Regime Type:
PKD (With Allowances)
Souffle Omelette
Introduction & Inspiration
It would be remiss of me, living here in France, to not be inspired by some of the culinary works of Mère Poulard, who owned an inn on Mont-Saint-Michel, in the Normandy region of France over 100+ years ago. Mère Poulard created a great soufflé omelette which is both crispy and yet fluffy at the same time!
In this recipe you will learn how to make the original version using whole eggs (see Tips section below) as well as an adapted version for those that don't do well with egg whites. Both, have an incredibly light and airy texture with a wonderful mixture of fluffy, foamy and crispy goodness!
X Nic
Recipe Overview
Preparation Time
Less than 30 minutes
Cooking Time
Less Than 30 Minutes
Serving Size
1 x Soufflé Omelette
Main Ingredients:
30g Egg Yolk (2 egg yolks)
30ml Bone Broth
15g Tallow (for frying)
1/4 Tsp Salt
Optional Garnish Ideas
1 x Slice of Smoked Ham
Tallow (frozen) - Grated
Cooked Lamb Kidney
Recipe Instructions
Place the egg yolks and salt into a metal bowl.
Use an electric hand whisk (or regular whisk) and beat the egg mixture vigorously to incorporate as much air as you can. If you're beating this by hand it could take from 6 to 10 minutes. For an electric hand whisk it will take less time, approx. 3 - 4 minutes.
Once you have beaten the eggs well, add in the bone broth to the egg mixture and continue to use the electric hand whisk, to whisk the mixture until it becomes nice and frothy.
Once the mixture is ready for cooking, work quickly as the bubbles will soon disappear. Add the tallow to the frying pan on a med-high heat. The tallow should be melted and nice and hot.
Pour the mixture from the bowl into the hot pan with a spatula.
Leave the mixture to get some colouring underneath the omelette. You can use your spatula to lift up the edges of the omelette to check on the colour from time to time. Continue to cook the omelette until the base has a nice golden colour. The top will still look a little foamy, and not fully cooked. This is normal.
Once cooked to your liking, use a spatula to gently transfer the soufflé omelette from the pan onto a serving plate. At this stage you can add a little Parma ham and grated tallow to one half of the omelette (optional), before using your spatula to carefully fold the other half of the omelette over the top of the filling mixture (if using).
Serve immediately. Bon appétit!
Tips
For those of you who tolerate egg whites well, simply follow the recipe steps above using 2 whole eggs and salt (the bone broth is not needed in this case).
Be sure to use free range, organic eggs. Whether you can eat eggs may depend on your condition, medical history, the time you have been doing PKD and your health goals. If you're unsure, please consult with ICMNI in Hungary (Home - Nutriintervention).
In the time before Paul Bocuse there was an official distinction (la Mère) given to talented lady cooks; “The Mothers of France”.
The originally recipe cooked the omelette in a copper pan on the fireplace (to get an idea of the original recipe, you can watch this video on YouTube Recette : L'omelette de la Mère Poulard | Archive INA. In the absence of a fireplace, the next best thing is making it on the stove in a pan.
The secret of the recipe is being able to incorporate the maximum amount of air into the eggs to arrive at an appareil that is extremely frothy. If you are going to beat the egg mixture by hand, like in the original recipe, it can take anywhere from 6 to 10 minutes. If you use an electric whisk, to get the frothy texture you still need to mimic as though you are whisking by hand to try and incorporate as much air as you can, so move the electric whisk around in the bowl. The egg has to be really well beaten, almost like a meringue.
You have to work quickly once the mixture is ready, as the bubbles soon disappear. The cooking time should not normally exceed 3-5 minutes.
The top is served a little bit foamy and uncooked. So when you slide it on a plate to serve it up you will have the little edges with the foam (especially if you are using whole eggs). It will deflate like a soufflé, but this is normal.
The omelette can be served with a garnish (smoked ham, smoked salmon, cooked lamb kidney or bacon for example. There are so many options!). Just remember to add any additional fat or meat as required for the perfect PKD ratio.
*Ideally, purchase your meat from pasture raised animals that are Nitrate, Nitrite & Additive Free. Try and use white sea salt or rock salt that contains no anticaking agents or other additives and be sure to use free range, organic eggs.
Check out my Bone Broth - Pressure Cooker recipe for instructions on how to make this.
If you do not have any tallow handy, then substitute with lard or another animal fat.