Pan of Eggs in Purgatory
(click to enlarge)

Eggs in Purgatory


Italy, South   -   Uova in Purgatorio
Serves:
Effort:
Sched:
DoAhead:  		 3 break
***
45 min
Part		 A brunch, lunch, or even a light supper. Very popular in southern Italy and amongst Italians in North America. It can be done ahead up to reheating and adding the eggs.

28
4
4
1/4

1
8
2
1
2/3
1
1/3
7
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ar
ar


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6
ar
oz
oz
cl
c

t
oz
T
T
c
t
t
lrg
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can Tomatoes (1)  
Onion
Garlic
Basil or
 1 T Rosemary
Chili Flake (2)
Tomato Sauce (3)
Olive Oil, ExtV
Fish Sauce (4)
Beans (option 6)
Salt
Pepper
Eggs
-- Garnish
Parmesan
Basil or
  Parsley

-- Toast
Bread (5)
Olive Oil, ExtV
Prep   -   (30 min - 7 min work)
  1. Chop or break up TOMATOES keeping all the juice. The sauce should have some texture, so not too fine.
  2. Chop ONION fine.
  3. Crush GARLIC and chop small.
  4. Chop BASIL small. Measure is after chopping lightly packed. IF using ROSEMARY chop fairly fine.
  5. Grate PARMESAN For Garnish.
  6. Shred BASIL and/or PARSLEY for Garnish.
  7. Toast BREAD by whatever means you have and brush with Olive Oil.
Run   -   (15 min)
  1. In a fairly deep 12 inch coverable pan (preferably non-stick), heat Olive Oil. Stir in Onions and fry stirring until translucent.
  2. Stir in Garlic just until fragrant.
  3. Stir in Basil or Rosemary and Chili Flake, then Tomato Sauce. Fry stirring for a couple of minutes.
  4. Stir in Tomatoes with their juice, and Fish Sauce. Simmer down until you have a soft sauce.
  5. Season with Salt and Pepper The sauce should finish with a texture where you can make dents in it and it will hold them for a few seconds.
  6. Take off the heat and let cool about 2 minutes.
  7. Crack an EGG into a small cup. Make sure the Yolk is intact. Make a deep dent in the Sauce near the edge of the pan. Pour in the Egg. It's OK if the White flows a little out of the dent. Repeat until you have 6 Eggs around the pan and 1 in the Center.
  8. Sprinkle the Eggs lightly with Salt. Scatter all Garnish items over the pan.
  9. Place back on the heat. Cover and bring back to a simmer over moderate heat. Simmer until the Whites are just set and the Yolks are still very runny.
  10. Take off the heat and serve immediately, spooning out plenty of sauce with an egg on top. Serve with Toast on the side. You can accompany it with more Parmesan and Herbs if you wish.
NOTES:

  1. Tomatoes:

      Canned Whole Tomatoes is what you want to use. Fresh will often have little flavor and take a long time to cook. Dice are too firm from Sodium Chloride. Crushed are too limp and tend to be watery.

  2. Chili Flake

      The Purgatory Sauce must have noticeable Chili Heat. I use Aleppo Mild for mixed company, Aleppo Extra Hot (which is not really very hot) if I know Chili tolerance is good. Beyond that, use whatever the market will bear. For mixed tolerance, go light on the Chili Powder and have a bottle of Tabasco Sauce on the table.

  3. Tomato Sauce:

      Some recipes use around 3 Tablespoons of Tomato Paste, but I hold a very simple Tomato Sauce to be superior. My favorite is Faraon "Spanish style" which comes in convenient 8 ounce cans, but other simple sauces will work fine. Some recipes call for neither Tomato Paste or Tomato Sauce.

  4. Fish Sauce:

      Essential to Imperial Rome, Fish Sauce is being revived in Italy, and chefs are learning how to use it. Here we presume the more available and less expensive Thai brands. If you are unfamiliar with it, see our Fish Sauce Introduction page.

  5. Toast

      The purpose of the toast is to dip into the runny Egg Yolks. Italian or French Bread work fine. My guests are good eaters, so I use fairly wide oval slices and cut them in half, one half to be eaten with each of two Eggs.

  6. Comments:

      If the recipe needs more substance for hungry guests, many recipes include cooked Cannellini Beans or Chickpeas, though I tend to use rinsed Black Beans - more appropriate for Purgatory.

  7. Health Considerations:

      Here in "over-regulated" California sickness from "undercooked" eggs is extremely rare and only associated with institutions that use egg pooling, but they should not be served to people who have compromised immune systems or very young children. If you live in a "business friendly" Red State, this recipe may not be appropriate.
  8. U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch tt=to taste ar=as required
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