How to cook an Italian omelette properly? TOP-7 frittata recipes: with ham, seafood, mushrooms and cheese, original cooking options with pasta and potatoes.
Frittata is an Italian dish, which is, simply put, an omelet with a variety of "fillings". Traditionally, frittata is first fried in a pan and then baked in the oven. As for the classic ingredients, besides eggs, it is difficult to name any component that must certainly be present in a dish, because even different regions of Italy have their own peculiarities of preparation and fillings. Frittata is the perfect breakfast dish, hearty and tasty. Plus, every day you can make an omelet with different fillings and never get bored.
Features of cooking frittata
The classic frittata is prepared as follows: eggs are beaten and poured into a well-oiled frying pan, the fire is set very low. While the bottom layer is baked, you need to have time to prepare the filling. After the filling has been placed, the frittata is placed in the oven. However, if there is no time to cook in the oven, you can simply cover the pan with a lid and slightly increase the heat. You can also gently turn the frittata over to the other side and fry in a pan without using the lid, but such “flips” work well only if the pan is not very large.
As for the fillings, here you can afford to experiment as you please, because even in Italy, where the dish came from, there is no single classic frittata recipe. For example, Neapolitan is not complete without the addition of pasta and it turns out to be very satisfying. Frittata may well be filled with leftovers from your yesterday's dinner. Thus, the dish also becomes practical.
For a particularly lush Italian frittata, it is recommended to beat the egg yolks and whites separately. In this case, the first should brighten a little, and the mass itself should increase in volume; the latter are whipped until stable peaks. Then the whites and yolks are gently mixed.
Classically, frittata does not involve adding milk or cream while beating eggs, which is perhaps its main difference from a traditional omelet. However, adding these components is quite possible, but it should be borne in mind that traditionally fritatta should be dense, and therefore it is better to use cream, but if you like a lighter texture, you can add milk.
TOP-7 recipes for cooking frittata
Frittata is a simple dish that any housewife can do. Everyone can beat eggs with cream, and the selection of the filling is not a difficult task. Here you can generally be guided by what is in the refrigerator, or by mood. If you want a hearty breakfast - take ham and cheese, your soul requires an easy one - cook frittata with vegetables, well, if you want to cook something unusual, try a Neapolitan pasta omelet or prepare a dish in the Spanish manner with potatoes.
Frittata with ham and cheese
One of the classic frittata recipes is a hearty ham and cheese omelet. The ingredients for its preparation, for sure, can be found in everyone's refrigerator. There are no strict requirements for the type of ham and type of cheese.
- Caloric content per 100 g - 230 kcal.
- Servings - 5
- Cooking time - 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- Eggs - 6 pcs.
- Cheese - 100 g
- Ham - 200 g
- Bulgarian pepper - 1/2 pc.
- Milk or cream - 50 ml
- Salt, pepper - to taste
- Fresh herbs to taste
- Vegetable oil - 50 ml
How to prepare ham and cheese frittata step by step:
- Finely chop the onion, chop the ham into cubes, the bell pepper in strips, rub the cheese.
- If you are adding greens, they also need to be finely chopped.
- Combine ham, cheese and herbs and place in a bowl.
- Pour oil into a frying pan, put onion, fry for a couple of minutes, add pepper, sauté until vegetables are soft.
- Beat the eggs with milk, put all the prepared fillings into the mass, add a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Transfer the future frittata to a frying pan, fry for about 5 minutes over low heat, and then bake in an oven heated to 200 ° C for about 15-20 minutes.
By the way, you can easily replace ham for chicken breast: chicken frittata will turn out to be a more dietary and healthy dish.
Frittata with seafood
The most economical option for frittata with seafood is an Italian omelet with mussels, but variations with shrimp, scallops, etc. are less affordable. We propose to cook the “golden mean” - frittata with a mix of seafood, so the dish will turn out to be both very tasty and not ruinous.
Ingredients:
- Shrimp - 80 g
- Mussels - 80 g
- Squid - 80 g
- Eggs - 5 pcs.
- Hard cheese - 50 g
- Butter - 10 g
- Cherry tomatoes - 5 pcs.
- Lemon - 1 pc.
- Salt, pepper, herbs - to taste
How to prepare seafood frittata step by step:
- Defrost seafood, peel shrimps.
- Remove the zest from the lemon with a grater, finely chop the greens, and grate the cheese.
- Break the eggs into a large bowl, whisk them well, add the cream and beat well again.
- Put all prepared ingredients in eggs, mix.
- Heat a deep baking dish a little on the stove, brush with butter.
- Pour the future frittata into a mold.
- Bake at 200 ° C for about 20-30 minutes.
- Serve the seafood frittata with fresh cherry tomatoes.
You can add various spices to the seafood frittata recipe to make the taste of the dish more pronounced, a mix of Italian spices is perfect.
Frittata with broccoli and bell pepper
If you want to make a light Italian omelette, look at the vegetable recipes. Quite often, frittata with zucchini, spinach, tomatoes, olives is prepared, but perhaps the most popular variation of the dish with vegetables is frittata with broccoli and pepper.
Ingredients:
- Eggs - 6 pcs.
- Sweet pepper - 2 pcs.
- Red onion - 1 pc.
- Broccoli - 150 g
- Greens - 20 g
- Lemon - 1/4
- Olive oil - 50 ml
- Garlic - 2 cloves
- Butter - 30 g
- Thyme - 1 bunch
- Salt, pepper - to taste
- Thyme, paprika, nutmeg - to taste
How to prepare broccoli and bell peppers frittata step by step:
- Chop up fresh broccoli - ice cream won't work for this recipe.
- Cut the onion into half rings, pepper into neat strips.
- Finely chop the garlic and herbs, add a spoonful of olive oil and juice from a quarter of a lemon.
- Preheat the pan, pour in the remaining oil, then the onion, add the pepper after a couple of minutes, the prepared parsley with garlic, and the thyme after another couple of minutes.
- Beat eggs with paprika and nutmeg, pour over the contents of the pan, cook for about 3 minutes, salt and pepper, and then put the pan in the oven heated to 200 ° C.
- Cook until the eggs are completely set.
Frittata with vegetables can be eaten both hot and cold, while in the first case, it is excellent to sprinkle it with finely grated cheese.
Frittata with mushrooms
Mushroom frittata is a very popular recipe. Mushrooms are most often taken as a basis, since they are quickly prepared and do not need to be cleaned first. Considering that frittata is most often made for breakfast, quick preparation is one of the most important prerequisites.
Ingredients:
- Champignons - 250 g
- Eggs - 4 pcs.
- Red onion - 1 pc.
- Parmesan - 1 tablespoon
- Butter - 25 g
- Salt, pepper - to taste
How to prepare mushroom frittata step by step:
- Finely chop the onion, put in a frying pan preheated with butter, cook for 5-7 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut the mushrooms into thin slices, add them to the onion, simmer together for a couple of minutes.
- Beat the eggs in a deep bowl, pour it over the filling in a frying pan, salt and pepper, immediately reduce the heat.
- Grate the cheese.
- When the bottom layer is tightened, sprinkle the omelet with cheese and place in the oven, bake until golden brown.
Serve mushroom frittata with fresh herbs.
Neopalitan Frittata with Pasta and Tomatoes
Frittata with pasta is a very original dish, but, as you already know, it is typical of the Italian province of Naples. How to cook such a frittata correctly, we will analyze in this recipe.
Ingredients:
- Pasta - 50 g (dry)
- Eggs - 4 pcs.
- Tomatoes in their own juice - 150 g
- Mozzarella cheese - 250 g
- Parmesan - 2 tablespoons
- Olive oil - 2 tablespoons
- Salt to taste
Step-by-step preparation of frittata with pasta and tomatoes:
- Boil the pasta. Subtract 2-3 minutes from the cooking time indicated on the package and cook the pasta for exactly that amount of time.
- Meanwhile, beat eggs with grated Parmesan and salt.
- Put pasta in eggs, as well as tomatoes in their own juice, mix everything well.
- Cut the mozzarella into slices.
- In a deep frying pan, place half of the resulting mass, on top of the mozzarella slices and, finally, the other half of the mass.
- Fry over fairly high heat until the pasta is golden brown.
- Turn frittata over and fry on the other side.
This frittata is usually served as a pizza cut into triangular pieces, and it is recommended to eat it with tomato sauce.
Delicate frittata with ricotta
A very simple but unusual frittata recipe. The omelet turns out to be very tender and melting in the mouth, and competently selected additional components allow it to demonstrate a bright taste at the same time. For him, it is important to note that neither cream nor milk is used, but they are replaced by delicate Italian ricotta cheese.
Ingredients:
- Eggs - 8 pcs.
- Bulb onions - 1 pc.
- Ricotta cheese - 250 g
- Mint - 1/2 bunch
- Olive oil - 3 tablespoons
- Salt, pepper - to taste
How to prepare tender ricotta frittata step by step:
- Separate the whites from the yolks, beat separately well and mix gently.
- Pour 2 tablespoons into the pan. butter, pass the finely chopped onion for 3-5 minutes.
- In the meantime, chop the mint leaves, add to the onion for 2 minutes, then put the ricotta, cook together for a couple of minutes.
- Grease another pan with the remaining oil, pour the beaten eggs into it, cook over low heat until the bottom layer is tight.
- Place the cheese with onions and mint and bring the frittata until cooked in a convenient way - by placing it in the oven, covering it with a lid, or turning it gently.
By the way, if you do not find ricotta cheese in the store, you may well use delicate cottage cheese, but you will need to beat it first. However, do not buy grainy cottage cheese; you will not be able to beat it until a soft creamy texture.
Frittata with potatoes and salmon
Frittata with potatoes is a Spanish version of an Italian dish. The frittata prepared according to this recipe turns out to be very satisfying, and if prepared according to our recipe with salmon, it is also very tasty.
Ingredients:
- Eggs - 8 pcs.
- Potatoes - 500 g
- Smoked salmon - 200 g
- Green peas - 100 g
- Dill - bunch
- Salt, pepper - to taste
How to prepare frittata with potatoes and salmon step by step:
- Peel and cut the potatoes into large pieces, boil for 10-15 minutes.
- Cut the salmon into wide strips, finely chop the dill.
- Beat the eggs into a fluffy mass, put salmon, dill, peas, potatoes in it, add salt.
- Heat oil in a frying pan, put the resulting mass in it, cook over low heat for about 7-10 minutes.
- Flip frittata using a plate: Place a plate on top of the pan, turn it over and return the omelet to the pan unseated.
- Cook for another 5-7 minutes.
While still warm, frittata can be sprinkled with finely grated cheese. Serve perfectly with a fresh salad of herbs, tomatoes and red onions.
Frittata video recipes
By the way, if you are not very fond of green peas, it is not necessary to add them to this dish at all, and in general, as you probably understood, you can experiment with frittata fillings without restrictions.
