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Sunday 17 October 2010

Adventures in Omelette #1 - Mushroom

Yes, I made this one myself. Go figure.

It's actually quite surprising that, considering how easy these things are to make, I don't put in the minimal effort more often but, as I say in my blurb, I'm lazy.

Really, really lazy.

But I digress. I popped out to stock up my fridge with the simple stuff and decided to do something more than a plain old omelette. My first instinct was to go for some ham, but that seemed a little boring. I picked up a pack of Pepperoni and some of the shop's own-brand processed cheese slices, but decided to put some of them in a bun for lunch... And, while I like Pepperoni, I don't necessarily want to have it for every meal.

The next thought was mushrooms. The selection on offer at the shop I visited was the standard white mushrooms that you can get just about anywhere, and tend to be a little bland, or 'Closed Cup Chestnut Mushrooms'. Described on the packaging as "mild and nutty", I figured they'd make an interesting ingredient to a slightly less boring omelette. And, just to make the interesting a little more interesting, I started by stir-frying the mushrooms, as per the suggestion on the packaging. I know how to live on the edge, don't I?

Ingredients:
  • Eggs (Duh. Sorry, three for a decent-sized omelette)
  • Closed Cup Chestnut Mushrooms (4, from a punnet of many)
  • Butter (for to stir-fry)
  • Olive Oil (prevents the butter caramelising too quickly, it is said)
Preparation Time: about 10 minutes in total

Tools Required:
  • Bowl or jug for mixing eggs
  • Fork or egg whisk, also for mixing eggs
  • Knife, for to cut the mushrooms
  • Hob
  • Frying pan
  • Spatula optional

Process:
The first step should be getting the eggs ready - it would be foolishness itself to start anything else before the blended eggs are ready to add to the pan. Having selected my mushrooms, they were sliced thinly (well, 3-4mm thick). Butter and oil were added to the frying pan. Once they were good and melted together, the mushrooms were added and fried till they started going brown. At that point, the blended eggs were added, aiming to fill the base of the pan evenly, in amongst the mushrooms as they fry.

For some reason, my frying pan has a problem with 3-egg omelettes. The underside browns all very well, but the top takes ages to cook, so I've taken to flipping them to prevent burning on one side.

Yes, that's right, I said I flip my goddamn omelettes. I said I know how to live on the edge, didn't I?

In some ways, I think the butter and oil exacerbated the situation, but they did also make it far easier to flip the omelette. I wish I'd taken photos, because this one flipped perfectly - I kid you not, nor do I exaggerate. 180degree flip, and straight back into the pan to finish.

The Results:
I kind of wish I'd added some kind of seasoning, but my first mushroom omelette was a great success. The underside exhibited some signs of caramelisation, but the flavour was unaffected. The mushrooms were not only nutty, but fairly sweet. Quite pleasant, overall. I suspect another part of the problem with the slow cooking was down to the addition of the mushrooms, but it hasn't put me off trying more and different additions to my omelettes in future.

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