Omelette To Go Recipes

Steps:

• Beat the eggs: Soak 3 large eggs for 5 minutes in hot-not scalding-tap water. This will ensure that the omelet cooks faster, and the faster an omelet cooks, the more tender it's going to be. Crack the eggs into a small bowl or large bowl-shaped coffee mug. Season with a pinch of fine salt. Beat the eggs gently with a fork.
• TIP: I prefer a fork to a whisk for omelets because I don't want to work air into the eggs: Air bubbles are insulators and can slow down cooking if you're not careful.
• Heat the pan: Heat a 10-inch nonstick saute pan over medium to high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon room-temperature unsalted butter. Once melted, spread the butter around the pan with a basting brush to ensure coverage.
• TIP: Heat your pan empty for a few minutes before adding the butter: Even a nonstick surface is pocked with microscopic pores that eggs can fill and grab hold of. Heat expands the metal, squeezing these openings shut.
• Add the eggs: Pour the eggs into the center of the pan and stir vigorously with a silicone spatula for 5 seconds. (Actually, it's not so much a matter of stirring with the spatula as holding the spatula relatively still and moving the pan around to stir the eggs.)
• Let them cook: As soon as curds begin to form (that's the stuff that looks like scrambled eggs), lift the pan and tilt it around until the excess liquid pours off the top of the curds and into the pan. Then use the spatula to shape the edge and make sure the omelet isn't sticking. Move the spatula around the edge of the egg mixture to help shape it into a round and loosen the edge. Then walk away. That's right-let that omelet sit unaccosted for 10 long seconds so it can develop a proper outer crust. Don't worry: Your patience will be rewarded.
• Finish the omelet: Time for the "jiggle" step: Simply shake the pan gently to make sure the omelet is indeed free of the pan. Lift up the far edge of the pan and snap it back toward you. Then use the spatula to fold over the one-third facing you.
• Change your grip on the pan handle from an overhand to an underhand and move to the plate, which you might want to lube with just a brief brushing of butter to make sure things don't bind up in transit. Slide the one-third farthest from you onto the plate and then ease the fold over. Imagine that you're making a tri-fold wallet out of eggs-because that's exactly what you're doing. And just ease the pan over. There, that wasn't so hard.

Steps:

• Make the rice: Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Add 1 tablespoon butter, and then onion and carrot. Cook, stirring, until onion is translucent and a little browned at the edges, about 3 minutes. Add ham and cook, stirring, until it begins to brown, about 30 seconds.
• Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter, and then rice, breaking it up with a wooden spoon or long chopsticks. Adjust heat to medium and cook until the grains are glossy, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in ketchup and soy sauce, and cook, stirring, another 30 seconds or so to caramelize. Stir in peas to heat through, and deglaze the pan with dashi or chicken stock. Remove from heat and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• To make a perfect mound of rice on each plate, grease a small bowl with canola or safflower oil and pack 1 cup of the rice. Invert this over a plate and remove the bowl. Repeat with the other half of the rice on a second plate.
• Make the omelet: In a small (6- or 7-inch) nonstick skillet (or a well-seasoned carbon steel omelet pan), heat 1/2 teaspoon oil, or just enough to coat the pan, over medium-high. Beat 2 eggs with 1/2 teaspoon dashi or water, until yolks and whites are completely blended. Season with salt and pepper.
• Pour the egg mixture into the heated pan. Shake and swirl the pan over the heat, stirring constantly with chopsticks or a fork as the eggs cook. When lots of small curds have formed and the eggs are custardy, about 30 seconds, let cook undisturbed until nearly set, about 30 seconds. Run a butter knife or small spatula around the edge of the omelet, and tap the pan firmly against the stove to release the omelet. Turn the omelet out onto the rice, custardy side down. Use a clean dish towel or paper towel to push the edges under the rice.
• Repeat with the other 2 eggs for the second omelet. Dress the omelets with a zigzag of ketchup (or a cute design if you've got a steady hand), and serve.

Steps:

• Season the beaten eggs well with salt and pepper. Heat the oil and butter in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-low heat until the butter has melted and is foaming.
• Pour the eggs into the pan, tilt the pan ever so slightly from one side to another to allow the eggs to swirl and cover the surface of the pan completely. Let the mixture cook for about 20 seconds then scrape a line through the middle with a spatula.
• Tilt the pan again to allow it to fill back up with the runny egg. Repeat once or twice more until the egg has just set.
• At this point you can fill the omelette with whatever you like - some grated cheese, sliced ham, fresh herbs, sautéed mushrooms or smoked salmon all work well. Scatter the filling over the top of the omelette and fold gently in half with the spatula. Slide onto a plate to serve.