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Consider this: the most delicious egg dishes never require an oven. During recipe development, I found that simply adding a lid creates a steamy environment that gently cooks the eggs, yielding tender delicately prepared egg with firm whites and flowing center. Direct oven heat in conventional ovens proves harsher compared to steaming, often leading to dehydrate ingredients and harden the yolk. Presenting two flavorful bases as inspiration, but get creative. One is a super-simple turmeric coconut curry, whereas the spicy sausage sauce reimagines eggs in purgatory, or, to the likes of you and me, eggs baked in spicy tomato sauce.

Turmeric Coconut Curry Baked Eggs (shown above)

Preparation 10 minutes
Cook Just under an hour
Serves Two people

Extra virgin oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
Sea salt
2 garlic cloves, minced garlic
Fresh ginger root, grated ginger
Turmeric powder
½ tbsp cumin seeds
Aromatic leaves
200ml coconut milk
Chickpeas
Basil leaves, and additional for topping
Four eggs
Fresh chilies, julienned, to serve

Heat a cast-iron pan on a medium-high heat. Drizzle olive oil, add the chopped onion seasoned with salt, fry until softened. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and curry leaves, let them sizzle, occasionally stirring for a few minutes, pour in creamy liquid along with chickpeas and liquid. Heat until boiling, then turn down to a simmer, allow to cook slowly about 35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Adjust seasoning, mix in fresh basil.

Employ a utensil to create four little pockets across the base, break eggs into each. Dust each egg with salt, cover the skillet, gently heat for a few minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks just warm. Remove from heat, top with fresh herbs and thinly sliced finger chillies, ready to enjoy.

Spicy Sausage Sauce and Pickled Peppers Steamed Eggs

Preparation 10 minutes
Cook 45 min
Serves Two portions

Oil
Spicy lamb sausages
Spicy paste
Cumin seeds
2 garlic cloves, minced garlic
400g good-quality tinned tomatoes
Fine sea salt
4 eggs
Tangy peppers, roughly chopped
Fresh parsley, finely chopped
Creamy yogurt
Fresh lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Use a heavy pan at moderate temperature. Pour in oil and, once it’s warm, peel sausages and break off pieces adding to pan, like mini balls. Reduce heat, brown the meat slowly, so it renders out all that spicy, flavour-packed fat. Move sausage pieces during cooking, so they colour on all sides.

Once browned, mix in spices and garlic into the skillet, increase to medium heat and cook, stirring, briefly, when fragrant, and garlic softens. Pour in tomato contents, add seasoning let it bubble. Turn down the heat to low cooking gently for twenty minutes. Ragu thickens, thicken and deepen in colour, while the oils split and rise to the top.

Employ utensil forming wells in the sauce, add eggs individually. Season eggs lightly salted, then cover the pan with a lid. Cook for two to three minutes on low flame, until the whites are set and yolks warmed.

Take off the heat, garnish with peppers, parsley and yogurt, plus oil drizzle, accompanied by lemon.