Meringue
Cooking Skills: Eggs 2
Chapter 6 · Meringue
Skill goal
Whip egg whites to stiff, glossy peaks and bake a meringue that is crisp outside and soft within.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
A meringue is egg white whipped into foam, sweetened with sugar and dried in a low oven. It has only two ingredients, so technique is everything. The proteins in the white unfold as you whisk and trap air, and the sugar holds the foam steady.
- Spotless equipment: any trace of fat or yolk stops the whites from whipping. Use a clean glass or metal bowl (plastic can hold grease) and wipe the bowl and whisk with a little lemon juice or vinegar on kitchen paper.
- Separate carefully: do each white into a cup first, then tip it into the bowl, so one broken yolk doesn't spoil the batch. Cold eggs separate more easily, but whites whip higher at room temperature.
- The stages: foamy and bubbly, then soft peaks (the tip flops over), then stiff peaks (the tip stands up straight and the bowl can be held upside down).
- Ratio: 50 g caster sugar for each egg white (about 30 g). This is the classic. Less sugar is less stable and less sweet.
- Add the sugar a spoonful at a time once the whites are at soft peaks, whisking 10 seconds between spoonfuls. The meringue should be thick and glossy, and rub between your fingers without grittiness.
- Oven: low and slow, with the door closed. Meringue is dried rather than baked, so leave it in the oven as it cools.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Meringue kisses
Small meringues that dry quickly. They show you the stages in a small batch, and they are the building block for the next recipe.
Ingredients (16 portions)
- 2 egg whites, at room temperature
- 100 g caster sugar
- Heat the oven to 110°C fan (130°C conventional, gas ½). Line two baking trays with baking paper.
- Whisk the whites in a spotless bowl until stiff peaks form.
- Add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, whisking for 10 seconds after each, until thick and glossy. This takes about 5 minutes.
- Spoon or pipe small mounds onto the trays, about 4 cm wide.
- Bake for 1 hour, then turn off the oven and leave them inside for another hour or overnight, door closed. They should lift off the paper cleanly.
Level 1 · Assemble
Eton mess
No cooking at all: broken meringue, berries and cream. It uses up meringues that cracked, and is a good way to eat the experiments.
Ingredients (2 portions)
- 6 meringue kisses (above)
- 200 g strawberries, hulled and chopped
- 100 ml double cream
- 100 g Greek yoghurt
- 1 tsp icing sugar
- Mash a third of the strawberries with the icing sugar to make a rough sauce.
- Whip the cream until it just holds its shape and fold in the yoghurt.
- Break the meringues into pieces. Just before serving, fold them into the cream with the remaining strawberries and ripple through the sauce.
Serve at once
The meringue softens in the cream within about 30 minutes. Mix it at the last moment if you like it crunchy.
Level 2 · Bigger
Meringue nests
The same mixture as the kisses, piped or spooned into rings, so you can fill them with fruit and yoghurt.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 3 egg whites, at room temperature
- 150 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- Heat the oven to 120°C fan (140°C conventional, gas 1). Line a large baking tray.
- Whisk the whites to stiff peaks. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking until thick and glossy, then whisk in the cornflour and vinegar for the last 20 seconds.
- Spoon 6 mounds onto the tray and make a hollow in the middle of each with the back of a spoon, pulling up the edges.
- Bake for 1 hour, then turn off the oven and leave to cool inside with the door shut.
- Fill with berries and a spoonful of thick yoghurt just before serving.
Cornflour and vinegar
A little cornflour and acid keep the inside soft and marshmallowy, with a crisp shell. It is the trick that separates a pavlova from a plain crisp meringue.
Level 3 · Showpiece
Pavlova
One big meringue with a crisp shell and a soft centre. If the nests went well, this is the same method on a larger scale.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 4 egg whites, at room temperature
- 225 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- 150 g Greek yoghurt
- 50 ml double cream
- 300 g mixed berries or passion fruit
- Heat the oven to 140°C fan (160°C conventional, gas 3). Draw a 20 cm circle on baking paper and turn it over on a tray.
- Whisk the whites to stiff peaks, then add the sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking until thick, glossy and smooth when rubbed between your fingers. Whisk in the cornflour and vinegar.
- Pile onto the circle, shaping into a round with a slight dip in the middle.
- Put in the oven and immediately turn the temperature down to 120°C fan (140°C conventional, gas 1). Bake for 1 hour, until the shell feels dry. Switch off the oven and leave inside to cool completely (a couple of hours, or overnight).
- Whip the cream lightly and fold in the yoghurt. Top the pavlova just before serving and add the fruit.
Level 3 · Pot dessert
Lemon meringue pots
A topping on lemon curd in individual dishes, finished with a short blast in a hot oven. It is cooked through, so it is safe for everyone.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 4 tbsp lemon curd (or the home-made curd from chapter 9)
- 2 egg whites, at room temperature
- 100 g caster sugar
- 4 ramekins or ovenproof glasses
- Heat the oven to 200°C fan (220°C conventional, gas 7). Put a tablespoon of curd in each ramekin and stand them on a tray.
- Whisk the whites to stiff peaks and then the sugar, a spoonful at a time, until glossy.
- Pile on the curd, making peaks with the back of a spoon so there are lots of points to brown.
- Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until the tips are golden. Watch closely, because they catch quickly. Serve warm or cold.
A blowtorch also works
If you own a cooking blowtorch, brown the tops with it instead of the oven. Keep the flame moving.
Experiments
Experiment
Cold vs room-temperature whites
Does temperature change the volume?
- Separate 2 whites. Leave one in the fridge and let the other warm up for 30 minutes.
- Whisk each with the same electric whisk for the same time (for example, 2 minutes) before adding any sugar.
- Compare the volumes in the bowls.
Look for: Room-temperature whites reach a bigger, stiffer foam. Cold whites are fine for most uses but take longer.
Experiment
Sugar fast or slow
See why you add it gradually.
- Make two half batches of the meringue kisses (1 white, 50 g sugar each). In one, add all the sugar after the soft-peak stage in one go. In the other, add it a spoonful at a time.
- Pipe both onto one tray and bake together.
Look for: Dumped sugar makes a heavier, grainy meringue that may weep syrup. The gradual batch should be glossy, stiff and smooth.
Experiment
Oven temperature and drying time
Find the crispness and colour that you like.
- Make one batch of kisses and bake half at 100°C fan for 1 hour 30 minutes, and half at 130°C fan for 45 minutes.
- Cool them in the oven, then snap one of each.
Look for: Low and slow stays white and brittle all the way through. Hotter browns slightly with a chewier middle, and may crack.
Tasting notes
| Item | Method | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meringue kisses | ||||
| Eton mess | ||||
| Meringue nests | ||||
| Pavlova | ||||
| Lemon meringue pots | ||||
| Cold vs room-temp whites | ||||
| Sugar fast vs slow | ||||
| Oven temperature |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Whites won't whip | Grease, yolk or a plastic bowl | Start again with a clean glass or metal bowl, and wipe it with lemon juice |
| Grainy meringue | Sugar added too fast or not dissolved | Add it a spoonful at a time and whisk until it is no longer gritty |
| Weeping beads of syrup | Too much sugar, or undermixed, or a humid day | Whisk longer, use the correct ratio and bake on dry days |
| Cracked pavlova | Oven too hot, or cooled too quickly | Cool in the oven with the door shut. A few cracks are normal |
| Meringue stuck to paper | Not dry enough | Leave it in the cooling oven longer |
| Meringue turned brown or chewy | Oven too hot | Lower to 100 to 120°C fan |
| Flat, runny pavlova | Whites over- or underwhisked, or yolk got in | Whisk to stiff glossy peaks and separate more carefully |
Food safety: meringue
Fully baked meringue is safe. A pavlova filled with cream should go in the fridge and be eaten the same day. Never use un-baked whipped white (in a mousse or frosting) for anyone vulnerable; use pasteurised egg white instead.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can separate eggs cleanly and keep the whites free of yolk.
- I can whisk whites to soft and stiff peaks.
- I add sugar gradually and can feel when it has dissolved.
- I can make meringue nests and a pavlova with a crisp shell and soft centre.
- I know how to use up cracked meringue.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Eggs 2, chapter 7 is Mayonnaise and Emulsions: taking the yolk the other way, and turning oil into a smooth sauce. You will need yolks, so freeze any leftover whites.