Coconut Turmeric Curry and Merguez Ragu: Ben Lippett's Oven-Free Egg Dishes Cooking Methods

So, hear me out: the best baked eggs are made without baking. When testing these recipes, discovering that covering the pan produces a humid atmosphere that gently cooks the eggs, resulting in perfectly cooked delicately prepared egg featuring set whites plus liquid yolk. The intense, dry heat of the oven is much more aggressive versus moist heat, often leading to dehydrate ingredients and harden the yolk. I’ve given you two sauces as a jumping-off point, encouraging customization. One is a super-simple coconut turmeric blend, and the second offers a merguez ragu is a riff on classic tomato-baked eggs, or, to the likes of you and me, eggs cooked in zesty tomato base.

Golden Coconut Sauce Steamed Eggs (pictured above)

Preparation 10 minutes
Cook 55 minutes
Serves 2

Olive oil
1 onion, trimmed and minced
Salt
Two garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
Fresh ginger root, peeled and finely chopped
1 tbsp ground turmeric
Toasted cumin
6-8 curry leaves
Creamy coconut
400g tin chickpeas
A few basil leaves, plus extra to serve
Four eggs
Fresh chilies, thinly cut, as garnish

Use a heavy skillet over medium-high flame. Drizzle olive oil, add the chopped onion and a pinch of salt, fry until softened. Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin seeds and curry leaves, let them sizzle, mixing now and then for three to four minutes, then tip in the coconut milk including chickpea can contents. Heat until boiling, reduce to a simmer, let it simmer about 35 minutes, when sauce is rich and yellow. Season with salt, mix in fresh basil.

With a spoon’s back making four indentations in the sauce, add eggs individually. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, cover the skillet, gently heat briefly, when whites are cooked and the yolks just warm. Turn off stove, garnish with more basil plus chili slices, and serve.

Spicy Sausage Sauce with Tangy Peppers Baked Eggs

Prep 10 minutes
Cook Under an hour
Serves 2

Olive oil
2 merguez-style lamb sausages
Harissa paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
400g good-quality tinned tomatoes
Seasoning
Four eggs
Pickled peppers, coarsely cut
1 small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, minced
Greek yogurt
1 lemon, sliced into wedges, for serving

Heat a skillet over medium flame. Drizzle olive oil and, once it’s warm, peel sausages and pinch small amounts into the skillet, like mini balls. Lower temperature, brown the meat slowly, so it renders out all that spicy, flavour-packed fat. Move sausage pieces as they cook, for even browning.

When golden, add the harissa, cumin seeds and sliced garlic to the pan, adjust to moderate flame and cook, stirring, for three to four minutes, when fragrant, and the garlic has lost its raw edge. Add tomatoes, add seasoning heat to simmer. Lower to gentle simmer and simmer slowly about 20 minutes. The ragu will reduce, become richer and darker, as oils separate.

Use the back of a spoon to create four little pockets across base, break eggs in. Sprinkle the top of each egg with salt, cover skillet. Cook for two to three minutes over a low heat, when eggs set and the yolks just warm.

Remove from heat, top with pickled peppers, parsley, a blob of yoghurt, plus oil drizzle, with lemon on side.