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Consider this: the best baked eggs are made without baking. Through culinary experiments, discovering that covering the pan produces a humid atmosphere that gently cooks the eggs, resulting in perfectly cooked perfectly poached egg with firm whites plus liquid yolk. The harsh, arid temperature in conventional ovens proves harsher than steam, and has a tendency to dry everything out and overcook the yolk. Here are two sauce options as inspiration, but get creative. The first features an easy golden coconut sauce, while the merguez ragu puts a twist on traditional spicy eggs, or simply put, eggs baked in spicy tomato sauce.

Golden Coconut Sauce Baked Eggs (featured)

Prep 10 min
Cook 55 minutes
Yields Two servings

Olive oil
1 onion, skinned and diced
Sea salt
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
10g fresh ginger, minced ginger
1 tbsp ground turmeric
Cumin seeds
6-8 curry leaves
Coconut milk
400g tin chickpeas
A few basil leaves, and additional for topping
4 eggs
2 green finger chillies, finely sliced, to serve

Heat a cast-iron pan over medium-high flame. Drizzle olive oil, incorporate onions with some salt, and cook for five to six minutes. Mix in garlic, ginger, and spices, leave to sizzle, stirring occasionally for three to four minutes, then tip in the coconut milk including chickpea can contents. Bring to a boil, lower heat to gentle cook, let it simmer for 30-35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Adjust seasoning, incorporate basil.

Use the back of a spoon forming small wells in the sauce, break eggs into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, cover the skillet, simmer over low heat for a few minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks just warm. Take off the heat, finish with a few extra basil leaves and thinly sliced finger chillies, then serve immediately.

Merguez Ragu with Tangy Peppers Baked Eggs

Preparation 10 minutes
Cooking time Under an hour
Yields Two

Olive oil
Spicy lamb sausages
Spicy paste
Toasted cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced garlic
Tomato base
Fine sea salt
Fresh eggs
Tangy peppers, roughly chopped
Fresh parsley, minced
3 tbsp thick Greek yoghurt
1 lemon, sliced into wedges, to serve

Heat a skillet at moderate temperature. Drizzle olive oil and, once it’s warm, remove the skins from the sausages and pinch small amounts into the skillet, almost like little meatballs. Turn down the heat, then slowly brown the sausagemeat, releasing flavorful oils. Move sausage pieces while cooking, for even browning.

Once browned, incorporate harissa, cumin, and garlic to the pan, increase to medium heat and cook, stirring, for three to four minutes, until aromatic, and the garlic has lost its raw edge. Add tomatoes, add seasoning let it bubble. Turn down the heat to low and leave to blip away for twenty minutes. Ragu thickens, intensify in color, as oils separate.

Employ utensil making indentations across base, break eggs in. Sprinkle the top of each egg lightly salted, place lid on pan. Cook for two to three minutes over a low heat, until the whites are set and yolks warmed.

Take off the heat, top with pickled peppers, herbs, yogurt dollop, and oil splash, with lemon on side.