1. Use clean utensils with zero traces of fat
A bit of fat won’t keep your egg whites from whipping, but it will prevent them from reaching their peak volume. Glass and metal bowls are preferable over plastic ones, given that they can often be covered with a thin film of grease.
2. Separate the egg white and yolk well
Crack one egg at a time into a small bowl and make sure there isn’t any yolk with the white before adding it to the larger bowl with the other whites the recipe requires.
3. Use tempered eggs
Eggs at room temperature whip more easily and gain better volume.
4. Wait until the soft peak stage before adding sugar
If sugar is added too early, it’ll take much longer to achieve a firm meringue and it won’t be as voluminous.
5. Avoid overwhipping the eggs
The egg whites are ready when the foam forms slightly curved peaks or straight tips when the whisk is removed; it will resemble the texture of shaving foam. An overwhipped meringue will lose its flexibility and rise less when baked.
6. Use the meringue as quickly as possible
Especially if sugar and cream of tartar weren’t added to stabilize it.
7. Gently fold the whipped egg whites into other mixtures
Do this by using a rubber spatula to gently lift the mixture, so as to lose as little air as possible.
8. Use a copper bowl, if possible
Copper helps to stabilize the whites because a reaction occurs between the copper in the bowl and a protein called conalbumin that’s in the egg. However, don’t spend a fortune on a copper bowl if you don’t have to; cream of tartar will produce the same effect at a much lower cost.
Read the articles below for more tips and tricks on meringue:
