Luan's 'perfect' omelette

An egg-cellent recipe. I'll have to ketchup on all of them.

I made this in class today. Does it look good? Recipe and instructions at the bottom of this post.

A perfect omelette is pale in colour. Any sign of brown means it's overcooked and becomes a fried egg. Mine's a bit rough on the edges but the shape is good. Folding it into half when it was still runny was the most tricky part. 'Gordon' walked in even though he's not the Executive Chef today and the kitchen atmosphere changed.  Some people make sure their presence is felt when they enter a room. Gordon is undoubtedly one of them.  

He walked towards my station just as I was about to fold the omelette. "Faster. Faster. Faster," he deliberately breathed down my neck and whispered. Gordon's way of egging someone on. Somehow with Gordon, even a whisper is as intimidating as his holler. I made a flash decision to ignore him and focus on the task at hand. A split-second prayer and I did it! No breakage. The chef in charge was pleased with my omelette and a few chaps came round to look at it. Gordon stared at me expressionless. Silence from him is a compliment, I decided, and went about my way.

Days later, Gordon told the class that eggs coagulate at 63.5C. The window to fold it is a matter of seconds, that's why he was egging me on. He said I almost missed that window of opportunity. Also, omelette is one of those things that is easy to cook but difficult to master and an elementary culinary student will never be tested on.

We learned to "close down" the kitchen, checking all safety equipment and washing and sanitizing all utensils. I want to go buy a sanitizer for my home kitchen. It has live enzymes that eat up bacteria. Just spray and leave them overnight. No wipes needed. Sorry to have this in a food post but I wanted to show you the sanitizer we use in school.

Well, this ends my second week in at-Sunrice. From here on, we will be in the kitchen much more now that we have passed the Food Handling Safety and Hygiene module and are certified food handlers deemed "Fit for the Kit" as I call it. Did I tell you I scored full marks for my Food Safety exams? 

I also heard from the grapevine we may be making a foie gras dish too in the coming weeks. How exciting. Unlike most corporate executives, I am looking forward to Monday.

Meanwhile, here's the recipe.

Omelette Recipe

4 servings

Ingredients:

1. 8 eggs (about 2-3 eggs per person)

2. 8 bacon strips, diced. (Or sliced mushroom or diced tomatoes for vegetarians. Or whatever you want to get rid of in your fridge.)

3. 120 ml milk (optional)

4. 30g chives, chopped. Leave a few long strands for garnishing

5. Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Heat non-stick pan with oil, cook bacon till crisp (I left out the oil as there is already animal fats in the bacon)

2. Remove bacon to paper towel to drain, discard drippings

3. In a small bowl, beat eggs with a whisk. Add milk, chives, salt, pepper and bacon

4. Add some oil and pour egg mixture into same pan. (Instead of oil, we used clarified butter, also called ghee in Asia. This is how we made it. I like it as it has a higher smoke point and doesn't burn easily.)
5. Cook over medium heat. As eggs set, about 40 seconds, lift edges, letting uncooked portion flow underneath. When eggs are set, about another 10 seconds, fold omelette into a semi-circle. It still looks runny and uncooked but this is when you have to remove it from the heat to maintain the pale colour. A few more seconds and it will turn brown, making it a fried egg instead. It is still cooking even when you remove it, so don't worry about it being raw.

See how Jamie Oliver does it and try it for your weekend breakfast.