Eggs in Purgatory is frankly one of the smartest uses for a jar of Corbarino tomatoes. Why? Look at it: this dish was invented to mop up all that tomato sauce with crusty bread.
This recipe is fast and honest. Use good ingredients? It’s gonna taste good. Use average ingredients? It’s gonna taste average. This recipe isn’t even slightly about technique, it’s all about the quality of your tomatoes.
This is a simple dish where the pomodoro is front and center. Each bite an explosion of juicy, sweet, candy-like Corbarino tomatoes and silky, savory eggs.
Eggs in Purgatory is a traditional recipe from Campania. No surprise, since Campania is tomato heaven. The original name is ova ‘impriatorio, and comes from the very poetic iconography of lost souls (egg whites) surrounded by flames (tomatoes). Well, you can’t say that Campania people lack imagination!
Corbarino tomato farmer Franco Vastola likes it for dinner, on the Gusti team we enjoy it for brunch. It doesn’t matter, as long as you eat it straight from the pan, with a sprinkle of grated cheese and some extra peperoncino. This is Italian scarpetta at its best.
