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Eggs and Omelets

A collection of egg‑based recipes including cheese omelets, hard‑boiled egg dishes, and garnishing preparations.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Payne, A. G. (Arthur Gay), 1840-1894 · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 68,474 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Eggs and Omelets

Ingredients

Directions

Make the onion and egg dish

  1. In a stew-pan, chop three small onions about the size of the top of the thumb very finely.

  2. Fry the onions and add a dessert-spoonful of vinegar.

  3. When the cucumber is tender and a little time has been allowed for the vinegar to evaporate, add six hard-boiled eggs cut into slices.

  4. Add pepper and salt.

  5. Make the eggs very hot and serve.

Make the cheese eggs

  1. Take a quarter of a pound of dry, white grated cheese and melt it gently in a stew-pan over the fire with a little butter about the size of a thumb.

  2. Mix in a brimming teaspoonful of chopped parsley, two or three tiny spring onions chopped very finely, and about a quarter of a small grated nutmeg.

  3. When the cheese is melted, add six beaten-up eggs and stir the mixture until set.

  4. Serve with fried or toasted bread around the edge of the dish.

Make the yolk shapes

  1. Take six hard-boiled yolks, powder them, and flavor with a little pepper and salt.

  2. Mix in three raw yolks and stir well.

  3. Roll the mixture into shapes like small sausages, pointed at each end.

  4. Flour the shapes on the outside and throw them into boiling water.

  5. Optionally flavor the boiled shapes with grated nutmeg, chopped parsley, and a few savory herbs.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

244Calories
15 gProtein
15 gFat
13 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Cheese1 oz (28g) cheddar113
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Payne, A. G. (Arthur Gay), 1840-1894. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together68,474 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Cheese + vinegartop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together922 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-methylbutanol (malty, whiskey).

  3. Onion + vinegartop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,226 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  4. Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,814 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  5. Cheese + oniontop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,849 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs
Set and bind the mixture into a firm, sliceable or spoonable body.
Grated cheese
Melts into the dish, adding richness, salty flavor and a creamy texture.
Onions
Softened by frying, they add sweetness and savory depth.
Raw yolks
Add richness and fat, helping the shapes hold together smoothly.
Vinegar
Adds a sharp acidity that brightens the onions.

The step that matters

Make the cheese eggs. Once the beaten eggs go into the melted cheese, they set quickly; stirring steadily keeps the mixture soft and prevents it from turning rubbery or curdled.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cheese, egg, vinegar, pepper):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Mustardfits better
  3. Cucumberfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against cheese, egg, vinegar, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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