Your definition of Omelets

[quercus21]

Tell me what you call a omelet. I have travel around a bit in the New England states and Canada and have come across a few variations of the way omelets are made.
Say starting with just a plain cheese one. The way I make it, is to scramble the eggs, when cooked, cheese on top and after a bit, I'll fold half over on to it's self.
I have had:
Fried eggs with cheese on top.
Scrambled eggs with cheese on top.
Scrambled, twice fold with cheese on top and in the layers.
Scrambled, twice fold with cheese on top.

And to top it off: your definition of a "regular cup of coffee" - mine is just coffee, nothing else, plain coffee.

 

[welsummerchicks]

An omelet is different from scrambled eggs. Most people, what they do to make an omelet, is make scrambled eggs, and sort of 'leave 'em alone' a little bit so they kind of stick together. Then put something on top of it and fold it over.

Most restaurants, make what my SO calls, 'stationary scrambled eggs', too.

Scrambled eggs have milk or cream in them. Omelets do not. They are just eggs.

There are two basic ways to make omelets. One is to use whole eggs, and the other is to separate the eggs and beat the whites separately til they're forming peaks, and fold them in at the last minute. Some people say the omelet tastes better if the whites are beat by hand. So enter the monster whisk.

But that type puffs up more when it goes to the broiler. It works well if there are some herbs in the mixture.

An omelet has to be made in a non sticky pan. The whole thing has to be able to slide around all the time it is being cooked. The technique of cooking it on the stove is really important.

While in some countries I've seen people keep the eggs from sticking by putting in a huge amount of oil, so the egg mixture is actually kinda floating in oil, I think a better way is to use a really good pan. Otherwise the oil soaks in and adds a lot of calories. I used to keep one pan for omelets only - anyone who used it for anything else got in trouble. It was a really thick aluminum pan with a long, long wooden handle.

Usually what I do is I beat the whites and fold them in at the last minute, unless I'm in a big hurry. If I'm beating the whites separately, the first thing I do when I come in the kitchen, I turn on the broiler to high. The omelet cooks on top of the stove for about 30 seconds to a minute (best is to make a small omelet with 2-3 eggs so it cooks quickly). Then it can be topped with cheese or cheese sauce (or another sauce) and put under the broiler. The broiler melts and warms the sauce or cheese and puffs up the omelet.

Even if you don't separate the whites and beat them, the broiler still adds a lot of flavor.

I don't always fold it over because it's going to be so pretty after it goes under the broiler, especially if I sprinkle on some fresh herbs, capers, stuff like that. If I do fold it over, I fold and put something on top of it to make it look pretty - minced green onion, fresh parsley, something.

The most disgustingly delicious omelet I ever had, my SO and I were fighting over like Smeagel and his brother in the first few minutes of The Return of the King. It was folded over and broiled with a filling of fresh bruised thin strips of basil, garlic and mascarpone cheese. 'Give it to me because I wants it!' Another murder-worthy omelet was served us with orange sauce. Don't think so? Give it a try.

A 'regular cup of coffee' is non flavored, non specialty coffee beans without any foamed milk, ice, cinamon, nutmeg, flavored sugar syrup or other blah blah blah. Does it actually exist any more???

 

[WoodlandWoman]

I make mine the traditional way. Beaten eggs, a little water and just a bit of salt. Cook in an omelet pan with butter. When mostly cooked, add filling of whatever you want to half, flip the other half over the top and slide it onto a plate. When I make them, the garnish on top is a tiny bit of whatever is inside the omelet, plus usually a tiny bit of parsley or some other herb.

When I'm going to make multiple omelets, I beat all the eggs at once and put them in my gravy separator. Then I can easily pour the amount of egg I need into the pan each time. I also have all my filling ingredients prepped and sitting next to the stove.

I've noticed that restaurants like to fold omelets into thirds, rather than in half, most of the time. Diners usually do that thing where they put the filling over the whole thing and kind of scramble it into the eggs, then fold when it's done. Most places garnish it with something, but not always in diners.

To me a regular cup of coffee is plain brewed coffee with no fixins'.

 

[arabianequine]

Got to have veggies and meat in with lots of cheese. I really like a chilli omelet, chilli, onions, and cheese. I also like one with salad shrimp, cheese, onions, mushrooms, green pepper. I do put cream in it too just makes it fluffier tastes better too. I do fold it in half. You don't have to flip it to cook the top side if you put a tad of water in and put lid on it will cook the top side. Make sure you heat is low enough you don't brown your omelet. It should not have brown spots if it does it is technically burnt. It is still edible though. Buttered toast/English muffin....and no coffee yuck.

 

[debilorrah]

Good grief all that explanation for a silly three egg thingy with cheese inside and avocado on top.

 

[Illia]

Actually I find this all quite interesting. Y'see, I just "scramble" mine, then add cheese a tad after half-way through, then I'm done. No salt, no water, no milk, etc.

It's neat to see what is considered what though.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
OOOOh.. i'm gonna try an omlet with salad shrimp now... sounds goood!

 

[arabianequine]

Quote:
OOOOh.. i'm gonna try an omlet with salad shrimp now... sounds goood!

It is really good....but kinda rich so maybe easy on the cheese/shrimp. Let me know how you like it.

 

[Dunkopf]

I had an omelet at the Waffle House once. They threw the eggs in a blender for about 2 minutes. Then they cooked it in oil and put cheese on top. It was horrible. The eggs were so full of air pockets that they soaked up all the oil. GROSS. My DW makes them the best. Just mixes the eggs. Puts them in a non stick pan with some butter. Cooks till the egg is bubbling on top. Throws in whatever junk is desired and folds it over till it's done cooking. Then she sprinkles some cheddar on top and lets it melt a little. MMM Good

 

[justbugged]

Quote:
From what I understand your method is more like a Frittata. A few years back Cook illustrated had a recipe for one. It was very good. I must also admit that I have never added milk to scrambled eggs. I do use milk when make quiche. I also watched Julia Childs cook a omelet on YouTube. I have found a number of clips very useful in learning a few cooking tips. Jack Pepin was a great clip for learning how to de-bone a chicken.