The Giant Omelette Celebration Sunday
Abbeville, Louisiana’s 5000 Egg Giant Omelette Celebration
Magdalen Square
November 7th, 2010
http://www.giantomelette.org/
The "Procession of the Egg" winds its way to the top of Concord Street, jammed with spectators of all ages eager to watch the next two hours unfold then get a taste of omelette for their effort.
Thousands of people, many arriving early to get a close-up view from behind the metal railings set up to keep the street clear, await the spectacle.
The Junior Chevalier's skillet is put in place...
and passes inspection by the elders.
Benediction is offered by Father Guillory...
and the Star Spangled Banner is sung.
As he's done since the first celebration, Maitre de feu Elray Schexnaider, checks the heat of the wood fire. He collects wood all year long for the cooking fire - when he determines the heat is just right, the skillet will be moved over the fire...by fork lift!
Olga Toups, widow of "Bichon" Emery Toups, one of the founding members of the Abbeville Confrerie, observes the proceedings. This is the second year the event has taken place since the beloved Mr. Toups's died on November 3rd last year.
The preliminary services complete,all the chevaliers get down to business. Scores of loaves of crusty French bread are cut into pieces to be plated with the servings of omelette.
The Junior Chevaliers pay attention...
as the senior chevaliers crack thousands of eggs...
that are poured into huge pots.
Having your photo taken with the Grand Chevalier is a keepsake.
Small mountains of eggshells tell the tale.
Hey, this is Louisiana! The regally attired chevaliers can't stand still while a Cajun Fais Do Do band plays up a storm on the bandstand a few yards away at the top of Concord Street.
While baskets of sliced French bread rest under two types of wooden implements that will be used to mix the ingredients as they're added to the skillet...
a group of proud young Queens of every regional event in the area wait to introduce themselves to the crowd and give a plug for their event while a fine Fais Do Do band plays Cajun two-steps and waltzes...
and MC Chris Trahan gets a kick out of their speeches.
Add three boxes of salt...
and two boxes of black pepper to taste...
and mix with a power drill...
an impressive feat...
with this specially designed beater you won't find in any kitchen in your neighborhood.
"The original design of the flat wooden paddles came from Bessieres, France.When we visited sister city Granby, Quebec, for their omelette celebration, we liked their paddles with holes in them so we made some to use here," says Janine Dugas, a member of The Abbeville Confrerie.
The Junior Chevaliers will cook their omelette on the smaller skillet in a few minutes.
In case you want to make an omelette for your town, here's the recipe: 5026 eggs, 50 lbs. Onions, 75 Bell Peppers, 4 Gallons Onion Tops, 2 Gallons Parsley, 1 1/2 Gallons Cooking Oil, 6 1/2 Gallons Milk Cooking Oil, 52 lbs. Butter, 3 Boxes Salt, 2 Boxes Black Pepper, Crawfish Tails, TABASCO Pepper Sauce (to taste).
There goes 52 pounds of butter into the skillet...
which inspires a bunch of Chevaliers to dance. In all honesty, it doesn't take much to make a native of these parts to dance.
This is what it looks like to saute 50 lbs. Onions, 75 Bell Peppers, 4 Gallons Onion Tops, 2 Gallons Parsley, 1 1/2 Gallons Cooking Oil, 6 1/2 Gallons Milk , 52 lbs. Butter, 3 Boxes Salt, and 2 Boxes of Black Pepper...
and a bushel of crawfish tails.
No one in southwest Louisiana is immune from a case of dancing feet.
And here come the eggs...
all 5026 of them...
poured into the 12-foot diameter skillet...
and The Tabasco Girls ceremoniously empty 6 bottles of TABASCO® sauce...
into the mix as the finishing touch.
"The omelette in Bessieres was sort of tastless," Chevalier Janine Dugas tells me, "but ours is pretty flavorful." Napolean's army might have won at Waterloo had they feasted on an Abbeville flavored omelette.
The Junior Chevaliers get to business melting butter...
while the whole town licks it chops.
The "Granby-style" paddles pull the egg mixture through their ports. The flat paddles are similar to the ones used in the original celebration in Bessieres, France.
"There's a hot spot over there, Ray," Grand Maitre Cecil Hebert (pronounce Aye- bare) calls out. Like several chevaliers, he's been part of this celebration since the beginning in 1984.
The moment to stop mixing has to be carefully noted...
and each chevailer is paying attention to the consistency of this giant omelette.
ChevalierJanine Dugas fills me in on the logistics of feeding thousands of people efficiently. "We got the idea of how to serve more efficiently from Granby, Quebec. They set up a system of tables like spokes, using the skillet as the hub,they pass the servings down each spoke where they're loaded onto trays that we bring to the crowd," she explains. "Each Confrerie adds a regional accent to the omelette. Granby adds maple syrup.We add TABASCO® sauce!"
"Paddles Up!" Cheers erupt. The omelette is done!
The chevaliers are the most visible members of the celebration but, as is often the case, many important contributors fly under the radar. William Sanders drives the forklift to remove the heavy stainess steel skillet from the fire. Sanders worked with "Bichon" Toups for 18 years and operated the forklift for the annual event here. He remembers helping manufacture the first skillet with its four legs to keep it steady in Toups' propeller shop. Sanders left Toups's shop to work in the oil fields and was laid off. "I asked Jerry Terpening, "Bichon" Toups son-in-law, if he needed someone to drive the forklift today and he said 'Yes' and here I am." The smile on his face tells you all you need to know about him and scores of others who help this event run. They're proud of their town and want to show it.
The Abbeville Fire Department dumps then removes the huge mound of sand for the cook fire. Maitre d’ fer Elray Schexnaider makes sure the embers are snuffed out.
The Junior Chevaliers, under the eye of Queen Olga Toups, stir their eggs...
until they are cooked properly. The 100 members of the Abbeville Confrerie take a vow to pass the traditions down to their children.
Distribution tables are set in spokes around the giant skillet in a style learned from the Granby, Quebec Confrerie ..."We think we'll be able to serve the food faster this way than the way we'd done it before," Chavalier Janine Dugas explained.
The feast begins...
much to the joy...
of everyone on the street.
"Thank you!"
And when they run out of paper plates, cups will do just fine.
Thousands of servings later...
the production line continues to dish out eggs.
A young queen posed in front of the giant skillet...
and pt at large gets to meet Queen Olga Toups, one of Abbeville's truly royal citizens (story to follow.)
Photos by Paul A.Tamburello, Jr. except for the ones he's in, which were taken by friendly bystanders.
PART 4 Queen Olga Toups http://ptatlarge.typepad.com/ptatlarge/2010/11/olga-toups-queen-of-the-abbeville-giant-egg-celebration.html
AWESOME!!
Posted by: Gerard M. McMahon | November 30, 2010 at 07:54 AM