Friday, April 16, 2010

Eat This: My Most Favorite Ever Omelet

Have you noticed that I am an ardent lover of breakfast? It is the best meal of the day--and weekend breakfasts are something to be looked forward to, at least at my house.

But, are you maybe a little like me in that you really like a good omelet but fear making one for yourself? I mean, all that egg swishing around in the pan, and then the folding, and the desperate attempt to get it out of the pan whole? Yeah, it can be intimidating. I am still no expert, but I have worked on omelet making a bit over the years. The two things I have found to be essential are using a good, un-abused non-stick pan (in my house, that means the non-stick pan that Mr Beeper is not allowed to touch, ever), and just babysitting the damn thing the whole time it is in the pan--never, ever leave that omelet unattended. And with that, I believe a decent omelet can be produced.

So, I want to show you my omelet-making technique, in case you might want to know--and then share my all-time, most favorite omelet recipe with you.
Here's the deal--get your 3 eggs all whisked together with whatever seasonings you might want to add (I just like salt and a few grinds of pepper--but herbs are lovely here too), then heat about 1/2 tablespoon of butter in your omelet pan over medium-high heat. Swirl the butter around the pan, once melted, pour in your eggs...then let them sit there for several seconds. As soon as they start to firm up around the edges, push the edges back and tilt the pan so any runny, uncooked eggs on top, run to the side and bottom of the pan (you can also use your spatula to gently push the soft eggs over to the edge of the pan)--then keep on doing this until you have essentially gotten most of the runny parts cooked . The key is to try to get the runny eggs over to make contact with the pan so they can cook, while keeping the cooked eggs whole and untorn.
Now, while the eggs are still just a tad soft on top, pile your omelet ingredients on one half of your eggs, then using a spatula, carefully flip the other half of the eggs over the top of the ingredients. You can turn off your heat now, but just leave the omelet sitting there for 30 seconds or so to let your filling warm and any cheese melt. (NOTE: my fave omelet does not include any ingredients that require sauteing in advance, but yours may--so insure you have those cooked and ready before you start the egg part of your omelet).
Now, take a deep and courageous breath and slide that omelet from your pan onto your plate in one smooth movement. Help it along with your spatula, if you must. Eat immediately because an omelet never gets better with age, in my opinion (that said, I will admit, sometimes we do put one on a plate in a warm oven until the other is done so Mr Beeper and I can sit down to eat our omelets together)

And here, is my favorite omelet recipe, for those who might like to give it a try:

Happy weekend breakfasting.

8 comments:

Diane Mars said...

That looks so yummy I would love to have a taste of that right this minute! Hugs, Diane

Sara Jane said...

Good tricks! I'm now determined to master this art form before the hubby returns in a couple months. He loves a good omelet! Plenty of time right? =]

Thanks!

Susan J Barker said...

I saw Julia Child do a show on PBS, many many moons ago and have used her technique for omelet making ever since - just like yours. Sad to say though I am the ONLY one in my house who eats eggs as eggs, everyone else seems to fear eggs, but like sponge cake,with lots of eggs in it....

Rachel said...

Awesome I will give it a try, my husband always teases me becasue I always seem to ruin eggs. LOL

http://rachelslittlenook.blogspot.com/

Rae said...

Ooh yum!! Thanks for sharing. I love omelettes lots and lots. :)

Holly said...

I had no idea I was using the Julia Child omelet technique--here I thought it was something I personally evolved through trial and error...but good to know Julia and I are on the same page with our technique...

Monique said...

You should see if you can get the Julia Child PBS omlet show on Utube. It is wonderful! It changed my breakfast related life. If I remember correctly, it was from this show that I learned to wiggle and shake the pan as the eggs start to set up. All of the liquidy bits cook without having to push things around and it keeps the omlet loose for easier folding.

Silvia LGD (Little Green Doll) said...

Mmmm! It looks so tasty!!!