Make Four-Star Breakfast at Home

Crisp bacon, light pancakes, goof-proof omelets: Find out what restaurant chefs know to get top results at home.

French Toast

Ever wonder how restaurants get their French toast so brown and sweet without overcooking the middle? Here’s the trick: When you melt the butter, add a pinch of brown sugar, a pinch of ground cinnamon, and a pinch of salt to the pan at the same time. When the butter begins to foam, put the bread in the pan, but do not move it around until it’s time to flip!

Omelet

Want a perfect omelet? Getting the egg out of the pan is the challenge. Here are some helpful hints chefs already know: 

Heat the pan hot! When you pour in the egg, it should sizzle and bubble. The pan should be hot enough to cook in just moments, without browning. 
Use a heavyweight nonstick pan, and make sure it is spotlessly clean.Use a heatproof rubber scraper. These flexible tools, once used merely to scrape batter out of pans, have become major cooking tools with the advent of heatproof silicone blades.

Bacon

To avoid splatter, and for even cooking, cook bacon in the microwave. Place one or two slices of bacon on a folded paper towel and lay it in the microwave. Cook on high for two to three minutes, or until the bacon is crisp and sizzling. For more than two slices of bacon, lay the paper towel on a plate and increase the cooking time as needed.

Pancakes

The best and lightest pancakes are made from buttermilk and baking soda, which together create air bubbles that are trapped by the gluten in the flour. This simple chemical reaction happens and subsides quickly, so don’t wait around. Mix the pancake batter quickly (and minimally—overbeating makes them tough and flat) and cook them immediately. Discard any leftover batter.