Tamagoyaki: Japanese Rolled Omelet

By
Setsuko Yoshizuka
Setsuko Yoshizuka
Setsuko Yoshizuka is a food writer and Japanese cookbook author.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 06/18/24
Tested by
Rick Horiike
Rick Horiike
Tested by Rick Horiike

Rick has experience as a cook and chef for multiple Asian-inspired restaurants in NYC, as well as being a charcutier for several French and New American restaurants.

Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 5 mins
Total: 10 mins
Servings: 2 servings

Tamagoyaki is a Japanese rolled omelet popularly served for breakfast, put in a bento (Japanese lunch box) as a side dish, or used as a filling in sushi. Tamagoyaki, meaning "grilled/fried egg," is made by rolling together thin layers of seasoned egg in a frying pan.

Japanese tamagoyaki that has been sliced and is resting on a plate

The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

The flavors of tamagoyaki vary and different types of fillings can be added. Tamagoyaki is often seasoned with soy sauce and sugars, but nothing can beat the flavor of dashi. Dashi is very simple to make, but umami-rich kombu and katsuobushi give this stock wonderful rich flavors without overpowering the other ingredients. By adding dashi to the egg mixture, it imparts a nice umami boost and the dashimaki tamago has deeper, more complex flavors than regular tamagoyaki.

Tips for Making Tamagoyaki

  • No tamagoyaki pan, no problem - Preferably, it's good to use a square tamagoyaki pan to make tamagoyaki, but it can be cooked in a regular frying pan.
  • Don't burn it! - When sugar is added to tamagoyaki, it gets burned easily, so please watch the heat carefully.


What You'll Need to Make This Tamagoyaki Recipe
Commerce Photo Composite
A Good Spatula
TECHEF Tamagoyaki Japanese Omelette Pan
A Nifty Tamagoyaki Pan
Best whisks group photo
A Handy Dandy Whisk

"The sweetness of this recipe can be adjusted to suit your taste or can be eliminated. Rolling the omelet while cooking does take some practice to achieve the distinctive layers within. The omelet can be enjoyed hot, cold, or at room temperature. Serve this with white rice and Japanese pickles for a light Japanese breakfast." —Rick Horiike

Overhead of a Japanese Rolled Omelet on a plate
A Note From Our Recipe Tester
Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs

  • 3 tablespoons dashi soup stock, or instant dashi

  • 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons sugar

  • Vegetable oil, as needed

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for Japanese tamagoyaki gathered

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  2. Beat 4 large eggs in a bowl.

    Eggs being beaten in a glass bowl

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  3. Add 3 tablespoons dashi soup and 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons sugar in the egg and mix well.

    Dashi being added and mixed in with beaten eggs

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  4. Heat a tamagoyaki pan over medium heat. Oil the pan.

    A tamagoyaki pan being heated and coated in oil with tongs

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  5. Pour a scoop of egg mixture in the pan and spread over the surface.

    Egg mixture cooking in a tamagoyaki pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  6. Cook it until half done and roll the egg toward the bottom side.

    Eggs being rolled over themselves toward the bottom of the pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  7. Move the rolled egg to the top side.

    The rolled egg was moved off to the side on the pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  8. Oil the empty part of the pan and pour another scoop of egg mixture in the space and under the rolled egg.

    Eggs poured onto a pan to cook with the rolled eggs resting on the side of the pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  9. Cook it until half done and roll the egg again so that the omelet becomes thicker.

    The first rolled eggs are then rolled again into the new eggs that are cooking in the pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  10. Cook the omelet until done.

    A rolled egge omelet cooking on a pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  11. If you are using a regular frying pan, shape tamagoyaki on bamboo mat.

    Tamagoyaki placed on and being shaped by a bamboo mat, next to a regular pan

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  12. Cut tamagoyaki into 1-inch-thick pieces.

    Tamagoyaki on a cutting board being cut into 1-inch slices

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

  13. Serve for breakfast, put in a bento as a side dish, or used as a filling in sushi.

    Tamagoyaki in slices resting on a white plate

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

Feeling Adventurous? Try This:

Feel free to add cheese, veggies, seaweed, or your meat of choice. We recommend getting the hang of making these as is first.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
255 Calories
16g Fat
13g Carbs
13g Protein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 2
Amount per serving
Calories 255
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 16g 21%
Saturated Fat 4g 18%
Cholesterol 372mg 124%
Sodium 176mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 13g 5%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 13g
Protein 13g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 57mg 4%
Iron 2mg 10%
Potassium 170mg 4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)