Omelettes

While convalescing this past week, I noticed that the local PBS station was running some old "French Chef" episodes. (They usually run stuff like Andre Rieu or Peter, Paul, and Mary concerts which don't interest me.) I stuck it out through the begging and the "Julie and Julia" DVD tie-ins and was rewarded with an episode on roasting chicken and one on omelettes. I found the omelette one particularly enlightening. The first pan I owned was an omelette pan I received as a Christmas gift and I've made a lot of them since then. They were generally comparable to what you'd get at an American diner, with rather tough eggs and some kind of filling. Later on, I read that you could make them differently, on a very hot pan with very tender eggs as the result. Although I no longer eat them much, I've always been interested in learning that technique. It took about twenty seconds of watching Julia Child cook one to completely explain what I'd never understood from written descriptions. I tried one out yesterday and I was close but did not get my pan quite hot enough to cook the eggs properly. I'll try again in the next day or two.

Amazing what you can learn in a one quick demonstration.

Why is it that nobody ever cooks a full-sized om?

-Paul W.

What do you consider "full sized"??

Well, everything I've ever seen is a small om, or "omelette". So what's a full-sized om?

-Paul W.

Perhaps one made from a brace of goose eggs, or an ostrich egg?

Thanks for the interesting chase, Paul.

The word "omelette" is not a diminutive. The two most-likely derivations are (1) a Roman dish of eggs and honey named "ova melitta", or (2) old French "alumelle" which refers to the food's shape (like a thin plate).

Actually, one thing I learned from the demonstration was that I've been using pans that are too small. So now that I've moved up to an "om" pan, my omelettes should come out better.

Or something like that.

I wish that I had seen that, I do not have a good track record with omelettes. I would like to learn to make them well.

I wish that I had seen that, I do not have a good track record with omelettes. I would like to learn to make them well.

Buy the best eggs possible and don't overcook them and it is hard to go wrong!

At least taste-wise. Presentation requires a bit more technique but you can always fudge that.

Omelets are easy. Here's a video link to an old Julia Child making omelets: http://www.savory.tv/2009/09/18/julia-child-egg-recipes/ Do what she does and you can't go wrong.

That's interesting, Larry. According to the site you linked, she preferred cast iron skillets for omelettes. On the show I saw, she was using teflon-lined pans and stated that she thought they worked best. I wonder if the one I saw was a later show? (I can't really tell just by looking at her, but I think that might have been the case.) I guess a well-seasoned cast iron pan ought to work as well or better than a nonstick.

That's an older show. Whenever PBS is doing fundraising (thanks to Reagan), Julia comes on with a newer episode where she makes omelets in a teflon pan. Illustrated step-by-step directions are in her book, The Way to Cook. See if your library has a copy. If you have a good non-stick pan, it's so easy.

Mike,

Does she add any liquid to the eggs? I know some people do and some people do not.

I don't believe she does; I frequently add a bit of water.

I've been using a method described by de Pomaine in French Cooking in Ten Minutes (from 1930!) where, over high heat, you continually tip the pan (I use a 8" Calphalon) and allow the uncooked egg on top to fill in underneath the set portion. It makes a very fluffy omelet as the layers kind of pile upon each other.

my main frustration with omelettes is i don't flip well, so mine end up being like a mass of scrambled eggs with stuff hahahaha! but hey, it's the taste that counts right. i've noticed that a little smidgen of mustard in the egg sometimes helps give it more zing (if it goes with the filling, which more likely it will)

Actually, one thing I learned from the demonstration was that I've been using pans that are too small. So now that I've moved up to an "om" pan, my omelettes should come out better.

Or something like that.

I would think the amount of eggs would determine the size of the pan. I make two egg omelettes, now and then just for me and use my smallest size non-stick pan, which is 8 inches.

I would think the amount of eggs would determine the size of the pan. I make two egg omelettes, now and then just for me and use my smallest size non-stick pan, which is 8 inches.

She was recommending more along the lines of a 12" pan for a two egg omelette. The idea is that it stays very flat and thin for the thirty seconds or so that it cooks.

(Don't know, though - maybe you get the same effect with an 8" pan for two eggs.)