The Breakfast Fast Food Chain That Puts Pancake Batter In Its Omelets

If you're looking to avoid making common omelet mistakes, breakfast restaurants and diners often have just the tricks you need to serve up the tastiest omelet imaginable. While some of these cooking hacks are hidden within heavily-guarded secret recipes, others are more accessible. Case in point: IHOP has revealed how it makes those incredible, mouthwatering omelets. In an interesting nod to the restaurant's affinity for pancakes, IHOP actually adds pancake batter directly to its omelet mix. 

The International House of Pancakes shares this cooking strategy in its nutritional FAQ, stating, "It is marked that the Omelettes contain wheat and gluten as they are made with a splash of Buttermilk Pancake batter." The pancake batter also features in the restaurant's burritos and bowls. Due to the presence of pancake batter, IHOP's omelets, burritos, and bowls are not an option for those adhering to a gluten-free diet. But why would the chain add in pancake batter to its omelets in the first place? 

The perfect omelet is fluffy and tender, and IHOP claims its buttermilk pancake batter helps make its omelets just that. This ideal texture is due to the flour and baking powder in the batter. For the pancakes, the flour adds heft and thickness while baking powder acts as a leavening agent to make pancakes fluffy and satisfying. Unsurprisingly, these ingredients can increase the airiness of your omelet as well. As an added bonus, the acid in buttermilk reacts with baking soda — another common pancake batter ingredient — to create air bubbles that make light pancakes and omelets. 

To copy IHOP's trick for extra fluffy omelets, start by making some batter for a basic buttermilk pancake. Before cooking your omelet, add two tablespoons of the prepared pancake batter into the eggs, whisking it all together. Be wary of adding too much pancake batter, or else you'll risk turning your omelet into more of an eggy pancake. Also, don't be concerned if the mixture looks a little funny at first. Once it starts cooking, you'll see it transform into a beautiful and scrumptious omelet. Though IHOP doesn't add pancake batter to all its plain scrambled eggs, you can even try adding pancake batter to your egg slurry for an extra fluffy breakfast.