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Consider this: the best baked eggs are made without baking. Through culinary experiments, I found that simply adding a lid produces a humid atmosphere for cooking the egg tops, resulting in perfectly cooked delicately prepared egg featuring set whites and a warm, runny yolk. The harsh, arid temperature in conventional ovens is much more aggressive versus moist heat, and has a tendency to dry everything out and harden the yolk. Here are two sauce options as inspiration, encouraging customization. The first features an easy golden coconut sauce, and the second offers a merguez ragu reimagines classic tomato-baked eggs, or simply put, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Turmeric Coconut Curry Steamed Eggs (featured)

Prep 10 minutes
Cooking time Just under an hour
Serves 2

Olive oil
One medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
Sea salt
Two garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
10g fresh ginger, grated ginger
Turmeric powder
Cumin seeds
Aromatic leaves
200ml coconut milk
Canned chickpeas
Basil leaves, plus extra to serve
4 eggs
Green chilies, finely sliced, to serve

Use a heavy skillet on a medium-high heat. Drizzle olive oil, incorporate onions seasoned with salt, sauté for several minutes. Mix in garlic, ginger, and spices, allow to cook, stirring occasionally for three to four minutes, then tip in the coconut milk including chickpea can contents. Heat until boiling, lower heat to gentle cook, and leave it to tick over about 35 minutes, until thickened and deep yellow in colour. Adjust seasoning, then stir in the basil leaves.

Employ a utensil making four indentations across the base, add eggs individually. Sprinkle the top of each egg lightly salted, cover the skillet, gently heat for two to three minutes, when whites are cooked with yolks still runny. Remove from heat, finish with a few extra basil leaves and thinly sliced finger chillies, and serve.

Spicy Sausage Sauce and Pickled Peppers Baked Eggs

Prep Quick prep
Cook Under an hour
Yields 2

Oil
Merguez sausages
Harissa paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
Garlic cloves, minced garlic
Tomato base
Salt
Fresh eggs
Pickled peppers, diced
Chopped herbs, finely chopped
Greek yogurt
1 lemon, sliced into wedges, to serve

Use a heavy pan at moderate temperature. Pour in oil once hot, take off sausage casings and break off pieces of the meat into the pan, resembling tiny meatballs. Reduce heat, cook until golden, so it renders out all that spicy, flavour-packed fat. Move sausage pieces as they cook, to brown evenly.

Once browned, incorporate harissa, cumin, and garlic into the skillet, turn up the heat to medium sauté while stirring, for several minutes, when fragrant, and garlic softens. Tip in the tomatoes, add seasoning heat to simmer. Turn down the heat to low and leave to blip away about 20 minutes. Sauce will thicken, thicken and deepen in colour, while the oils split and rise to the top.

Use the back of a spoon to create four little pockets in the sauce, break eggs in. Season eggs lightly salted, cover skillet. Simmer briefly on low flame, until whites firm and yolks warmed.

Turn off stove, top with pickled peppers, parsley and yogurt, and a drizzle of oil, with lemon on side.