Simple Lao Omelette

For crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside omelettes you can whip up in 10 minutes, check out this Simple Lao Omelette. Filled with perfectly wilted greens and dished up with a tasty sweet and sour dipping sauce, this vegetarian omelette is deliciously filling AND healthy!

Why We Love This

Omelettes really are the essence of a simple, quick and filling meal. Plus you can jazz them up with all kinds of fillings, toppings and addictive dipping sauces depending on what you have on hand.

This healthy omelette recipe is full of veggies and amazing Asian flavours to keep you satisfied, whether it’s for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s also lighter than a traditional omelette or vegetable frittata, so it won’t leave you feeling heavy or bloated. 

The below recipe is for one serve, so it’s easily scalable whether you’re making it for yourself or cooking for the whole family.

What is a Lao Omelette? 

Omelettes, just like pancakes and crepes, are a popular street food across Asia. Each region has its own version using slightly different ingredients, methods or presentation.

In Laos, omelettes are usually cooked in a large oiled wok over hot coals. The thin, runny batter is swirled around the wok so the omelettes are light, fluffy, and paper thin with super crispy edges. This sets them apart from Thai omelettes known as kai jeow, where the eggs are dropped into the hot oil and puff up into thick, fluffy omelette pillows.

They’re usually topped with wilted veggies then carefully folded over into pockets and served with a range of condiments and dipping sauces to customise to your taste.

Where We Learned This

Our wanderings through Luang Prabang, Laos, led us to discover this simple Lao Omelette at a humble little food stall well away from the bustling tourist drag. It looked nice and shady, a good spot to rest after hours of walking in the hot sun.

The lovely stall owner dashed off to whip up the omelette in a huge stainless steel wok perched atop a rustic wood-fed stove. In a flash, a ladle full of whisked egg and rice flour batter went shooting across the wok to cover the pan. All the while she kept throwing smiles across her shoulder at us. Come over, come see.

As we watched, she added fresh spring onion leaves, morning glory and bean shoots into the wok, then slammed on the lid so they’d wilt juuuust right while the egg batter continued to cook.

After a minute or two and a few flicks of the spatula, she folded the edges of the omelette over the veggies to form a neat little pocket. It reached our table in steaming hot deliciousness, along with a bowl of sweet/salty/sour dipping sauce and various toppings to customise to our own taste.

Curious, we took a bite. Our first impression was a fluffy yet crispy creation unlike any omelette we’ve tried before. It must be that addition of rice flour to the batter, making it an omelette with a hint of pancake texture similar to Vietnamese banh xeo.

A sprinkling of chilli flakes, generous scoops of peanut powder, and we started attacking it by neatly dunking pieces of omelette in the dipping sauce before giving up and pouring the sauce all over the omelette like the happy little gluttons we are. Yum!

What You’ll Need

For the vegetable omelette:

• Eggs – Regular chicken eggs are all you need here, though duck eggs would work just as well.
• Rice Flour – This is what adds that crispy crunch to your omelette. The most popular/widely available brand is Erawan Thai rice flour. You can usually find it at Asian grocers or in the international aisle of larger supermarkets. Look for the bag with the red label (the green one is for glutinous rice flour which is not what we want for this recipe). Substitute with potato starch if you need.
• Veggies – We use bean sprouts, spring onion leaves and spinach when cooking this at home. Feel free to use any combination of your favourite greens, for example morning glory, Chinese spinach or bok choy. For more ideas, see the Variations section below.
• Toppings – Crushed peanuts, chilli flakes, and a sprinkling of salt & pepper add extra texture and flavour to the dish.

For the dipping sauce:

• Fish Sauce – This staple Asian ingredient has a strong smell in the bottle, but is perfect for adding savoury flavour to your cooking. You’ll find it at Asian grocers or in well-stocked supermarkets in the international foods section, or online. If you can’t find it or don’t want to use, you can substitute with soy sauce.
• Lime Juice – Fresh is best, but we’ll sometimes use bottled lime juice for convenience. 
• Soybean Oil – This is a nice, flavourless oil that is the perfect base for the dipping sauce. Substitute with coconut oil, sunflower oil or vegetable oil if you need.

How to Make a Lao Omelette

1. To make the batter, mix the rice flour, warm water and salt. Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl, then pour into batter. Mix until combined.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat, ensuring the oil reaches all over the pan.
3. Using a ladle, spoon the mixture around the edges of the wok, then swirl to spread it out evenly over the entire surface.
4. Top the omelette with bean sprouts, spring onion and spinach slightly off centre. Cover with a lid to steam until the veggies have wilted slightly (around 1 minute).
5. Dab your spatula with oil and drip more around the edges of the omelette – this is a crucial step to stop it sticking. Gently lift the edges of the omelette with the spatula and fold over the middle to create a parcel.
6. Transfer to a serving plate and serve with finely chopped peanuts, chilli and dipping sauce.

Wandercook’s Tips

• Batter Consistency – Aim for a thin consistency, not a thick batter. This will help you swirl it out to the edges of the wok and create that nice thin omelette layer.
• Oil the Wok – Make sure the oil coats the wok evenly to avoid the omelette sticking or tearing.
• Veggies – Place the veggies slightly off centre to make it easier to fold over the top.
• Golden Brown – Fry until the bottom is golden brown, carefully fold over the veggies, then flip and fry the other side until cooked.

FAQs

Variations & Substitutes

• Make It Your Way – Try adding your favourite combo of sliced mushrooms, diced tomato, herbs (chives, coriander/cilantro or dill), chopped garlic, chilli, etc. You could even add BBQ chicken, cheese or tofu for a little extra protein and flavour. 
• Add Spice – Tweak the flavours with a sprinkling of cayenne, paprika, shichimi chilli powder, or Sriracha hot sauce. 

Try more delicious Asian pancakes and crepes next:

★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and a star rating below!

Simple Lao Omelette

For crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside omelettes you can whip up in 10 minutes, check out this Simple Lao Omelette. Filled with perfectly wilted greens and dished up with a tasty sweet and sour dipping sauce, this vegetarian omelette is deliciously filling AND healthy!

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Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Course: Lunch

Cuisine: Lao

Servings: 1 omelette

Calories: 409kcal

Author: Wandercooks

Cost: $7

Ingredients

• ▢ 3 eggs
• ▢ 1/4 cup rice flour
• ▢ 1/4 cup warm water
• ▢ 1/2 tsp salt
• ▢ 1 handful bean sprouts
• ▢ 1 handful water spinach cut into 4 cm strips
• ▢ 1 handful spring onion / green onion chopped

Optional Toppings

• ▢ Salt
• ▢ Pepper
• ▢ Crushed peanuts
• ▢ Chilli flakes or fresh chopped chilli

Dipping Sauce

• ▢ 1-2 tbsp fish sauce
• ▢ 1 – 2 tsp sugar to your liking
• ▢ ½ tsp lime juice
• ▢ ½ tsp vegetable oil or coconut oil

Instructions

• To make the batter, mix the rice flour, warm water and salt. Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl, then pour into batter. Mix until combined.
• Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat, ensuring the oil reaches all over the pan.
• Using a ladle, spoon the mixture around the edges of the wok, then swirl to spread it out evenly over the entire surface.
• Top the omelette with bean sprouts, spring onion and spinach slightly off centre. Cover with a lid to steam until the veggies have wilted slightly (around 1 minute).
• Dab your spatula with oil and drip more around the edges of the omelette – this is a crucial step to stop it sticking. Gently lift the edges of the omelette with the spatula and fold over the middle to create a parcel.
• Transfer to a serving plate and serve with finely chopped peanuts, chilli and dipping sauce.

For the dipping sauce:

• In a small bowl, add the fish sauce, sugar, lime juice and vegetable oil. Give it a quick stir and serve.

Recipe Notes

• Make It Your Way – Try adding your favourite combo of sliced mushrooms, diced tomato, herbs (chives, coriander/cilantro or dill), chopped garlic, chilli, etc. You could even add BBQ chicken, cheese or tofu for a little extra protein and flavour.
• Add Spice – Tweak the flavours with a sprinkling of cayenne, paprika, shichimi chilli powder, or Sriracha hot sauce.
• Batter Consistency – Aim for a thin consistency, not a thick batter. This will help you swirl it out to the edges of the wok and create that nice thin omelette layer.
• Oil the Wok – Make sure the oil coats the wok evenly to avoid the omelette sticking or tearing.
  Veggies – Place the veggies slightly off centre to make it easier to fold over the top.
• Golden Brown – Fry until the bottom is golden brown, carefully fold over the veggies, then flip and fry the other side until cooked.
• Rice Flour – This is what adds that crispy crunch to your omelette. The most popular/widely available brand is Erawan Thai rice flour. You can usually find it at Asian grocers or in the international aisle of larger supermarkets. Look for the bag with the red label (the green one is for glutinous rice flour which is not what we want for this recipe). Substitute with potato starch if you need.

Nutrition

Calories: 409kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 491mg | Sodium: 2784mg | Potassium: 295mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 1086IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 3mg

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