Chef Thomas
A Proper Roast Chicken
A whole bird rubbed with butter, stuffed with lemon and thyme, roasted until the skin crackles and the kitchen smells like the kind of evening you want to sit down and stay in.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Courgette and Cheese Frittata
Created by Chef Thomas
Courgettes fried golden in butter, set in eggs and cheddar, and finished under the grill until the top blisters and the kitchen smells like a summer evening worth sitting down for.
Main Dishes
British
Weeknight
Quick Meal
10 min
Active Time
20 min cook•30 min total
Yield4 servings
The courgettes arrive at the market sometime in July and don't stop until September. By August, there are so many you start giving them to the neighbours. This is one of the things I make when there are more courgettes than ideas, which is to say, I make it often.
A frittata is not a recipe. It's a principle. Eggs, something from the pan, cheese if you've got it, and ten minutes under the grill. The courgettes need to be fried properly first, in butter, until they pick up some real colour and lose that raw, watery taste they carry when undercooked. Pale, steamed courgettes in eggs is nobody's idea of supper. Golden, slightly caramelised courgettes in eggs with cheddar bubbling on top is another thing entirely.
I wrote this one down in the notebook years ago. "Courgettes, eggs, cheddar, thyme. Thursday. Still warm outside." That's the whole recipe, really. The rest is just making sure you don't overcook the eggs or undercook the courgettes. A recipe is a conversation, not a contract. Treat this as a starting point and use whatever cheese is in the fridge, whatever herbs are in the garden. Your kitchen, your rules.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
courgettes
Quantity
3 medium
sliced into rounds about the thickness of a pound coin
unsalted butter
Quantity
30g
olive oil
Quantity
1 tablespoon
onion
Quantity
1 small
halved and thinly sliced
large eggs
Quantity
6
mature cheddar
Quantity
100g
coarsely grated
fresh thyme
Quantity
a few sprigs
leaves picked
fine sea salt
Quantity
to taste
black pepper
Quantity
to taste
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| courgettessliced into rounds about the thickness of a pound coin | 3 medium |
| unsalted butter | 30g |
| olive oil | 1 tablespoon |
| onionhalved and thinly sliced | 1 small |
| large eggs | 6 |
| mature cheddarcoarsely grated | 100g |
| fresh thymeleaves picked | a few sprigs |
| fine sea salt | to taste |
| black pepper | to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •25cm ovenproof frying pan
- •Mixing bowl
- •Cheese grater
Instructions
- 1
Cook the courgettes
Warm the butter and oil together in a 25cm ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. When the butter foams and the kitchen starts to smell warm and nutty, add the onion and cook for a few minutes until soft. Add the courgette rounds in a generous layer. You don't need to fuss over placing them neatly. Let them cook without stirring for three or four minutes, until the undersides pick up some colour, then turn them. You want patches of gold, not a uniform tan. Season well with salt and pepper and scatter the thyme leaves through.
Don't crowd the pan so much that the courgettes steam rather than fry. If your pan is small, do them in two batches. Wet, grey courgettes are nobody's friend. - 2
Add the eggs
Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat them loosely with a fork. You're not making an omelette. A few streaks of white are fine. Stir in about two-thirds of the grated cheese and a good grinding of pepper. Pour the eggs over the courgettes in the pan, tilting to fill the gaps. Let the frittata cook on a gentle heat, undisturbed, for six or seven minutes. The edges will begin to set and pull away from the pan. The centre will still be wet. That's where you want it.
A gentle heat matters here. Too high and the bottom scorches while the top stays raw. You're not in a hurry. We're only making dinner. - 3
Finish under the grill
Heat your grill to its highest setting. Scatter the remaining cheese over the top of the frittata and slide the pan underneath. Watch it. Two to three minutes, sometimes less. You're looking for the cheese to bubble and turn golden in patches, the surface to puff slightly and set. It will keep cooking once you take it out, so pull it before you think it's done. Let it rest in the pan for a couple of minutes. It will firm as it sits.
If your pan handle isn't ovenproof, wrap it in a double layer of damp kitchen cloth. Or use a different pan next time. A good ovenproof frying pan earns its keep with dishes like this. - 4
Serve from the pan
Slide the frittata onto a board or serve it straight from the pan, cut into thick wedges. It wants a simple green salad alongside, something sharp with a mustardy dressing, and perhaps some good bread if there's any in the kitchen. It's as good warm as it is at room temperature. Arguably better, in fact, once the flavours have had a chance to settle.
Chef Tips
- •The cheese wants to be something with character. Mature cheddar works, but a crumbly Lancashire or a sharp, tangy goat's cheese would be just as good. Whatever you've got in the fridge. Just not anything too mild, or it'll vanish into the eggs without a trace.
- •This is as good cold as it is warm. Pack a wedge in greaseproof paper for lunch the next day. It travels well and improves slightly as the flavours settle, the way a good thing often does on the second day.
- •If the courgettes are large and seedy, halve them lengthways and scoop the watery seeds out with a spoon before slicing. Smaller, firmer ones don't need it. The market decides.
- •A frittata is forgiving. If you've got a few leaves of basil, a handful of olives, some roasted peppers from a jar, put them in. It takes to additions kindly. The eggs hold whatever you give them.
Advance Preparation
- •The courgettes can be fried an hour or so ahead and left in the pan. Beat the eggs and add them when you're ready to cook. The whole thing comes together in under fifteen minutes from that point.
- •A cooked frittata keeps well in the fridge for up to two days, covered. Bring it to room temperature before eating, or warm it gently in a low oven. Don't reheat it in a microwave. It deserves better.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 230g)
Calories
330 calories
Total Fat
25 g
Saturated Fat
12 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
12 g
Cholesterol
320 mg
Sodium
565 mg
Total Carbohydrates
8 g
Dietary Fiber
2 g
Sugars
5 g
Protein
18 g
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