GET CRACKING
WHILE IT HAS A REPUTATION OF TAKING YEARS TO PERFECT, THIS DELICIOUS OMELET IS CERTAINLY WORTH MAKING
Do not be deterred by the intimidating reputation this omelet has for taking years of practice to perfect. All true – but with good ingredients, you should still end up with an absolutely delicious result. DASHI-MAKI TAMAGO
Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
6 fresh eggs, at room temperature; 180ml kaketsuyu (below); 2 tbsp refined light brown Japanese sugar; 1 tbsp unroasted sesame oil; 2 tbsp grated daikon; 1 tsp shoyu (optional)
METHOD
Crack the eggs into a small mixing bowl and stir with a pair of cooking chopsticks, ‘cutting’ the eggs using back-and-forth movements as opposed to stirring in a circular fashion.
Stir the kaketsuyu into the sugar in a medium bowl and add the eggs, continuing to use the ‘cutting’ style to incorporate. Pour into a pitcher or jug for ease of pouring.
Place the oil in a small bowl next to the stove. Fold up 1 sheet of spongy paper towel to make a 3cm thick square for dabbing the oil. Heat a rectangular Japanese omelet pan over medium–high. Wipe the pan with the oil. Give the eggs a quick mix, and slurp a thin layer into the pan, tipping the pan so that the egg covers the whole surface. When half set and still a bit wet on top, roll the egg towards you gingerly, nudging it with your chopsticks along the bottom of the pan. (You might need to do this off heat if you are not yet adept at getting this step accomplished swiftly.) Swab the pan with more oil and pour in another thin layer of egg, lifting the roll up so the mixture can seep under to the edge of the pan. When half set, roll the omelet away from you this time. Continue this process 1 or 2 more times, repeating the oil swab, thin layer of egg mixture, slight cook, and roll sequence to use up the egg mixture.
Tip the omelet out on to a cutting board and slice crosswise into 2–3cm pieces. Serve on small individual saucers or a rectangular ceramic plate for the table. Mound the grated daikon next to the omelet and drizzle it with a little shoyu if desired. Serve hot if possible, but still good at room temperature.
Kaketsuyu: Mix shiro dashi (see below) with kaeshi (see below) at a ratio of 11:1 (or 10:1 in the summer when you need more salt).
Shiro dashi: 20cm piece of konbu, weighing about 20g; 60g freshly shaved katsuobushi or hanakatsuo.
Soak the konbu overnight if possible, or at least for a few hours, in a medium pot with 1 litre (4 cups) cold water. Bring almost to a boil over medium heat. Just before the water reaches boiling, remove the konbu. Stir in the katsuobushi and simmer for 10 minutes (increase the simmer time to 15 minutes if making larger batches). Strain through a sieve lined with muslin or an unbleached coffee filter. You can use the konbu and katsuobushi for a second dashi or another dish, or discard. Store the dashi refrigerated for 1–2 days, but best use as quickly as possible.
Kaeshi: 500g refined light brown Japanese sugar; 50ml mirin; 1 litre (4 cups) shoyu.
Place the sugar in a heavy medium saucepan and stir in the mirin and shoyu. Bring almost to a boil over medium heat and remove the pan immediately to a cool surface. Leave covered at room temperature for 1 week to develop flavour.