What do you have in your home that can allow you to make a quick, nutritious, and inexpensive meal anytime of the day? The answer is an egg. An egg is a versatile that no kitchen should be without. It is used to make many different dishes but more importantly, it is the foundation of simple, easy to make, and cost effective meal the omelette.
An omelette can be made for any meal, incorporate your favourite toppings, and it is a fun and easy recipe to teach to children. It can be made as a stand alone meal or as a part of a larger meal. Best yet, an omelette allows you to get creative and to explore different tastes and textures.
On 12 January 2025, I ran a live stream on making an omelette and in this article, I will share the recipe and tips that are captured in the live stream. Finally, at the end of this article I will provide some FAQs about omelette making.
The basics of omelette making
Making an omelette is easy but it is the technique is challenging. The challenge lies in getting the temperature of the pan right, ingredients you are using, the quantity of ingredients you are using, keeping your eggs from sticking, and timing your eggs to keep them from overcooking.
Preparation for cooking your omelette
Before cooking your eggs it is important to have a clean pan. You may have washed it in your dishwasher but there is an unseen build up of carbon. What works well to remove built up carbon on the pan is to take some coarse koshers salt and using a paper towel, rub the salt throughout the pan. You will see the salt and towel turn black from removing the carbon build up. The pan should feel nice and smooth.
Next, when cooking your eggs, regardless of what you are making, your pan must be preheated and you should preheat no higher than medium heat. Otherwise, your eggs will stick and your butter will burn.
Once your pan is preheated, add your butter and let it melt completely.
Ingredients
In the above video I used:
Shredded mild yellow cheddar cheese to taste.
1 Thinly chopped white onion
1 Tomato chopped
1 package of bacon cooked in the oven
3 – 4 eggs
butter
10″ or 12″ frying pan
dash of salt
Making the omelette
During the video I mentioned there are two types of omelettes French and American. My style that I am showing, draws on both styles. However, the style I use comes from my years of making them and evolving my style. In my opinion, my style tends to lean towards the American style.
Preparing your ingredients for the omelette
The first step in making this omelette involves baking the bacon in a preheated oven at 400 degrees or 200 degrees Celsius until brown. To bake bacon in the oven, put the bacon on a broiler pan to allow the fat to drain off and to allow the bacon to cook. Depending on your oven and quantity of bacon, this is typically around 20 minutes and the bacon can be a little underdone since it will cook some more in the pan.
As you are waiting for the bacon to cook, chop your onions, tomato, shred your cheese and put them aside.
Once your bacon is browned, take it out, let it cool for a few minutes, and use a non-stick spatula to remove the bacon. Since the bacon should be crisp you can break it a part for larger pieces or use a sharp knife to make smaller bacon bits.
Cooking your omelette
Preheat your frying pan medium heat for a few minutes to have it warm up. Once it has preheated, momentarily remove it and add 2 tablespoons of butter and swirl the pan around to ensure the butter coats the pan. Turn down the heat to medium-low and add about half of the onions. With the onions in the pan, sprinkle a bit of salt on them and cook the onions until they feel soft with a fork. This will take a few minutes.
Once the onions have soften, add about 1/4 to of 1/2 the tomatoes, and cook for about 1 minute to soften the tomatoes. You want to avoid adding too many tomatoes since tomatoes are high in water and can make your omelette runny.
Now add the eggs, cheese and some of the bacon. Let the egg settle a little bit. Using a non-stick spatula, swirl the egg around the pan and lifting up the sides of the egg to allow the egg to go under and settle. After the egg has settled, using the non-stick spatula, fold a part of the edge inwards. This should only be no more then about a 1/3 inwards.
Wait a few moments and do it again, repeat until the omelette is completed folded, rolled. After you have fully rolled, folded the omelette, let it cook for about 1 – 2 minutes. Ever so, gently flip the omelette to the other side to allow it to cook. Do this for another 1 – 2 minutes.
Your omelette should be lightly brown and somewhat thin.
Slip the omelette off of the pan and onto your plate. Top with remaining ingredients.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can you add as sides to an omelette?
Depending on your taste and preference. Common sides include bacon, hash browns and toast for breakfast. For lunch or supper you may want to add a small steak, burger, or sandwich.
How much does it cost to make an omelette?
Eggs, at current prices, run about £3.60 of 12 large eggs or about 30p per egg and then your ingredients that you add. So for three eggs it is £0.90 and I estimate the cost of what I made is under £2.00
What can you add to an omelette?
You can add almost anything you want. However, you need to consider water content and quantity since these will impact your results. Omelettes work great for left-overs and if there are things in your fridge you want to eat. So, making an omelette can be a real money saver. Finally, you will need to consider pre-cooking some of your ingredients to soften them up. Otherwise you may find the egg cooks but the rest does not.
How can you involve children in making an omelette
Making an omelette is easy to teach to a child, especially pre-teen and onwards. Younger children you can involve by asking them what do they want to add to it. With parent supervision, get them to collect the ingredients and involve them in making it.
how long does it take to make an omelette?
A lot depends on what you are making and the preparation needed. However, to actually cook your omelette, I estimate no longer than 5 minutes and the live stream I did, was done in about 30 minutes.