Can we clear something up here? Is the word omelet? Or omelette? I speak French, so I’m confused as to which is the english/american version. Whatever. It’s eggs whipped and fried up then folded over with some delicious toppings. You get it.
My dad is the omelet master in our family. And the grill master. But that’s pretty much all he does in terms of cooking in our house, unless you count pouring milk into a bowl of cereal cooking as cooking.
But I’ve got to hand it to him. His omelets are damn good and I can only aspire to make mine so perfect. I have no idea how he does it. Basically perfect every time. Well done, dad. Omelet game #onfleek as the kids say these days.
So you know how I went to Rhode Island trip with my best friends back in August? Well. I had this BOMB.com (read: mind-blowingly delicious) omelet at this tiny little breakfast place called Corner Cafe in Newport. They definitely have some omelet wizard back in the kitchen there because this one was SO good. Dad, was that you?
What was in this mouthwatering, so ridiculously tasty omelette that I literally had to write home about it, you ask? Shrimp, bacon, and avocado. Pretty simple, right? No frills, just pure simple ingredients cook absolutely perfectly. The shrimp were seated but juicy on the inside, the bacon was crispy, the avocado was warm and slightly melt-y, and the omelet was fluffy. Put it altogether and my first bite reaction was “oh my freaking God.” Let’s just say that doesn’t happen a lot when I’m traveling or eating out. Or even when I’m cooking for myself for that matter. Props to you, omelet wizard.
Sadly if I wanted to get it again I’d have to drive 400+ miles soooo that’s not gonna happen. So I decided to attempt to recreate the amazing dish myself.
The results?
YAAAAAASSSSSSSSSS. #winning
I even added in my own twist for a Maryland/Chesapeake bay flair on it: Old Bay Seasoning 
And this time, eggs.
Oh plus a drizzle of Tessemae’s Lemon Chesapeake dressing for some extra oomph. If you need me I’ll be stuffing my face with this omelet every day until summer’s officially over. Kthanks.
- 4 eggs
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
- 6 medium-large raw shrimp, cleaned (tail and shell-off)
- 3 slices bacon
- ½ avocado, sliced thin
- parsley, for garnish
- Tessemae’s Lemon Chesapeake dressing, for drizzling
- First, make the bacon: heat an 8-inch cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium heat, then cook the bacon about 2-3 minutes per side, until crispy. Set aside on a paper towel lined plate to cool.
- Carefully place the shrimp down in the same pan, then cook for about 1 minute on each side, until the outsides are seared and pink but the inside isn’t completely cooked through yet.. Watch out - the oil may spit a bit! The pan will still be very hot, so keep an eye on the shrimp, you don’t want to overcook them. Remove the pan from the heat and take the shrimp from the pan and place them on the same plate as the bacon.
- Allow the cast iron to cool slightly, for about 2 minutes. Pour some of the bacon fat off in a small glass jar (to be discarded later, when it cools down). Using a paper towel (or two - and do this CAREFULLY), wipe some of the burned bits out of the pan.
- Place the cast iron back on the stove and heat over medium-low heat with 1 Tbsp olive oil for 2 minutes.
- Chop your bacon into bits and sprinkle the shrimp with ½ tsp old bay seasoning. You can either chop them into bite-sized pieces or leave them whole like I did.
- Meanwhile, whisk your eggs and the remaining old bay in a medium sized bowl. Whisk them vigorously - you’re trying to whip as much air into them as possible. I did this for about 1-2 minutes straight. Arm workout while cooking? Yes.
- Pour the eggs into the hot skillet and swirl them around to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. You want them to cook slowly, so if they sound like they’re sizzling too much, turn it down. Let the eggs cook without stirring them for about 2 minutes.
- Once the eggs start to lift a bit on the edges of the pan, use a rubber spatula to slightly push each edge forward towards the center, then tilt the pan towards you so the uncooked egg runs towards the edge of the pan. Repeat this a couple times around the pan.
- Put a cover over the top and cook about 2-4 minutes, until the top is not quite cooked through. Place your shrimp, bacon, and avocado slices on one half of the omelet, then loosen the opposite edge with your spatula and fold it over. Put the cover back on and cook for another minute to warm the toppings.
- Serve immediately. Drizzle with a dash of Tessemae’s Lemon Chesapeake and garnish with fresh parsley.
