James Villas

Spanish Omelette

Preparation info

  • Difficulty

    Easy

  • Makes

    1

    large omelette

Appears in

The Glory of Southern Cooking

The Glory of Southern Cooking

By James Villas

Published 2007

  • About

Don’t ask me how in the world what Southerners call a Spanish omelette crept into the breakfast repertory (the only ingredients remotely associated with Spanish cuisine are onions and bell peppers), but I’ve been eating this omelette at various venues in the South ever since my grandmother fixed her version on Sunday mornings when I was a child. Perhaps the most famous Spanish omelette is the unfolded one topped with a Creole sauce at Antoine’s restaurant in New Orleans, but, curiously, that luncheon omelette doesn’t even include the traditional onions and bell peppers, only peas and mushrooms. Feel free to add a few chopped mushrooms (and a little minced garlic), if you like.

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter
  • ¼ cup finely chopped onions
  • ¼ cup finely chopped red bell pepper
  • 3 large eggs
  • ¼ cup fresh or frozen and thawed boiled green peas
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method

In a small skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over moderate heat, add the onions and bell pepper, and cook, stirring, till softened, about 2 minutes. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs, add the onions and peppers, the peas, salt, and pepper and stir till well blended.

In a medium skillet, melt the remaining butter over low heat, add the egg mixture, and stir till the eggs begin to set. With a spatula, flip one half of the omelette over the other half, let sit about 1 minute, then transfer to a heated plate. Serve immediately.

© 2007 All rights reserved. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.