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Consider this: the best baked eggs don’t ever hit the oven. Through culinary experiments, I found that simply adding a lid creates a steamy environment that gently cooks the eggs, yielding tender soft-cooked egg featuring set whites and flowing center. Direct oven heat of the oven is much more aggressive compared to steaming, and has a tendency making dishes dry and overcook the yolk. Here are two sauce options as inspiration, but get creative. One is a super-simple turmeric coconut curry, whereas the spicy sausage sauce reimagines traditional spicy eggs, or simply put, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Turmeric Coconut Curry Steamed Eggs (pictured above)

Prep 10 min
Cooking time 55 min
Yields Two servings

Extra virgin oil
One medium onion, skinned and diced
Salt
Two garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
10g fresh ginger, minced ginger
Golden spice
Toasted cumin
Curry leaves
Creamy coconut
400g tin chickpeas
Fresh basil, plus extra to serve
4 eggs
Fresh chilies, thinly cut, to serve

Set a 25cm heavy cast-iron pot at moderate-high temperature. Pour in some oil, incorporate onions and a pinch of salt, fry until softened. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and curry leaves, allow to cook, occasionally stirring briefly, add coconut milk and the chickpeas and their tin liquid. Heat until boiling, reduce to a simmer, and leave it to tick over for half an hour, until thick and golden. Season with salt, incorporate basil.

Use the back of a spoon making four indentations across the base, break eggs into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg lightly salted, place a lid on the pan, gently heat for two to three minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks just warm. Take off the heat, top with fresh herbs and thinly sliced finger chillies, and serve.

Spicy Sausage Sauce and Pickled Peppers Baked Eggs

Prep 10 minutes
Cooking time 45 minutes
Serves 2

Oil
Spicy lamb sausages
Harissa paste
Toasted cumin
Garlic cloves, sliced thin
Tomato base
Seasoning
Fresh eggs
Tangy peppers, diced
Chopped herbs, finely chopped
Greek yogurt
Fresh lemon, wedge-cut, to serve

Heat a skillet at moderate temperature. Add two tablespoons of olive oil when heated, peel sausages and pinch small amounts of the meat into the pan, almost like little meatballs. Turn down the heat, brown the meat slowly, so it renders out all that spicy, flavour-packed fat. Move sausage pieces while cooking, so they colour on all sides.

When golden, mix in spices and garlic to the pot, adjust to moderate flame fry with mixing, for three to four minutes, when fragrant, and the garlic has lost its raw edge. Pour in tomato contents, season with salt and bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat to low and simmer slowly for 20 minutes. Sauce will thicken, intensify in color, while the oils split and rise to the top.

Use the back of a spoon making indentations within sauce, break eggs in. Sprinkle the top of each egg with a little salt, then cover the pan with a lid. Simmer briefly on low flame, when eggs set and yolks warmed.

Turn off stove, garnish with peppers, herbs, yogurt dollop, plus oil drizzle, with lemon on side.