Caesar’s Caesar Salad
Pati Jinich, Javier Plascencia
117 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars
117
1 hour 40 minutes (including 1 hour’s chilling)
Denver Omelet
Updated Jan. 18, 2024
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
Advertisement
Ingredients
Yield:2 servings
- 6large eggs
- Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 2tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1small green bell pepper, seeds and stem removed, finely chopped (about ¾ cup)
- 1small yellow onion, finely chopped (about ¾ cup)
- Black pepper
- 4ounces ham steak or Canadian bacon, coarsely chopped
- 1½ounces coarsely grated Monterey Jack or pepper Jack (heaping ⅓ cup)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (2 servings)
532 calories; 37 grams fat; 18 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 41 grams protein; 1876 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and ½ teaspoon salt; set aside.
- Step 2
In a medium (10-inch) nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high. When foaming, add the bell pepper and onion, season lightly with salt and pepper and stir to coat in the butter. Shake into an even layer and cook, undisturbed, until browned underneath, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Step 3
Add the ham and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to another medium bowl, add the cheese, and stir to combine.
- Step 4
Reduce the heat under the skillet to medium-low. Add ½ tablespoon butter and swirl to coat the pan. Whisk the egg mixture and pour half into the skillet. Cook without touching until the eggs around the edges of the pan are set, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Using a spatula, slightly pull the edge of the omelet in toward the center and, while holding the spatula in place, tilt the pan so that the egg runs to the empty skillet. Repeat this around the edge of the whole circle until the surface is nearly set but still shiny. (No runny egg will travel when you tilt the pan.)
- Step 5
Spoon half the vegetable mixture onto half the egg, cover the skillet with a lid or baking sheet, and cook until the egg is set and the cheese is melted, 1 to 3 minutes. Run the spatula around the edges, then fold the naked half over the filling. Slide the omelet onto a plate, then repeat with the remaining butter, egg and filling.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
Jane
In NYC it is called a western omelette on all the Greek diner menus I’ve seen but you have to ask for and pay extra to add cheese. They usually mix the ham, onion and pepper into the eggs but serve it as a folder over omelette even though nothing is stuff inside. Ate it all through my childhood in NYC. I tried it per above and was surprised to fine i prefer the diner method of mixing the filling mixed into the egg.
Dave
... a scramble made by pioneers masking spoiled eggs with onions." You can't mask spoiled eggs with anything. The odor is overwhelming and sickening. No one would eat a spoiled egg, even under starvation conditions. And there is no such thing as an egg that is just turning. An egg that turns turns all the way.
John
I've always known it as a Western as well here in Canada, especially in Quebec. Wonder which name came first...
RAH
Pretty classic (and easy) recipe. Swapped previously reserved bacon grease for butter. YUM You can decrease the salt load by soaking ham steak in tepid water (3 soaks of 10 minutes each was enough for me). Made sure to DRY the ham before sauteeing!!
M
Had so many of these for late night brinner during my college years. Add some sour cream and salsa and endless cups of coffee.
Jim
I grew up eating this classic my father used to make for us using American cheese instead of jack. He called it his Denver Scramble. I love it when the Times returns to classics. Keep up the outstanding work!
Tara
Maybe it’s just me but I prefer my eggs to have the ingredients incorporated so they don’t fall off of my fork. When I’m served omelets like the one in the photo, I’m always having to work harder at keeping everything together. Why not scramble the ingredients and ten shape into an omelet?
Angela Gyetvan
Western in my family, too - but also more of a scramble than a true omelet. And why is it always the dads? Is there some kind of meeting where they pass along the secret? “Congrats, it’s a boy! Here’s your cigar & your Denver omelet recipe.”
Mark
I've always called this a Western Omelet. Once when I was in California I asked for one and the chef had no idea what a Western Omelet was.
Sean
Western Omelette at every diner in south jersey and philly
NellieH
Yup, a Western here in Toronto, too.
Sand
Actually, I remember this as a Western omelet and we had an Eastern omelet without the ham. So you would go into a diner and order an Eastern or a Western and they knew what you meant. It was so many years ago, probably ancient history by now.
Sue
I used to make this, we called it a Western sandwich, for my older brother almost every night when he was in high school. He was growing and needed nourishment. He had teenage male malaise so he needed me to do the cooking. Almost sixty years ago!
Luann
Denver sandwiches were my Dad’s specialty and are still one of my favourite quick meals.
P
Ok - without cheese, it is a Western omelet. With cheese, it is a Denver omelet. I can't have cheese, so it's vital to me that restaurant personnel know the difference. And they still get it wrong about half the time. As for this recipe: no salt or pepper. Cook the veggies, add the ham, dump it all into a bowl w/ the beaten egg mixture, stir a few times, add more butter to the pan, dump the mix in the pan & cook on medium until done all the way thru. Serves 2 w/ leftovers for the next day.
Stuart Itter
This is a version of the Western Egg that was popular decades ago. The egg fixed in this recipe was then served on untested bread with butter on the inside of one slice and mustard-a popular mustard on the inside of the other. Quite delicious actually.
Suebee
On the Vaughn Meader Kennedy comedy album, the Khrushev character says, "I'll have the eastern half of your Western sandwich." My dad would quote the record when he made these for us as kids, all indredients panfried into a disc, cut into quarters and served on Kaiser rolls cut in the middle. No cheese.
Sharon V
Mixed toppings into the eggs, put on toast and called a Denver sandwich in western Canada. Saskatchewan and Calgary.
joe
western omelet growing up in Queens NY
Ultrabuttercup
Born and raised in Utah and never heard of a Denver City
Sand
Actually, I remember this as a Western omelet and we had an Eastern omelet without the ham. So you would go into a diner and order an Eastern or a Western and they knew what you meant. It was so many years ago, probably ancient history by now.
David
As a kid growing up in the early 60's on a farm in rural Northern NY, my mother made these all the time and called them Western Egg Sandwich. She always made them with white Wonder bread. On diner menus you could always get a Western Egg Sandwich. Sadly, the sandwich never shows up menus anymore, only the Western Omelette. I love to hear about regional classic recipes, old and new.
Eric
I've been modifying the velvety scrambled eggs cooked in cream (a little less than the recipe) by placing a lid on the pan and letting set for about 30 seconds. It can then be turned and quickly cooked on the other side. This is a velvety omelet- so much better than the hard cooked kind. I often thrown in mild cheddar and diced ham- as quickly as possible- before the lid. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1023773-velvety-scrambled-eggs?searchResultPosition=14
Kenneth M
My wife and I always argue on whether a Western omelette has cheese or not and perhaps this clarifies it? Is a Denver omelette just a Western with cheese?
P
Yes. Enjoy.
Tara
Maybe it’s just me but I prefer my eggs to have the ingredients incorporated so they don’t fall off of my fork. When I’m served omelets like the one in the photo, I’m always having to work harder at keeping everything together. Why not scramble the ingredients and ten shape into an omelet?
Umm, okay.
Dear God, no cheese!
Dr. Colleen Sullivan
In my Montana Irish family, it wasn't a Denver Omelette unless you added Durkee's Dressing. You could turn it into a Denver sandwich by putting the omelette on sour dough toast covered in Durkee's Dressing.
Private notes are only visible to you.
Advertisement
