The omelet as most Americans know it is a French import. But cooks the world over have combined whipped eggs with cooked ingredients since at least the ancient Persians. And often, “omelets” from other cultures are a lot less fussy than the filled and folded bistro classic.
Take egg foo young, for instance. It may call to mind the deep-fried, heavily sauced egg dish offered in Chinese-American restaurants, but in China, Cantonese cooks use a lot less oil and a lot more crispy vegetables. In this recipe from our book “Cook What You Have,” which draws on pantry staples to assemble easy, weeknight meals, we take the Cantonese path for veggie-packed omelets. It also happens to be a great way to use up leftover vegetables.
