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Let me explain: the best baked eggs never require an oven. During recipe development, I found that simply adding a lid produces a humid atmosphere to cook the top of the eggs, delivering a gently cooked delicately prepared egg with a tender white and flowing center. Direct oven heat in conventional ovens proves harsher versus moist heat, often leading making dishes dry resulting in firm yolks. I’ve given you two sauces as a jumping-off point, though feel free to experiment. Option one involves a straightforward golden coconut sauce, while the merguez ragu puts a twist on classic tomato-baked eggs, or, to the likes of you and me, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Golden Coconut Sauce Baked Eggs (shown above)

Preparation A quick 10 minutes
Cooking time 55 minutes
Yields 2

Olive oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
Salt
Two garlic cloves, minced garlic
Fresh ginger root, minced ginger
Golden spice
Cumin seeds
Curry leaves
Creamy coconut
Chickpeas
Basil leaves, with more for garnish
Fresh eggs
Green chilies, thinly cut, to serve

Set a 25cm heavy cast-iron pot on a medium-high heat. Add a shot of olive oil, toss in the onion and a pinch of salt, sauté for several minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and curry leaves, leave to sizzle, mixing now and then briefly, then tip in the coconut milk along with chickpeas and liquid. Let it bubble, then turn down to a simmer, and leave it to tick over for half an hour, until thickened and deep yellow in colour. Add salt to taste, mix in fresh basil.

Use the back of a spoon forming small wells in the sauce, add eggs individually. Dust each egg with salt, cover the skillet, and cook on a low heat for two to three minutes, when whites are cooked and the yolks just warm. Remove from heat, garnish with more basil plus chili slices, then serve immediately.

Spicy Sausage Sauce and Pickled Peppers Baked Eggs

Prep Quick prep
Cooking time 45 minutes
Serves Two portions

Oil
2 merguez-style lamb sausages
Spicy paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
Garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
400g good-quality tinned tomatoes
Salt
Fresh eggs
1 handful pickled peppers, diced
Chopped herbs, finely chopped
3 tbsp thick Greek yoghurt
1 lemon, wedge-cut, for serving

Heat a skillet at moderate temperature. Drizzle olive oil when heated, take off sausage casings forming small bits adding to pan, almost like little meatballs. Reduce heat, then slowly brown the sausagemeat, releasing flavorful oils. Move sausage pieces during cooking, to brown evenly.

Once browned, mix in spices and garlic to the pot, increase to medium heat sauté while stirring, for several minutes, until the mix smells fragrant, and garlic softens. Tip in the tomatoes, salt to taste heat to simmer. Reduce to low heat cooking gently about 20 minutes. Ragu thickens, thicken and deepen in colour, with oils separating and surfacing.

Employ utensil forming wells in the sauce, add eggs individually. Season eggs with a little salt, place lid on pan. Simmer briefly on low flame, when eggs set and the yolks just warm.

Turn off stove, garnish with peppers, parsley and yogurt, and a drizzle of oil, and serve with lemon wedges.