New potatoes, onion, courgette and pepper set with three eggs and finished under the grill. Two servings, thirty minutes.
Par-boil the potatoes, do not cook them through
Five to eight minutes, until almost tender.
Almost is the operative word. They get another five minutes in the pan with the vegetables and then the egg stage on top of that, so taking them to fully soft now means mush by the end.
Test with a knife tip. It should meet slight resistance in the middle.
Drain them properly. Wet potatoes added to a frying pan spit and stop the vegetables browning.
A splash of water for the onion
Added if needed while it softens.
Two teaspoons of oil is very little for a whole sliced onion, and it will stick before the onion has softened. A tablespoon of water deglazes the pan and lets the onion steam rather than catch.
This is a low-fat technique and it works. The water evaporates entirely and you are left with softened onion rather than fried onion.
The pan size is specified for a reason
Seven to eight inches, non-stick.
Three eggs in a larger pan gives you a thin sheet that sets in seconds and goes rubbery. In this size it is thick enough to stay tender and to hold the vegetables suspended.
Non-stick matters because a frittata cannot be prised free without breaking. There is no flipping step here to rescue it.
Cook the base, then grill the top
Two to three minutes until cooked around the edges and slightly golden underneath, then one to two minutes under a preheated grill.
That split is what makes a frittata work in half an hour. The bottom sets by conduction from the pan; the top sets by radiant heat from above.
Cooking it entirely on the hob means either a burnt base or a raw top. Grilling from cold means the same problem reversed.
Preheat the grill before you start the egg stage, which the recipe sequences correctly.
Just set, not firm
One to two minutes under the grill.
Eggs continue cooking on residual heat in a hot pan for a minute or two after they leave the heat. A frittata pulled when firm arrives at the table dry.
Just set means the centre still has a slight softness when you press it.
Mature cheddar, and only an ounce
Twenty five grams grated, added at the end.
Extra-mature cheddar is specified because a small amount has to register. A mild cheddar at this quantity would disappear entirely.
On top rather than mixed in, so it browns under the grill and gives the frittata its finished look.
Season after the eggs go in
Which the recipe does at the same time.
Salting eggs before they meet heat is fine and does not toughen them, despite the persistent claim otherwise. What matters more is that the vegetables have already been cooked without salt, so this is the only seasoning stage.
Be reasonably generous. Potatoes and eggs both need salt to taste of anything.
Serve immediately
With a green salad, which suits it.
A frittata is at its best in the first few minutes. It is perfectly good cold the next day, which is how they are usually eaten in Italy, but the texture is denser.
Around 359 calories per serving with 27g of carbohydrate, most of it from the potatoes.
The mushroom variation
150g of mushrooms and 200g of steamed broccoli in place of the courgette and pepper. <p>Cook mushrooms until their liquid has gone before the eggs go in, or the frittata weeps. Broccoli should be steamed and dry. ## Why three eggs for two people Which is fewer than you might expect for a main dish.
The potatoes are doing much of the work here. Two hundred grams of new potatoes plus an onion, a courgette and a pepper is a substantial volume of vegetables, and the eggs are binding them rather than being the bulk.
Adding a fourth egg is fine and makes it more custardy, in which case give the base an extra minute.
Scaling up
Doubling means a 10 to 12 inch pan and roughly double the base cooking time, four to six minutes, before it goes under the grill. Check that your pan handle is grill-safe.
Courgette and Pepper Frittata
Description
A quick vegetable frittata for two, cooked on the hob and finished under the grill.
Ingredients:
Instructions
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Add the potatoes to a pan of boiling water and cook 5 to 8 minutes until almost tender, with slight resistance at the centre. Drain thoroughly and set aside.
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Heat the oil in an 18 to 20.5cm (7 to 8 inch) non-stick frying pan and cook the onion until soft, adding a splash of water if it starts to stick. Add the courgette and pepper and fry gently 5 minutes.
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Preheat the grill. Add the potatoes and beaten eggs to the pan and season well. Cook 2 to 3 minutes until cooked around the edges and slightly golden underneath.
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Sprinkle the cheese on top, then put under the preheated grill 1 to 2 minutes until just set rather than firm. Serve immediately with a green salad..
Note
Par-boil the potatoes only until almost tender, since they get another five minutes with the vegetables plus the egg stage. Drain them properly, as wet potatoes spit and stop the vegetables browning. Add a splash of water if the onion sticks; two teaspoons of oil is very little for a whole onion. Use a 7 to 8 inch non-stick pan as specified, since three eggs in a larger pan set thin and go rubbery, and a frittata cannot be prised free from a sticky pan. Preheat the grill before starting the egg stage. Pull it when just set rather than firm, as eggs keep cooking on residual heat. Use extra-mature cheddar, since a mild one at 25g would disappear. Check your pan handle is grill-safe.