🔗 Share this article

Let me explain: the best baked eggs are made without baking. During recipe development, discovering that covering the pan generates steam to cook the top of the eggs, yielding tender delicately prepared egg with a tender white and flowing center. Direct oven heat of the oven is much more aggressive compared to steaming, typically causing making dishes dry and harden the yolk. I’ve given you two sauces as a jumping-off point, encouraging customization. One is a super-simple turmeric coconut curry, whereas the spicy sausage sauce puts a twist on traditional spicy eggs, essentially, spicy tomato eggs.

Turmeric Coconut Curry Baked Eggs (featured)

Prep 10 minutes
Cooking time 55 minutes
Yields 2

Olive oil
One medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
Salt
Two garlic cloves, minced garlic
10g fresh ginger, grated ginger
Golden spice
Cumin seeds
Curry leaves
Creamy coconut
Canned chickpeas
Fresh basil, with more for garnish
4 eggs
Fresh chilies, finely sliced, as garnish

Heat a cast-iron pan on a medium-high heat. Pour in some oil, add the chopped onion and a pinch of salt, fry until softened. Incorporate aromatics and spices, let them sizzle, mixing now and then briefly, add coconut milk along with chickpeas and liquid. Heat until boiling, then turn down to a simmer, let it simmer about 35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Add salt to taste, then stir in the basil leaves.

With a spoon’s back forming small wells across the base, then crack an egg into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, then cover the pan with a lid, gently heat for two to three minutes, until egg whites firm and the yolks just warm. Take off the heat, finish with a few extra basil leaves plus chili slices, ready to enjoy.

Merguez Ragu with Tangy Peppers Steamed Eggs

Prep 10 min
Cook Under an hour
Yields 2

Olive oil
Spicy lamb sausages
1 tbsp harissa
Cumin seeds
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
Tomato base
Seasoning
Four eggs
Tangy peppers, diced
1 small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, diced
Greek yogurt
1 lemon, sliced into wedges, as garnish

Set a 25cm heavy cast-iron pot at moderate temperature. Pour in oil when heated, remove the skins from the sausages and pinch small amounts adding to pan, like mini balls. Reduce heat, brown the meat slowly, so it renders out all that spicy, flavour-packed fat. Roll the merguez pieces around the pan while cooking, to brown evenly.

When golden, add the harissa, cumin seeds and sliced garlic to the pan, increase to medium heat sauté while stirring, for several minutes, until the mix smells fragrant, with garlic cooked. Tip in the tomatoes, add seasoning and bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat to low and simmer slowly for twenty minutes. Sauce will thicken, thicken and deepen in colour, with oils separating and surfacing.

Use the back of a spoon to create four little pockets in the sauce, then crack an egg into each. Dust with salt with a little salt, cover skillet. Cook for two to three minutes gently, until whites firm with yolks runny.

Take off the heat, top with pickled peppers, herbs, yogurt dollop, plus oil drizzle, accompanied by lemon.