Masala omelette

The pan is cold when the egg goes in, and the heat comes on after.

Egg. Vegetarian, but not vegan — contains egg.

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1 onion, chopped very fine
• 2 green chillies, chopped fine
• a large handful of coriander leaves, chopped
• 1 tomato, chopped small and drained
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons oil

Method

1. THE PAN IS COLD WHEN THE EGG GOES IN, AND THE HEAT COMES ON AFTER. Its article says this twice, which is how you know it is not a slip: USUALLY THE SKILLET IS NOT WARMED MUCH BEFORE THE MIXTURE IS POURED IN AND IT DOES NOT IMMEDIATELY SOLIDIFY. THE STOVE IS USUALLY TURNED ON RIGHT BEFORE THE EGG IS POURED IN. That is the opposite of every French instruction ever written, and it is deliberate: the egg and the raw onion come up to heat together, so the onion softens inside the omelette instead of staying raw in it.
2. WHICH ALSO MEANS THE OMELETTE SETS THICKER AND FIRMER. Nothing is folded and nothing stays creamy. This is a flat, cooked-through disc you can put between two slices of bread, and that is what it is usually for.
3. WHISK THE EGGS UNTIL THEY ARE GENUINELY FROTHY. The article's word is FLUFFY. A minute of beating, not twenty seconds -- the air is what keeps it light despite the long slow cooking.
4. EVERYTHING GOES INTO THE EGG, NOT INTO THE PAN. Onion, chilli, coriander, cumin, pepper and salt all whisked through. Its article's list is EGGS, HERBS, TOMATOES AND SPICES THAT VARY BY REGION, with FINELY CHOPPED GREEN CHILI PEPPERS AND ONIONS (OR SHALLOTS), FINELY CHOPPED FRESH GREEN CORIANDER, SALT, AND JEERA (CUMIN) as the common set.
5. CHOP THE ONION FINER THAN FEELS REASONABLE. It has one chance to cook, in the time the egg takes. Coarse onion in an omelette is raw onion.
6. DRAIN THE TOMATO OR LEAVE IT OUT. The article lists it among the variations rather than the essentials, and a wet tomato will stop the base setting.
7. OIL IN THE COLD PAN, EGG IN, THEN THE FLAME. Medium, and then left alone for three or four minutes until the edge is set and the middle is still glossy.
8. FLIP IT ONCE AND GIVE IT TWO MINUTES MORE. Its article notes grated cheese is sometimes put over it, and that it may be filled with shrimp or curried chicken. Eaten with bread or between it.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under India · All recipes