Simple meringue question...

[aidensnd2]

So the pastry chef at one of the places I work insists that when you make a meringue you have to put some sugar in with the whites as soon as you start to whip them and then add about a tablespoon every minute or so until they reach full volume. I have always waited until the whites get some volume before adding any sugar and then I pretty much add the sugar in 3 equal parts.

I don't really have a problem with adding the sugar slowly except it means that I can't do anything else while the meringue whips. Last week we got into a big argument about this and he basically ended it with, "I've been doing this longer than you so shut up and do it my way." His way does work I'm just more annoyed that he insisted that his way was the right and only way to do it and my way wouldn't get as much volume.

Does anyone else add sugar at the very beginning? This was the first time I had seen it done that way.

Thanks

Dan

[McDuff]

I dissolve one third of the sugar in the whites at about 120 degrees, add one third after the whites begin to mount, then fold in the final third. Works too.

p.s. I've always found that one way to get along with the boss is to let the boss be the boss.

Edited May 7, 2004 by McDuff (log)

[aidensnd2]

p.s. I've always found that one way to get along with the boss is to let the boss be the boss.

Sorry, it should have read "a pastry chef" not "the pastry chef" We are colleagues. He works there full time, I work part time...

[Wendy DeBord]

Yes, I ditto McDuffs response to you. Theres so many ways to make meringue and they all work, it's a pretty forgiving item actually. Definately let the boss be the boss-it's their problem if what they tell you doesn't work. Thats one of the things with baking that causes problems, everyone has their own way thats 'best'. Be open minded, cause theres usually multiple ways to do everything. It only makes you a better chef learning the multiple ways.

[dano1]

"There are many ways to skin a cat"....and "The boss is always right" are two sayings that have guided me through the kitchen. Knives, heat, and tempers are not conducive to a good working relationship ;).

hth, danny

[andiesenji]

When I was in baking school nearly 50 years ago, I was taught the method your colleague suggested. The reasoning was that the friction of the sugar crystals acting on the protein before the sugar dissolved would speed the formation of stronger walled "bubbles", then adding the sugar slowly as whipping continued would further strengthen the sturcture.

We also were taught to add a bit of Cream of Tarter to egg whites we were whipping without sugar to maintain volume and strengthen the structure - UNLESS - we were whipping in copper.

I have a copper liner for my 20 qt Hobart just for whipping egg whites and it does add volume and strengthens the structure.

I bake large meringues for schaum torte and there is really a difference in how the structure holds up in the oven.

[chefpeon]

When I was managing a wholesale/retail shop, I noticed a lot of people did things

differently than I did. I'm really not into micro-managing and I'm fine with letting

people do things their way, as long as it:

A) doesn't waste time, and

B) the end result is the same

However, if I saw somebody doing something the "hard" way, I'd always show them

the "easy" way and they were usually pretty grateful for the tip. Or, if I saw someone

doing something differently, I'd ask them why they were doing it that way, because,

maybe they knew something I didn't. I try to learn from everybody....employees included!

If people would just check their freaking egos at the door, we'd really have more of team

atmosphere in the kitchen and we'd be helping each other do our jobs better and faster.

If your meringue is coming out fine then I wouldn't worry about Mr. Co-worker's little snit.

BUT, just for fun, try it his way....see what happens.....nothing like keeping an open mind,

and always trying to do something better.

In a previous thread (buttercream) we were all discussing different meringue methods,

mainly, swiss and italian. I was a bit incredulous that a lot of people would be going through

the "hassle" of making italian meringue for buttercream, when I thought doing swiss was

easier and the end result was the same. For me personally, working the "sugar syrup way" is

a hassle. BUT it isn't for others. (Humility check, here!). The bottom line is, they make an

awesome buttercream their way, and it's easier for them....and realistically, takes about the

same amount of time for each.....everybody has a different classification of what "hard" is....

for me, it's keeping an eye on the sugar syrup temp when I'm doing nine million other things

at the same time. Yep, I'm the PC that always boils the cream over too....GUILTY!!!

Annie

[KarenS]

If I make a french meringue I use room temp whites, start whipping on low with a pinch of salt. When the whites are almost at soft peaks, I gradually add the sugar.

-starting on low is a way of unfolding the bands of proteins in the white "prepping" them to hold air.

- adding the sugar (superfine) towards the end helps stabilize your foam before adding the sugar

-if you add sugar to the whites too quickly you will lose volume (you can actually disolve the meringue)

Those are my reasons for the way I do it!

[Lesley C]

Anybody who has made enough meringue knows it pretty much works anyway you slice it if your whites are in good shape (though adding all the sugar at the beginning doesn't give such hot results).

I do, however, wait until the whites are quite frothy before adding any sugar to make sure they are "clean."

Otherwise, when I was working in France the fellow I worked with always tossed all the sugar in at the stiff peak stage when making lady fingers. I freaked, but -- whatever -- it worked.