Fish Omelettes (魚肉煎蛋)

An easy, healthy twist on omelettes!

flodesk gif
Prep Time
15 min
Total Time
30 min
Yields
4 servings

A Recipe by Daddy Lau

My dad's been cooking Chinese food for over 50 years - as a kid fending for himself in Guangzhou, as the head chef of his own restaurant, and as a loving father in our home.

Hopefully, by learning this recipe, you'll get to experience some of the delicious joy we felt growing up eating his food!

- Randy

My dad seems to have hundreds of recipes involving eggs, and this is yet another recipe that's extremely delicious, healthy, and easy to make! Perfect for easy weeknight meals :)

Check out a quick story summary of our recipe!

Ingredients

Weight: US
oz
g
Volume: US
cup
mL
Servings
4

Main Ingredients

  • 7 oz boneless fish fillets (

    most fish work - we're using swai fish here

    )
  • 5 eggs
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 2 piece green onion

Seasoning for Eggs

  • 0.50 tsp salt
  • 0.25 tsp white pepper

Seasoning for Fish

  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 0.25 tsp white pepper

What type of fish to use?

My dad is using swai fish here, but the recipe works with many different types of fish, shrimp, and other seafood. You can also make this with oysters, which is a very popular Hokkien and Teochew dish in restaurants and night markets throughout Southeast Asia.

Also known as basa or panga, swai is a popular type of catfish also native to Southeast Asia. As with all types of meat and seafood, if you have the means and ability, it's helpful to consider buying from sustainable sources. The Monterey Bay Aquarium manages a really helpful service called "Seafood Watch", which gives us consumers a bunch of recommendations on making our purchases in a more environmentally friendly way.

Finding Asian Ingredients

Some of these ingredients are hard to find in a typical grocery store.

If you don't live near an Asian market, most or all of what my dad uses in this recipe can be found on Amazon:​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

These links are affiliate links, which means that if you use our links to purchase these ingredients, Amazon pays my family a small amount for the sale - at no extra cost to you. If you use these links, we really appreciate the support!

We'll cut our fish fillets (7 oz) into 6-7 sections.

Then, cut each section into 1-1.5 inch strips. Cutting with the grain will help the fish stay together when cooking, while cutting against the grain will result in more fragile pieces that may fall apart. It's up to you which what you'd like to cut.

We'll place the fish into a bowl and season the fish with white pepper (0.25 tsp), cornstarch (1 tsp), and salt (0.25 tsp). Mix it evenly with chopsticks until the flavors are distributed around the fish.

Next, we'll chop our green onions (2 piece) into small pieces.

Then, we'll crack our eggs (5 ) into a bowl, add salt (0.50 tsp) and white pepper (0.25 tsp), and beat the eggs with chopsticks/fork.

We'll set our stove to high heat and pour boiling water into the pan.

Add the fish to the pan. We'll let the fish cook for about 1.5 to 2 minutes, gently moving the fish around as we go.

Using boiling water allows the cornstarch to trap the fish's juices inside, resulting in a more tender bite.

Once the fish has turned into more of a white color, we'll drain the pan into a colander.

Dry off the pan with a paper towel.

Next, we'll be heating up our pan for about 2-3 minutes on high heat.

Once hot enough, we'll add oil (1 tbsp) to the pan. Tilt and turn the pan to spread the oil around.

A good sign that both our pan and oil are hot enough is if the oil starts shimmering, or forming ripples across the surface.

Turn the stove down to medium heat.

We'll start pouring SOME of the egg mixture into the pan. (Not all). The eggs should immediately sizzle after being poured into the pan. Let it rest and cook for about 15-30 seconds before adding the fish.

Once the egg has partially cooked, we'll add our fish on top of the egg and distribute the fish around the pan.

Combine the green onions with the rest of the egg mixture, beat the eggs a few times, and then pour the rest of the mixture into the pan.

Like with most omelettes, notice that my dad is barely stirring or touching the eggs. Occasionally, we'll dig our spatula between the pan and egg to prevent the egg from sticking to the pan.

Halfway through, we'll also want to add oil (0.50 tbsp) to the perimeter of the omelette to seep down between the pan and eggs, and so that the eggs continue to form a nice golden brown exterior.

In total, after pouring the rest of the eggs into pan, let it cook on this side for about 3-4 minutes before flipping. A good visual cue is for the eggs to show nice golden brown.

To flip the omelette, we'll carefully transfer the omelette onto a large plate. Add oil (0.50 tbsp) to the pan. Then, in a quick motion, we'll flip the omelette upside down back onto the pan.

This is easier to do if you have fewer eggs and fillings.

While it cooks, you can add a touch more oil around the perimeter to help the egg separate from the pan and brown.

In total, after flipping, we'll be cooking the omelette on this side for about 3-5 minutes until the bottom has turned a nice golden brown.

We'll occasionally press the omelette into the pan with the bottom of our spatula to help any bumps and crevices make contact with the pan.

To transfer the omelette onto a plate, we'll be using gravity.

Cover the pan with a plate, and then flip the pan upside down onto the plate. The egg should fall nicely onto the plate, which we can then cut up and serve to our loved ones.

FAQ

How do you balance the fish and egg cooking time?

  • Because fish is very delicate and eggs cook quickly, we precook the fish in boiling water. When we start cooking the eggs, we let it begin to set before adding the fish. Then you'll be able to preserve the tenderness of the ingredients while keeping it all structurally sound.

Is there a special technique for beating eggs?

  • There's no secret trick to it. Use whatever you have at home, or whatever you're comfortable with: chopsticks, forks, whisks, a blender if you must. If you can't beat them quickly, you'll just have to spend a little more time bending the eggs to your will. They'll succumb eventually.
  • The important thing is that you end up with the yolks and whites combined. For this dish, texture is important, so you don't want streaks of whites that are slightly tougher to chew. You want uniform color and texture for the eggs.

How do you cook the omelette without burning it?

  • Take a peek underneath! If it starts to brown too much, you want to flip it or take it out of the pan.
  • If it's browning too fast while the top/inside is still too raw, your heat is too high. Lower the heat and remember to turn it this low next time you start making the omelette.

What kind of seafood can you use in omelettes?

  • We use white fish in our omelette recipe, but you can use whatever seafood you like! Shrimp, crab, oyster, and squid are also popular options. For whatever ingredients you use, pre-cook it separately and then add it to the eggs after the eggs have already partially cooked.
  • This way, you have the most control over how cooked the ingredients are without worrying that you have raw crab in your overcooked egg!

Summary

Fish Omelettes (魚肉煎蛋)
An easy, healthy twist on omelettes!
  • Prep Time: 15 min
  • Total Time: 30 min
  • Yield: 4 servings

Main Ingredients

  • 7 oz boneless fish fillets (

    most fish work - we're using swai fish here

    )
  • 5 eggs
  • 2 tbsp oil
  • 2 piece green onion

Seasoning for Eggs

  • 0.50 tsp salt
  • 0.25 tsp white pepper

Seasoning for Fish

  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 0.25 tsp white pepper

Step 1 - Cut fish

↑ Jump to details

Cut the fish fillets (7 oz) along the grain into 6-7 sections (perpendicular to the spine).

Then, cut each section into 1-1.5 inch strips.

Step 2 - Season fish

↑ Jump to details

Place the fish into a bowl and season the fish with white pepper (0.25 tsp), cornstarch (1 tsp), and salt (0.25 tsp). Mix it evenly with chopsticks until the flavors are distributed around the fish.

Step 3 - Prep green onions and eggs

↑ Jump to details

Next, chop the green onions (2 piece) into small pieces.

Then, crack the eggs (5 ) into a bowl, add salt (0.50 tsp) and white pepper (0.25 tsp), and beat the eggs with chopsticks/fork.

Step 4 - Cook fish

↑ Jump to details

Set the stove to high heat and pour boiling water into the pan.

Add the fish to the pan. Let the fish cook for about 1.5 to 2 minutes, gently moving the fish around.

Once the fish has turned white, drain the pan into a colander.

Dry off the pan with a paper towel.

Step 5 - Heat pan & oil

↑ Jump to details

Next, heat up the pan for about 2-3 minutes on high heat.

Once hot enough, add oil (1 tbsp) to the pan. Tilt and turn the pan to spread the oil around

Step 6 - Start cooking omelette

↑ Jump to details

Turn the stove down to medium, and start pouring half of the egg mixture into the pan.

Let it cook undisturbed for about 15-30 seconds before adding the fish.

Once the egg has partially cooked, add the fish on top of the egg and distribute the fish around the pan.

Combine the green onions with the rest of the egg mixture, beat the eggs a few times, and then pour the rest of the mixture into the pan.

Aside from occasionally shifting the whole omelette to prevent sticking, don't stir the omelette.

Halfway through, add oil (0.50 tbsp) to the perimeter of the omelette to seep down between the pan and eggs, and so that the eggs continue to form a nice golden brown exterior.

In total, after pouring the rest of the eggs into pan, let it cook on this side for about 3-4 minutes, or until gold brown, before flipping.

Step 7 - Flip omelette

↑ Jump to details

To flip the omelette, carefully transfer the omelette onto a large plate. Add oil (0.50 tbsp) to the pan. Then, in a quick motion, flip the omelette upside down back onto the pan.

While it cooks, you can add a touch more oil around the perimeter.

Cook this side of the omelette for about 3-5 minutes until the bottom has turned a nice golden brown.

Occasionally press the omelette into the pan with the bottom of our spatula to help any bumps and crevices make contact with the pan.

Step 8 - Transfer to a plate

↑ Jump to details

Cover the pan with a plate, and then flip the pan upside down onto the plate. The egg should fall nicely onto the plate, which you can then cut up and serve to your loved ones.

Step 9 - Take pictures
Whip out your camera (1). Begin taking photos (1,000,000). Pick your favorites!
Step 10 - Share and tag us on Instagram @madewithlau #madewithlau!
Did you have fun making this recipe? We'd love to see & hear about it. (Especially my dad. He would be THRILLED!)

Enjoy!

I have so many memories of eating this dish growing up.

Now, hopefully, you can create your own memories with this dish with your loved ones.

Also, I cordially invite you to eat with us and learn more about the dish, Chinese culture, and hang out with our adorable son. We get into a lot of detail about how to best cook this dish, differences in cooking methods, and more!

Cheers, and thanks for cooking with us!

Feel free to comment below if you have any questions about the recipe.