You can buy mild or spicy, so pick whichever you prefer.
Chorizo is the closest thing if you cannot find sucuk, though it tastes different. Any spicy cured sausage will do the job.
It depends on your pan. In a non stick pan you need nothing at all, as the sucuk releases plenty of fat. In a copper sahan or a stainless pan, start with half a tablespoon of butter so nothing catches.
The heat was too high. Sucuk is already cured, so it only needs about a minute a side on medium. High heat pushes all the fat out at once and the slices scorch instead of cooking through.
Yes, and it is what most supermarkets outside Turkey stock. Isıl işlem görmüş sucuk is already cooked, so it only needs warming through and softens faster in the pan. Fermented sucuk is firmer and has a much stronger flavor, and it is the one worth hunting down for this dish.
Better not. A frozen slice browns on the outside while the middle stays raw. Freezing the sausage part way is useful for slicing it neatly, but let the slices thaw before they go in the pan.
Related Recipes
For more delicious breakfast egg dish recipes why not try:
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Sucuklu Yumurta - Turkish Sausage and Eggs
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon butter optional, only if your sucuk is lean
- 3 oz sucuk (80 gram)
- 3 eggs
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon chili flakes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Peel the casing off the sucuk. Score it lengthways with the tip of a knife and it lifts away in one piece.
- Cut the sucuk into slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick. Thinner slices dry out and curl, thicker ones brown outside before the middle warms through.
- Lay the slices in a single layer in a cold sahan or heavy skillet, then set it over medium heat. Starting cold gives the fat time to run out before the outside colors. Add the butter only if your sucuk is lean.
- Cook for about a minute on each side, until the edges lift and there is a shallow layer of red fat in the pan. If the slices are dry, put the lid on for that first minute.
- If the pan has flooded with fat, lift the slices onto kitchen paper for a moment and pour off all but a thin film, then return them to the pan.
- Spread the slices out to leave gaps between them and turn the heat down to low.
- Crack the eggs straight into the gaps. Spoon a little of the hot sucuk fat over the whites as they set.
- Cook for 2 to 3 minutes for runny yolks, with the lid off so the yolks stay bright and clear. Cover the pan for the last minute only if you want the whites fully set on top.
- Finish with the black pepper and chili flakes. Taste before adding any salt, because the sucuk has already seasoned everything in the pan.
- Serve straight from the pan with plenty of bread for the yolks and the fat.
Notes
- Peel the casing before slicing, it hardens in the pan. Score it lengthways and it pulls away in one piece. Twenty minutes in the freezer makes it easier.
- Cut the slices about ½ cm, or ¼ inch, thick. Thinner ones dry out, thicker ones brown before the middle warms through.
- Start in a cold pan over medium heat, about a minute a side. Sucuk is already cured, so it only needs warming through. High heat pushes the fat out at once and scorches it.
- If your sucuk is lean, add a splash of water and cover for a minute so it steams soft. If the pan floods with fat, blot the slices and pour off all but a thin film.
- Leave the lid off once the eggs are in, or a white film sets over the yolks.
- Taste before you add salt. Sucuk is cured with salt and its fat seasons the eggs. You only need butter in a copper sahan or a stainless pan, not in a non stick one.
- Fermented sucuk is firm and strong. Heat treated is already cooked, so it softens faster and tastes milder. Good sucuk holds together when you snap it rather than crumbling.
- Melt grated kaşar over the top in the last minute, or add a chopped tomato and a green pepper before the eggs.
- Serve with bread for the yolks, plus tomatoes, cucumber, olives, white cheese and tea.
- Cook only what you will eat, as eggs go rubbery reheated. Sliced sucuk keeps a week in the fridge or freezes for 3 months, but thaw it before cooking or the middle stays raw.
Lauren Robinson says
I was looking for sucuk eggs recipe after my recent trip to Turkey. Thanks for sharing this!