This is what I make when reserves are low in every sense of the word, and it’s a great way to use up the last bits of a few bunches of herbs. Omelettes are my ultimate quick dinner and one of my favourite meals – you can put a perfect one on the table in under 15 minutes.
I make my omelettes soft and curdy and just set, and I like them simply spiked with a generous amount of heady soft herbs. Sometimes I skip any filling, as I like the clean simplicity, and I serve mine with a shock of peppery rocket in a punchy vinaigrette. You can use whatever soft herbs you have to hand – my favourite combination is basil, mint, dill and tarragon. The quality of eggs you use here is absolutely key, there is no hiding, and you want the best you can get your hands on, organic or farm eggs with paint-pot yellow yolks.
Get all your ingredients and equipment together. You need a large non-stick frying pan. Crack your eggs into a bowl, add a healthy pinch of salt and a good bit of freshly ground black pepper and whisk with a fork. Finely chop all the herbs and add them to the eggs.
Heat your frying pan on a medium heat and once it’s hot add the butter or oil, allow it to bubble, then lift and tilt the pan so the butter covers the surface. Put it back on the hob, then, with the fork still nearby, pour the eggs into the pan and allow them to sit untouched for 20 seconds or so, until they begin to set. Now use the fork to pull the omelette away from the edge of the pan into the middle, angling the pan so the egg runs back into the bit you have just exposed. Do this another five or six times in different places so you have undulating waves of sunshine-yellow egg. Now leave your omelette to cook until it is almost set, which should take a minute or two.
If you are going to fill your omelette, now is the time. Scatter the fillings on one half of the omelette, then flip the other side over to form a half-moon shape and cook for another 30 seconds.
Your omelette should be just set in the middle, still soft and curdy, just turning golden in patches on the outside. Once it’s perfect, slide the omelette out of the pan on to a warm plate and serve immediately with a shock of dressed salad.
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