One Egg Omelet

One egg sounds like it shouldn’t be enough for an omelet, but this technique makes it work. The white gets beaten to soft peaks on a dinner plate, the yolk gets whisked separately with cold water, and then the two are folded back together before hitting a hot, buttered skillet.

Whipping the white first traps air into the egg, expanding its volume so one egg fills a 10-inch pan the way two or three scrambled eggs normally would. The cold water mixed into the yolk adds steam during cooking, which puffs the omelet up even more.

The whole thing cooks in about a minute over medium heat. Tilt the pan and lift the edges to let the uncooked egg flow underneath, flip it once, and you’re done. It comes out light, puffy, and golden, not the thin, flat omelet you’d expect from a single egg.

Kitchen Tips

• Use a room temperature egg. Cold whites are harder to whip and won’t reach soft peaks as easily
• Beat the white on a plate with a flat whisk, not in a bowl. The wide surface gives you better leverage for whipping just one white
• Keep the heat at medium. Too high and the bottom burns before the top sets. Turn it down if the skillet is holding too much residual heat
• Don’t overcook. The omelet should still be slightly creamy in the center when you fold or flip it

Variations

• Fill with a tablespoon of shredded cheese just before folding for a classic cheese omelet
• Slide between two slices of homemade bread for a fluffy egg sandwich
• Add chopped fresh herbs like chives or parsley to the yolk mixture before cooking