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So, hear me out: 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, resulting in perfectly cooked soft-cooked egg with a tender white and flowing center. The harsh, arid temperature of the oven acts stronger than steam, typically causing to dehydrate ingredients and harden the yolk. I’ve given you two sauces as a jumping-off point, though feel free to experiment. Option one involves a straightforward turmeric coconut curry, whereas the spicy sausage sauce reimagines eggs in purgatory, essentially, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Golden Coconut Sauce Steamed Eggs (pictured above)

Preparation 10 minutes
Cook Just under an hour
Yields 2

Olive oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
Salt
2 garlic cloves, minced garlic
Fresh ginger root, minced ginger
1 tbsp ground turmeric
Toasted cumin
6-8 curry leaves
200ml coconut milk
Chickpeas
Basil leaves, and additional for topping
Fresh eggs
Fresh chilies, julienned, as garnish

Heat a cast-iron pan over medium-high flame. Drizzle olive oil, toss in the onion seasoned with salt, and cook for five to six minutes. Incorporate aromatics and spices, leave to sizzle, mixing now and then for a few minutes, pour in creamy liquid along with chickpeas and liquid. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, allow to cook slowly for 30-35 minutes, until thickened and deep yellow in colour. Adjust seasoning, mix in fresh basil.

With a spoon’s back forming small wells within the sauce, add eggs individually. Dust each egg with salt, cover the skillet, and cook on a low heat for two to three minutes, until the whites are set with yolks still runny. Take off the heat, finish with a few extra basil leaves and sliced chilies, and serve.

Merguez Ragu and Pickled Peppers Baked Eggs

Prep Quick prep
Cooking time Under an hour
Yields Two

Olive oil
2 merguez-style lamb sausages
Spicy paste
Toasted cumin
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
400g good-quality tinned tomatoes
Salt
4 eggs
Tangy peppers, roughly chopped
Chopped herbs, finely chopped
Creamy yogurt
1 lemon, wedge-cut, as garnish

Use a heavy pan at moderate temperature. Pour in oil when heated, peel sausages forming small bits of the meat into the pan, like mini balls. Turn down the heat, cook until golden, extracting spicy fats. Stir merguez while cooking, to brown evenly.

When golden, mix in spices and garlic into the skillet, increase to medium heat fry with mixing, briefly, when fragrant, with garlic cooked. Add tomatoes, season with salt heat to simmer. Reduce to low heat and leave to blip away about 20 minutes. The ragu will reduce, thicken and deepen in colour, with oils separating and surfacing.

Use the back of a spoon forming wells across base, then crack an egg into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, cover skillet. Heat for minutes over a low heat, until whites firm and yolks warmed.

Remove from heat, top with pickled peppers, parsley, a blob of yoghurt, and oil splash, and serve with lemon wedges.