Cast Iron

Eggs in Purgatory With Capers & Parsley

by: Karen Palmer

June 8, 2017

4.3 6 Ratings

Photo by Bobbi Lin

Prep time 10 minutes
Cook time 40 minutes
Serves 4

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Author Notes

The tomato sauce I make is a cross between an arrabbiata, known for its chile flakes, and puttanesca, with its briny caper and anchovy flavors. If you don’t like capers, feel free to omit them. Because the capers and their juice already have a lot of salt, be careful to only add a very small pinch to the onions and the sauce, or you may end up with an over-salted dish.

Chances are you’ll think the eggs aren’t done when you take them out of the oven, but they should have just turned white and still be rather jiggly when you shake the pan. The eggs will continue to cook when you take them out of the oven, so overcook them even slightly, and the yolks will harden (which makes the dish a lot less fun).

Lastly, I like to fry my bread in a pan with a little olive oil on the stovetop, but you can toast thick slices in the oven for the last couple of minutes while the eggs are baking. Or hey, use a regular toaster or toaster oven—whatever floats your boat. —Karen Palmer

Test Kitchen-Approved

What You'll Need

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
1 pinch chile flakes
1 small onion, diced
Kosher salt, to taste
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon capers, plus 1 tablespoon of juice from the jar
Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
4 eggs
¹/₂ cup roughly chopped parsley, for garnish
Parmesan cheese, for garnish
Thick-cut toasted bread, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Heat the oil in an 8-inch cast-iron pan over medium heat. Sprinkle in the chile flakes and warm until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the onions, season them with a small pinch of salt, and cook until translucent, 7 minutes, stirring often and being careful not to burn them. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes more.
Add the crushed tomatoes, then stir in the capers and caper juice. Season with another small pinch of salt and cracked black pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the sauce has thickened and reduced slightly, 20 minutes. Take the sauce off the heat. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.
Using a wooden spoon, create 4 small wells in the sauce. Crack an egg into each well. Bake until the eggs have just turned white but still jiggle when you shake the pan, 9 to 10 minutes.
Season each egg with a little salt and pepper. Garnish the dish with the chopped parsley and Parmesan, and drizzle olive oil over the top. Serve immediately with thick slices of toasted bread for dipping.

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6 Reviews

whym January 9, 2025

This is so good! I’ll admit, I eyeballed the tomatoes— used what I had lying around— and probably the ratio of tomato-to-aromatics was half of what the recipe called for, but I thought that just made it even more delicious. I cooked two eggs in the sauce & saved the remainder to cook it again tomorrow. So yummy, the capers and tomatoes combine to create an almost meaty level of umami deliciousness. A fantastic vegetarian brunch!!

X June 30, 2017

This was great. Didn't add the juice from the (rinsed) capers or the salt to the onions because we don't like salty food and it was just right. Cooked the eggs well done and they were plenty "fun". Also cooked on the stove in a pan with a lid. Easy and a big hit all around.

krikri June 28, 2017

Delicious! Threw in a bunch of chickpeas that were languishing in the fridge. Need to work on my timing of baked eggs as these were slightly underdone, but never mind. We mixed it all together and it tasted great.

Etta F. June 26, 2017

I made it!! It turned out quite nice. I drained my 2 cans of 'diced' (already on hand) tomatoes a little. And, baked my eggs about 30 secs too long. Was wonderful!

Pisanella June 20, 2017

Delicious, but I find one 14oz tin of tomatoes does the trick adequately.

Suzanne H. June 18, 2017

This sounds so good. I can't wait to try it.

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