🔗 Share this article

So, hear me out: the best baked eggs don’t ever hit the oven. Through culinary experiments, I found that simply adding a lid produces a humid atmosphere to cook the top of the eggs, delivering a gently cooked soft-cooked egg featuring set whites plus liquid yolk. The harsh, arid temperature in conventional ovens is much more aggressive than steam, typically causing making dishes dry resulting in firm yolks. Presenting two flavorful bases as inspiration, but get creative. One is a super-simple golden coconut sauce, whereas the spicy sausage sauce reimagines classic tomato-baked eggs, or, to the likes of you and me, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Golden Coconut Sauce Baked Eggs (pictured above)

Prep 10 min
Cook Just under an hour
Serves 2

Extra virgin oil
One medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
Salt
Two garlic cloves, minced garlic
Fresh ginger root, grated ginger
1 tbsp ground turmeric
Toasted cumin
Aromatic leaves
Creamy coconut
400g tin chickpeas
Fresh basil, with more for garnish
Four eggs
2 green finger chillies, thinly cut, as garnish

Heat a cast-iron pan on a medium-high heat. Add a shot of olive oil, add the chopped onion and a pinch of salt, sauté for several minutes. Mix in garlic, ginger, and spices, leave to sizzle, occasionally stirring for three to four minutes, add coconut milk and the chickpeas and their tin liquid. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer, and leave it to tick over for 30-35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Adjust seasoning, then stir in the basil leaves.

Use the back of a spoon to create four little pockets within the sauce, then crack an egg into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, place a lid on the pan, gently heat briefly, until egg whites firm and the yolks just warm. Turn off stove, garnish with more basil plus chili slices, and serve.

Merguez Ragu and Pickled Peppers Steamed Eggs

Preparation 10 min
Cook Under an hour
Serves 2

Olive oil
Spicy lamb sausages
1 tbsp harissa
Toasted cumin
Garlic cloves, minced garlic
Canned tomatoes
Salt
Fresh eggs
Tangy peppers, diced
1 small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
Creamy yogurt
1 lemon, wedge-cut, for serving

Heat a skillet on a medium heat. Pour in oil once hot, remove the skins from the sausages forming small bits adding to pan, almost like little meatballs. Reduce heat, brown the meat slowly, releasing flavorful oils. 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, and garlic softens. Add tomatoes, salt to taste and bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat to low and leave to blip away for 20 minutes. The ragu will reduce, thicken and deepen in colour, with oils separating and surfacing.

Use the back of a spoon to create four little pockets across base, then crack an egg into each. Dust with salt lightly salted, place lid on pan. Cook for two to three minutes over a low heat, until whites firm and the yolks just warm.

Remove from heat, finish with chopped pickled peppers, herbs, yogurt dollop, and a drizzle of oil, accompanied by lemon.