[0 - 1] - I'm Adrienne Cheatham.
[1 - 2] I'm a professional chef,
[2 - 3] and today, I'm gonna show you
[3 - 7] how to make two classic omelets.
[7 - 11] The American [egg cracks] and the French. [laughs]
[11 - 14] I'll be going over techniques that pros use
[14 - 16] so that you can make restaurant-quality
[16 - 17] omelets at home.
[17 - 20] We'll be whisking, scrambling, flipping,
[20 - 22] and rolling our way to perfect omelets.
[22 - 25] This is Omelets 101.
[26 - 28] Making omelets is like one of those things
[28 - 31] that every chef is expected to know how to do.
[31 - 33] So it's kind of like bragging rights
[33 - 36] to be able to nail it every single time.
[36 - 37] So many people can mess them up
[37 - 40] by overcooking them, overfilling them,
[40 - 43] breaking them, ugh, cardinal sin.
[43 - 45] Overcooked eggs tastes like ass.
[46 - 53] So with that, Chapter One: Le French Omelet. [gentle music]
[53 - 54] So there is no questioning,
[54 - 56] the French omelet came before
[56 - 57] the American omelet,
[57 - 59] and it is the archetype
[59 - 61] that all other omelets are based on.
[61 - 64] The French omelet has to be smooth,
[64 - 67] perfectly even, no craters, no brown spots
[67 - 69] and rolled like a boss.
[69 - 71] For my omelets, I like to use three eggs.
[71 - 74] You wanna have enough to fill your pan
[74 - 76] with a nice, thin, even layer.
[76 - 78] I like to use a fork to whisk,
[78 - 81] because you have the perfect amount of air
[81 - 83] being whipped into the eggs,
[83 - 85] and the tines of the fork will break up
[85 - 87] the egg white and the yolk
[87 - 89] without incorporating too much air.
[89 - 90] We're not making a soufflé.
[90 - 91] You know when it's done
[91 - 95] because you won't see any streaks of egg white. [bowl clacking]
[95 - 98] For omelets and pretty much all egg cookery,
[98 - 100] I always use a non-stick pan.
[100 - 101] So I always start with
[101 - 102] just enough clarified butter
[102 - 104] to coat the bottom of the pan.
[104 - 106] If you don't have clarified butter
[106 - 108] or ghee at home, you can use canola oil,
[108 - 111] vegetable oil, or even whole butter.
[111 - 112] But if you're using whole butter,
[112 - 113] just watch your heat.
[113 - 115] Because if your pan is too hot,
[115 - 117] it'll start to brown and bubble
[117 - 119] as soon as the butter hits the pan,
[119 - 120] which you don't want.
[120 - 122] I'm gonna whisk in a little bit of salt
[122 - 124] to our eggs. [bowl clacking]
[124 - 127] You wanna have your rubber spatula ready.
[127 - 130] Egg and a plate to dismount on close by
[130 - 131] 'cause things move fast.
[132 - 135] You wanna start scrambling [pan scraping]
[135 - 136] like you're making scrambled eggs.
[136 - 139] A French omelet should be soft in the center,
[139 - 141] not fully set.
[141 - 142] And you wanna scrape the sides a little bit
[142 - 145] to get all those little wispy edges.
[145 - 147] So just go around the edge of the pan
[147 - 149] to even that out.
[149 - 151] You get some craters on the bottom,
[151 - 154] so tapping your pan, [pan banging]
[154 - 156] it doesn't have to be as dramatic as I did,
[156 - 158] tapping it gently [pan tapping]
[158 - 160] is just helping the liquid egg
[160 - 162] settle into those crevices
[162 - 165] to help make a smooth outer layer.
[165 - 166] I know it's ready to roll
[166 - 169] because the egg is set on the bottom,
[169 - 170] and on the top,
[170 - 173] I just have barely a little bit of liquid.
[173 - 175] So you wanna make your first fold,
[176 - 185] second fold, third fold, and then the dismount. [magical music]
[185 - 188] What am I, like, a pro or something? [laughs]
[188 - 190] If you're folding your omelet and it sticks,
[190 - 193] then you may wanna add a little bit more oil
[193 - 195] and really try to get under the egg
[195 - 198] with your spatula to release it from the pan.
[198 - 200] So the only thing that you're really gonna add
[200 - 202] to a French omelet is a little bit
[202 - 204] of sliced chives or fines herbs,
[204 - 207] or if you have some truffles during the season,
[207 - 209] shave those over the top for the win.
[209 - 211] This is what an omelet should be. It's rolled.
[211 - 213] It's soft in the center.
[213 - 215] It's fluffy, yellow and nice and tender.
[215 - 218] Can I eat it now? Thank you.
[218 - 219] Ooh, look at that.
[221 - 224] The inside should be like soft scrambled eggs.
[224 - 227] Like, small curd, slight bit of moisture.
[227 - 229] Not fully set like the outside.
[229 - 232] Yeah, that's a whole lot of layered love.
[232 - 234] Now I'm ready for my second breakfast,
[234 - 238] the American omelet. [gentle music]
[238 - 240] So American omelets are like
[240 - 242] the mullet-wearing cousin
[242 - 243] who comes to the cookout.
[243 - 246] American omelets compared to French
[246 - 248] are less technical, more casual,
[248 - 250] and don't have to be as perfect.
[250 - 252] You can have brown spots on it.
[252 - 254] You can get crispy edges.
[254 - 255] They can be craggily.
[255 - 258] They tend to be thicker on each side
[258 - 261] and whisked a little more, so they're fluffier.
[261 - 263] So for American omelets,
[263 - 267] you'll typically see a mixture of meat, cheese, vegetables.
[267 - 268] It's a great way to use up
[268 - 269] things that you have,
[269 - 271] leftovers knocking around your refrigerator.
[271 - 274] Today, I have some shredded cheddar,
[274 - 276] some diced tomato and some parsley.
[276 - 278] Just some of the ingredients like onions
[278 - 279] and things like that,
[279 - 281] cook 'em a little bit first,
[281 - 283] 'cause you don't wanna put certain things in raw
[283 - 284] because they're not gonna cook
[284 - 286] between the layers of egg,
[286 - 287] they're just gonna get warmed up.
[287 - 289] As long as you can fit it
[289 - 290] between the fold of the omelet,
[290 - 292] there's no such thing as too many fillings.
[292 - 295] I mean, this is America, more is more.
[297 - 301] So for this size pan, I'm gonna use four eggs.
[301 - 302] If my pan were a little smaller,
[302 - 303] I would still go with three,
[303 - 306] but we do want our layers to be a little thicker.
[306 - 308] I'm gonna season these eggs now.
[308 - 309] For the American omelet,
[309 - 311] I'm gonna also add black pepper to the eggs.
[311 - 314] Whisking the same way. [bowl clacking]
[314 - 317] Another difference is, for the American omelet,
[317 - 319] your pan can be a little hotter.
[319 - 321] You can go medium-high on the heat
[321 - 322] as opposed to medium,
[322 - 324] that we did for the French omelet.
[324 - 326] So this is gonna start the same way
[326 - 327] as the French omelet
[327 - 329] with clarified butter in the pan.
[329 - 331] You could also use whole butter
[331 - 332] because, again, we don't care
[332 - 334] if you get some brown spots.
[334 - 336] Eggs are going in.
[337 - 339] Similar thing, you're kind of
[339 - 342] scrambling your eggs a bit.
[342 - 344] Another difference with the American omelet
[344 - 346] is that you do want it to be fully cooked
[346 - 347] on the inside.
[347 - 349] I'm adding my cheddar now.
[349 - 351] That heat is gonna continue to cook through
[351 - 353] and cook the surface of the eggs,
[353 - 356] and it'll also help melt the cheese.
[356 - 358] I'm gonna add my tomatoes as well
[358 - 360] right on top of the cheese.
[360 - 362] I'm gonna add a little parsley.
[362 - 363] It looks like we could use a little more cheddar.
[363 - 366] Now that looks like an American omelet.
[366 - 367] I know I'm ready to flip
[367 - 372] because the eggs are set on this top layer,
[373 - 374] they've cooked through.
[374 - 376] Anytime you're using a non-stick pan,
[376 - 379] you wanna use a rubber or silicone spatula.
[379 - 381] Silicone has a higher melting point
[381 - 382] so it's always safe,
[382 - 385] you don't have to worry about it burning and melting.
[385 - 390] So we're folding and flipping.
[390 - 391] That's a big guy.
[391 - 393] Garnish covers a multitude of sins
[393 - 394] when it comes to most food.
[394 - 396] But with American omelets,
[396 - 398] we embrace these imperfections,
[398 - 400] so we're just using garnish for color.
[400 - 402] It's still fluffy on the inside.
[402 - 405] On the outside, we have some spots of brown,
[405 - 407] little crispiness at the edges,
[407 - 408] and that's a great thing.
[408 - 412] Mm, this is so good.
[412 - 414] If you're trying to make a French omelet
[414 - 415] and you start messing it up
[415 - 417] or getting brown color on the bottom,
[417 - 418] just fold it in half
[418 - 423] and say you were going for an American omelet. Easy. [gentle music]