Lou's Most Excellent Shrimp n' Spinach Omelet

It’s not a frittata. It’s an omelet. The goal was a frittata but my shit-for-nuthin’ oven doesn’t allow me to fit a typical pan inside it. And I didn’t have a frittata pan. And, most importantly, I didn’t really know what the hell a frittata was to start with.

The vision for the frittata was there but my technique wasn’t. So what turned out here is really just a giant, fluffy, slightly crispy omelet that’s actually quite satisfying. Telling my friend Silvia about the frittata-come-omelet, she explained to me my problem, which is one of those “mother-to-daughter” things that happens in the kitchen on how to flip a frittata. Take the lid of the pan – preferably flat on the inside I guess – and flip the frittata onto that and then slide back into the pan. A plate could work too.

The simplicity is still beyond me and I’m kicking myself for it. But I’m certain in execution it’s a mess, until you’ve done it a few dozen times.

I cannot emphasize the importance of a really good non-stick pan here. If you’re a non-non-stick pan type, you’ll need a lot of oil.


6 large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and butterflied in half
¼ yellow onion, thinly sliced and minced
2 whole green onions, finely chopped
3 BIG handfuls of baby spinach leaves
2 whole eggs
3 egg whites
½ cup of milk
A nice extra-virgin olive oil for cooking
Truffle salt (or truffle oil)
Pepper
Tzatziki sauce


In a large (10”) non-stick pan, add about 2 TBS of oil and heat till near shimmer. Add the shrimp and cook on each side until they turn pink; you don’t want to cook any longer (about 30 seconds per side, pending size of the shrimp). Remove shrimp from pan.

Add in the onions and sauté over medium heat until the yellow onions are translucent (about 2 minutes). While this is ongoing, furiously whip up the eggs and milk along with 1½ TSP of truffle salt or 1 tsp truffle oil. The eggs should foam up a little.

Add in another 2 TBS of olive oil to the pan and then the spinach leaves. Toss the leaves for about 1 minute, just to where they’re about to start to wilt (it will look like A LOT of spinach in the pan but this is OK – it shrinks). Pour the eggs into the pan and mix in the spinach. Place the shrimp on top.

Once the omelet has set on the outside you’ll need to “drain” it. See the photo on how to. Lift the omelet on one side and tilt the pan so that the uncooked egg runs underneath it.
Do this for the 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock positions. Add about 1 TBS more oil around the perimeter of the pan where the egg meets the edge; the oil should bubble some.

Cover the pan with a lid for about a minute. Check to see that the inside has set and then flip the omelet over using your preferred method. Serve with cold tzatziki sauce.