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So, hear me out: the most delicious egg dishes never require an oven. During recipe development, discovering that covering the pan generates steam that gently cooks the eggs, yielding tender delicately prepared egg with a tender white and flowing center. The intense, dry heat from baking is much more aggressive than steam, typically causing to dry everything out and overcook the yolk. Presenting two flavorful bases to get started, though feel free to experiment. The first features an easy coconut turmeric blend, whereas the spicy sausage sauce reimagines eggs in purgatory, or simply put, spicy tomato eggs.

Golden Coconut Sauce Baked Eggs (shown above)

Prep A quick 10 minutes
Cooking time 55 min
Serves Two people

Olive oil
One medium onion, trimmed and minced
Salt
2 garlic cloves, minced garlic
10g fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 tbsp ground turmeric
Toasted cumin
6-8 curry leaves
Creamy coconut
Chickpeas
Fresh basil, plus extra to serve
4 eggs
2 green finger chillies, julienned, as garnish

Use a heavy skillet on a medium-high heat. Drizzle olive oil, add the chopped onion and a pinch of salt, and cook for five to six minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and curry leaves, let them sizzle, stirring occasionally for three to four minutes, pour in creamy liquid and the chickpeas and their tin liquid. Let it bubble, then turn down to a simmer, allow to cook slowly about 35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Adjust seasoning, then stir in the basil leaves.

Employ a utensil to create four little pockets in the sauce, then crack an egg into each. Season eggs with a little salt, place a lid on the pan, simmer over low heat for two to three minutes, until the whites are set and yolks warmed. Remove from heat, top with fresh herbs and thinly sliced finger chillies, then serve immediately.

Spicy Sausage Sauce with Tangy Peppers Steamed Eggs

Prep Quick prep
Cooking time Under an hour
Yields 2

Oil
2 merguez-style lamb sausages
Spicy paste
Toasted cumin
Garlic cloves, minced garlic
400g good-quality tinned tomatoes
Fine sea salt
Fresh eggs
1 handful pickled peppers, diced
Chopped herbs, diced
Creamy yogurt
1 lemon, wedge-cut, as garnish

Use a heavy pan at moderate temperature. Pour in oil when heated, remove the skins from the sausages and break off pieces into the skillet, resembling tiny meatballs. Turn down the heat, then slowly brown the sausagemeat, releasing flavorful oils. Stir merguez as they cook, for even browning.

Once browned, incorporate harissa, cumin, and garlic into the skillet, increase to medium heat and cook, stirring, for three to four minutes, until aromatic, and garlic softens. Add tomatoes, salt to taste and bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat to low and leave to blip away about 20 minutes. Sauce will thicken, intensify in color, as oils separate.

With a spoon making indentations in the sauce, then crack an egg into each. Sprinkle the top of each egg with a little salt, then cover the pan with a lid. Heat for minutes gently, until whites firm and the yolks just warm.

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