Omurice from Japanese Soul Cooking

On Friday night I tried another recipe from Japanese Soul Cooking. This one was for Omurice, an omelet filled with fried rice. I'd never eaten omurice before, so I needed more knowledgable reviewers, luckily Raku and Leo came to the rescue.

To make the fried rice you start out by frying carrots, onions, and chicken, and then simmering them in a sauce made of chicken broth and ketchup. This recipe called for half a cup of ketchup, and I have to admit I was a little grossed out when I measured it. Once it thickens you mix in the rice and peas. Then it's just a matter of making the omelets. The recipe itself was very simple and easy to follow and I didn't have to buy any unfamiliar ingredients.

So here are my thoughts. It was hard to get all the filling inside the omelet neatly! When I put 1/4 of the filling into an individual omelet it seemed impossible, and the results aren't that pretty. Additionally, the consensus seemed to be that there was too much rice to egg in the ratio. I wonder if a) American eggs are larger than Japanese eggs (probably, yes) b) a larger frying pan would have given me more surface area to fill with rice without making the egg too thin (again, probably yes.) If you're concerned about presentation than be aware that trying to do any cutesy decorations can take an ominous turn when your medium is ketchup. I tried to draw a stick figure girl on Raku's omelet, and it seriously looked like a murder victim. (Note: the recipe did not recommend ketchup art, it's just something I have seen before and wanted to try)

Raku and Leo were very kind and said they liked the omurice, but they might have just been being nice. Everyone did agree that the egg to rice ratio was off. John was conspicuously silent, but he doesn't like omurice. And I thought the filling was too sweet. I like ketchup on my eggs, but this was just too much. I think a little less ketchup and a little more salt (maybe garlic salt?) would be more to my liking.

Read about other JSC recipes:
Oyakodon/Gyudon/Shiso Pasta
Yakiudon
Mabo Dofu
Sapporo Soup Curry
Sesame Karaage
Tan Tan Men
Pork Gyoza
Ebi Chili
Japanese Soul Cooking Review

Showing off my new apron from Karuizawa  

That's a lot of ketchup!

Mixing in the rice

Overstuffed omelets

I'm no artist, but why do these look so evil?