I always had problems folding it from the pan. I think it was from Alton that I learned to put the “add ins” (ham, cheese, etc.) to the half of the pan away from the handle. Then grab the handle with the palm of your hand under the handle. It feels awkward at first, and I don’t know why, but now all of my omlets come out of the pan perfectly. I used to get so mad making what looked perfect in the pan, but was a mess on the plate.
Milk is what my mother taught me and it always seems to work for me, although I use two eggs (any more would swamp my omelet pan).
According to both Julia Child and Alton Brown, neither is correct. Eggs, salt and pepper, nothing else. Child’s instructions call for the omelet to be finished in 30 seconds, which would take some practice, especially with fillings. Omelets are not supposed to be browned at all, of course, and the French consider an omelet with brown on it to be a failure.
Holy cow. Would you have a link or a reference to search for?
Well, between my mother and Julia Child, I’ll take the one who wasn’t a spy. 
Here is a YouTube video of Julia Child demonstrating her omelet technique. She does seem to finish in about thirty seconds. I like how modest her kitchen is, with an electric stove (no fancy Wolf range) and using a pair of chopsticks to whisk the eggs.
Man, she’s good. Cracking two eggs at once. Cooking on an electric burner. :eek:
Bu back to the spy thing…she does sort of look like Ian Fleming.
OK, thanks for the examples.
I was taught to add a dash of milk and not stir at all (except to move the runny bits to the outside of the pan to cook.
I’m going to try some alternative methods.
Julia Child’s “omelette” recipe, with illustrations!
There is not a single French way to make omelettes but several local and personal variants. For example, a Mont St-Michel omelette, is most definitely brown.
(And the thing about French people not refrigerating eggs is not universally true. Some don’t, but I’d say many if not most do.)
I don’t mind a bit of brown on mine, mainly because I suck at making omelettes. From now on, I’ll just refer to one of my failures as a St-Michel. 
Why are there two spellings for this word? I always used “omelette”, but most seem to use “omelet”.
Dewey, I owe you a beer. It works great. Mrs. Plant declared it perfect, but she’s still thinking about the dozen roses from yesterday. 
It has something to do with the Academe Fancais, I’ll warrant, which I probably misspelled, and the fact that the French spelled “Jazz” “Le Swing” in WWII. 
Isn’t YouTube great? Someone asked in another thread what happened to the Food Network, which seems to show mostly cooking competitions and food tourism shows now, rather than actual instructional programs like those from Julia Child. When you can go to YouTube and find something like this, who needs the television network?
Yeah, and I thought it was all pet tricks and guys sticking bottle rockets in their orifices.
I just noticed in that video that she adds a bit of water to the eggs.
My experiment was a 6" teflon pan, high flame, a lot of butter and one egg, no water. I should be interested in hearing the experience of someone other than me, who knows what they are doing. Shaking the pan like that frightens household pets, and causes concerned family members to come into the kitchen and stare.
I use the method recommended by Alton Brown:
[ol]
[li]Heat the pan. It’s best if it has a curved bottom.[/li][li]Break the eggs and beat them in a bowl. No milk. Add any spices (except pepper; put the on when serving).[/li][li]When the pan is hot, add a little butter. If it froths, you’re ready.[/li][li]Pour the egg into the pan.[/li][li]Using a spatula, stir the eggs while shaking the pan for about ten seconds. Then lift up the edges just a bit.[/li][li]Walk away.[/li][li]When the eggs seem partly cooked, add any filling to the front half of the pan. I like cheese. Other fillings should be cooked beforehand.[/li][li]Give the filling a few minutes, then flip one-third of the eggs on top of itself.[/li][li]Grab the pan handle so that your thumb is away from the pan. Lift it and slide it onto a plate, making a slight flick of the wrist so it’s folded in thirds.[/li][li]Enjoy.[/li][/ol]
The eggs come out crispy on the outside with a creamy filling.
“Omelette” is the way it’s spelled in French. “Omelet” is the English variant but MW says both spelling are acceptable.