Learn how to make a classic French omelette. With just eggs, butter and a little practice you can master this divine omelette that is as elegant as it is simple. No cream, no fillings! Just the delicate flavour of eggs wrapped up in a smooth, buttery fold. Master this timeless French recipe that takes only minutes to make.
About This French Omelette
A French omelette is a thing of simple beauty. It requires just 2 ingredients but is all about skill. It is one of those things to keep up your sleeve for when you want a quick, delicious and simple meal.
A French omelette is different from a rustic omelette. A French omelette is all about the smooth finish, pale, creamy yellow exterior shaped into an almond or cigar shape. Typically it has no filling which means that you really taste the eggs and butter but you can fill it with cheese just before rolling it up. It is typically cooked on a low heat so that the omelette doesn't brown and retains a pale yellow colour.
The bad news? It takes practice to make a French omelette! I made around a dozen French omelettes until I was happy with mine. Most of the practise has to do with the heat setting but I'll share with you my tips for making a perfect one.
The good news? It will still taste delicious even while you're practising the roll. Mr NQN was super happy during omelette testing week!
Video Guide To Making a French Omelette
Video of how to make a French Omelette and The Bear Version
Tips For Making A French Omelette
1 - The best investment you can make if you love omelettes is an omelette pan which is smaller than a typical skillet. There is a lot of debate about what pan surface to use but I recommend a non stick omelette pan - 20cm or 8inches is perfect for a 3 egg omelette. This is the frying pan that I have and I also used it to make the Golden Diner pancakes. You want to avoid using a pan with scratches or with poor non stick as the omelette won't glide off it.
2 - In some restaurant kitchens, they only make omelettes using a specific omelette pan so that it is kept in pristine condition. I only use silicon spatulas so that I don't scratch the surface anyway and while a lot of French omelettes are made using a metal fork, I used wooden chopsticks to keep the non stick surface as intact as possible.
3 - I use room temperature eggs. I find cold eggs take longer to cook up and set on top while it browns on the bottom.
4 - Don't add too much butter, especially if your pan is new and already very non stick. Otherwise it can be hard to roll your omelette as it keeps sliding! I found this out the hard way lol.
5 - You want the top to cook to slightly set the omelette for easier rolling so I add a lid on top of the frying pan for 45 seconds to 1 minute.
6 - The temperature of the pan is very important. You want to keep it on low medium heat - on my electric hot plate the rating I cook it on is 4 out of 22 so that is low! Otherwise the omelette will have a bit of browning. I promise everyone's first omelette ends up a bit brown because of this and it's still delicious ;)
7 - I love adding chives - just a couple of teaspoons makes the omelette delicious. A fines herbes omelette is a popular variety of French omelette and includes soft herbs like parsley, chives, tarragon and chervil. I don't often have all of these herbs but always have chives so I use those.
8 - Other ideas: In the TV show The Bear, Chef Sydney Adamu (played by the amazing Ayo Edebiri) makes a French omelette with chives, Boursin cheese and potato chips on top which is SO good! Or serve your omelette with gravlax on the side. You can also add grated cheese to it just before you roll it up. One 77g/2.7oz packet of Boursin is enough to fill 2 omelettes and one small bag of chips is enough for 2-3 omelettes. The video goes into more detail of how to make this version.
9 - The inside of a French omelette can be soft and gooey but it depends on your preference if you want to cook it all the way through.
French Omelette Recipe
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Step 1 - Crack the eggs into a sieve placed above a bowl. Start whisking the eggs through the sieve catching any stubborn bits of egg whites before switching to a silicon spatula to push the last bits of egg white through. Add a good grind of salt as well as white pepper and chives.
Step 2 - Heat a frying pan on low medium heat (around 120C/248F, I heat it while sieving the eggs). Add the butter - it should melt but it shouldn't brown at that temperature. Add in the omelette mixture and let sit for 30-60 seconds. Then using wooden chopsticks start scrambling the eggs until curds start to form. Stop when you have some curds and let the base of the omelette form. Place a lid on top of the pan for 45 seconds to 1 minute to set the top of the omelette - the length of time depends on whether you want it gooey in the centre.
Step 3 - Tilt the pan at a 45 degree angle and start rolling the omelette from the top down. I sometimes use my fingers to fold it over (it's not that hot). Roll up into a cigar and then place seam side down on a plate. Rub the surface with extra butter. Sprinkle more chives on top.
Piping bag with Boursin
UPGRADE: To make a version like The Bear, soften the Boursin cheese by leaving it out on the bench for an hour or microwaving it on 30% power for 15 seconds until soft. Place in a piping bag and pipe a log of the cheese at the top of the pan just before rolling the omelette. Sprinkle with crushed potato chips just before serving.
Omelette rubbed with butter
Substitution notes and ingredients:
You can sub any sort of soft herbs for the chives. Parsley, chives, tarragon and chervil are often used. Or you can leave this omelette plain.
I like using white pepper so that the omelette keeps its pale yellow colour. You can also grind black pepper over the omelette at the end.
I use salted butter, always, but you use unsalted if you prefer! But with so few ingredients I will say that you do need to season it well.
Eggs, sorry there's no sub for these! ;)
Personal Note
I made a dozen omelettes before I had one that I considered perfect. After the 10th chive omelette I decided that I had to try The Bear's version filled with Boursin and sprinkled with crushed potato chips. I ordered some Boursin in my supermarket delivery and I already had a big box of chips.
One thing that I cannot have in the house are chips. I am unable to resist them so normally there are no chips in the house. But a few days earlier our groceries arrived. They usually don't ring the doorbell but this time they did but I just took my time as we have a note that they can leave it by the door. I was in my pyjamas and not in any mood to greet anyone as I had just woken up so slowly I made my way downstairs stopping to start a cup of tea.
I opened the door but saw that the driver was still in his truck outside. I didn't want to open the door to get my groceries because I looked terrible (it was when I was sick) so I flattened my back against the wall hiding behind the screen door. I waited but he was taking a while so I popped my head around to see what he was doing. I'm a little bit shortsighted but I could see that he was filling in some paperwork. Then he looked over at me and I swear that he waved. I didn't think he could even see more pressed against the wall like a weirdo.
I wondered what was going on and looked down and saw a big variety box of chips on the landing along with our other groceries. I hadn't ordered them so after he left I kept them by the door in case he came back. He never did and I'm glad that I had the chips for this omelette. I still don't know if he waved or not but I'm happy about the chips!
So tell me Dear Reader, do you like French omelettes? Have you ever tried making one?
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