Recipes

Rice Omelet

Date

Jan. 31, 2021

Learn about this recipe from our Historic Foodways staff, then try it at home.

Here at Historic Foodways, we never judge a recipe by its title. This different version of a rice pudding has nothing to do with what we think of as an omelet. Instead, this lovely pudding has a thick custard poured over a molded rice. It’s also gluten-free! Enjoy.

Learn how we make this recipe in our kitchens based on the 18th-century description below, then use our 21st-century translation to try the recipe at home!

Watch How It's Made

Rice Omelet

18th Century

A quarter of a pound of Rice, boil it in new Milk until it is like a hasty Pudding, then put it in a dish to cool, when quite cold cut it in 8 quarters. Make a boiled Custard thick, and when you have laid the pieces in a China Dish, pour the Custard upon it, and lay on very piece Raspberry Jam...

— From The Receipt Book of Baroness Dimsdale

21st Century

Ingredients

¼ lb. rice
3 cups heavy cream
Water
2 eggs (large)
2 Tbsp. sugar

Instructions

Place the rice in a saucepan with one cup of heavy cream and ½ cup of water. Cook rice, stirring frequently, until rice is very soft and thick. Add more water if needed in order for the rice to break down into a mushy mass that resembles cooked oatmeal.
Put rice into a lightly greased dish or pie plate, and let cool until it sets up. Cut into eight even pieces. The rice should hold together when cut. If it does not hold together put it back into a pot and cook a little longer.
Place the eight slices in a circle on a plate, leaving gaps between each piece.

Custard

Put two cups of heavy cream in a saucepan.
Whisk in one whole egg and one yolk till well blended.
Whisk in two tablespoons of sugar.
Place pot on medium heat. Cook until thickened, stirring frequently, until it coats the back of a wooden spoon (as if you were dragging your finger through yogurt).
Let custard cool for ten minutes before covering the eight sliced pieces completely with the custard. Dot each piece with a teaspoon of jam, and one large tablespoon in the middle.