Whenever I saw tamagoyaki on Japanese food menus, I’d skip over it thinking, “Why do I want eggs at a sushi place?” My idea of an omelette was a dry half-moon with lots of vegetables speckled through it. Blame Denny’s skillets, I guess? When I started eating omakase or “chef’s choice” meals, an egg would be offered at the end. Taking a tentative bite, I wasn’t expecting to have my mind blown. It wasn’t like any omelette I’ve had before. It was sweet, soft, and intricately layered. It was a perfect bite after an evening of salty, fatty, filling fish.
This version is made sweet with mirin and a little sugar. To finish, a peppery bite of grated radish and beet to offer crunch against the soft egg. If you don’t prefer radish, a turnip will also work. While it is meant to finish a meal, I loved it as a simple breakfast with pickles. It takes a little practice and patience. The first poured rolls never look good, but as you cook and roll, it’ll stick to itself.
Tamagoyaki
Serves 2
| Things you'll need: | |
| 3 tablespoon dashi stock 2 tablespoons mirin 1/2 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon soy sauce | 1 teaspoon salt 3 large eggs, beaten Vegetable oil 1 tablespoon black radish, grated 1 tablespoon beet grated |
Mix the dashi stock with mirin, sugar, soy sauce, and salt in a bowl. Crack the eggs and beat until uniformly yellow. Check that the sugar has dissolved into the mix thoroughly.
Heat a cast-iron or medium pan over medium heat. Soak a paper towel in the vegetable oil and use tongs to wipe the pan with it. You can use any shape pan, just note that the omelette will have irregular edges that you can cut off.
Pour in enough egg mixture to coat the pan and tilt it to spread it around. When the omelet starts to set, roll it up away from you using a spatula. It’s ok if it’s isn’t perfect or breaks.
Re-oil the pan with your paper towel. Pour in more egg mixture into the empty part of the pan. Lift up the first roll and tilt to let the egg mixture runs underneath.
When it looks set but still a little wet, starting from the rolled up end, roll the omelette back toward you to make a single roll with many layers.
Repeat the process until you use all of the egg mixture.
Let the egg cool for 5 minutes. Move the roll gently onto a sushi rolling mat covered with a sheet of plastic wrap. Roll the omelet firmly into the mat and leave to stand rolled for 10 minutes in the fridge to set.
Cut the omelette into 1.5” pieces and serve with the grated black radish and beet.
