L'omelette roulée (a rolled omelette)

Like most of you, I grew up eating folded omelettes, which we just called "omelettes." Little did I know at the time, the half moon-shaped golden brown stuffed egg omelette that I was used to is more trouble to make and not nearly as tender and delicious as the traditional, French "l'omelette roulée," or "rolled omelette." Fortunately for me, while celebrating the New Year at a Sunday brunch at a grand hotel in Seoul, South Korea, I met my first rolled omelette, and it was wonderfully different from anything I had ever eaten before. If you've gone your whole life so far without ever eating one of these simple, delicious omelettes, get some eggs and make one for yourself as soon as you can. You won't regret it.

So, how are they different? Well, most folded omelettes I've eaten tend to be overcooked and tough, partly out of habit, but also partly because they are often overstuffed with ingredients that need time to heat, or in the case of cheese, to melt. On the other hand, the rolled omelette traditionally is not served with a filling, so it can be prepared at very high heat in as little as 30 seconds. If you didn't already know, cooking eggs slowly makes them rubbery, or "leathery" as Julia Child often said. She's right, and once you get the technique down, you'll never make another folded omelette again. 

Rather than explain the process here, perhaps you should just watch this entertaining video of the woman who brought French cooking to Americans in the mid-1900s preparing one of these omelettes. Note: they are easiest to make on gas ranges, but as you can see in the video, she makes them on an electric coil range. Though I somehow manage, they are difficult to make on ceramic cook tops because the "flame" adjusts automatically, in other words, because you can't just keep it on high all the time. 

L'omelette roulée (rolled omelet)

If you do decide to include a filling, be sure it is finely chopped. Use perhaps 1/3 cup of filling, and be sure to sprinkle it all over the omelette just after you've given the eggs their first few shakes. If you make the mistake of clumping them all in the middle, the omelette might not roll as easily. 

The filling I used in the omelette pictured here is part mushroom, red onion, and baby spinach sautéed in olive oil and seasoned with a splash of balsamic and some salt and pepper and part shredded cheese. I filled this omelette because I already had these sautéed vegetables leftover from another meal, but honestly, a 1/4 cup of shaved parmesan alone would be enough. 

Some simple tips. 

First, I find that two eggs cooks well and quickly in a large pan. Three is just a little too much. One three-egg omelette came out beautiful on the outside, but a little too wet on the inside, but 30 seconds in the microwave finished the eggs without making them tough at all. Still, it's better to avoid this and make them two-egg omelettes. Heck, they cook so quickly, it's no trouble at all to make two or three in just a few minutes. 

Second, cook these on gas if you can. You'll get a much more consistent high flame that will heat the pan well even while you are shaking it at an angle. 

Third, have the rest of your meal ready to eat. If you're eating them for breakfast with toast, get that ready and set the table before the eggs go in the pan. This omelette really can cook in a fraction of a minute over a high flame.