How does egg white foam quickly?

Sending egg whites can be said to be the most common operation in baking, such as Qifeng cake, sponge cake, Shufulei and almond cake. The skill of sending egg whites can be said to determine the final success or failure of these desserts. So how to send egg whites perfectly to avoid mistakes and waste of materials?

Principle of egg white delivery

There are many long articles on the internet explaining the principle of egg white delivery, so I won't say much as a layman. In a word, the main components of egg white are protein and water. When we stir the egg whites with an egg beater, the wires of the egg beater will disturb the protein molecules in the process of continuously entering and leaving the egg whites, and these molecules will be continuously stretched and expanded, forming a dense network where water and air contact, which is what we see as protein foam. The longer it takes, the more bubbles there will be. We see that the color of egg white changes from transparent to white, not because of pigment, but because of light.

Classification of protein cream

According to the different production methods, protein cream can be roughly divided into three categories.

1

French meringue cake

The most classic and commonly used one.

Texture: unstable and light.

Practice: egg white+send+sugar.

Suitable desserts: stir into the mixture to make ladies' fingers, sponge cakes, souffles, almond biscuits, Duckwaz and so on. Can also be used in mousse, whipped cream.

2

Italian meringue

Texture: stable and dense.

Practice: egg white+send+boil syrup

Suitable desserts: usually used to cover the surface of desserts, such as hot baked Alaska, lemon meringue pie and butter meringue (squeezed into cakes for icing). It can also be used for making ice cream leavening agent from Italian almond cake, Mu Si and cotton candy.

three

Swiss meringue

Texture: stable and dense.

Practice: egg white+sugar+hot delivery.

Suitable desserts: butter crust (used as icing in cakes), cotton candy, hot baked Alaska, lemon crust pie.

Because of the high usage rate and convenient use, the next thing we want to talk about is the production of French protein cream, and the other two will be talked about later, so please continue to pay attention ~

Matters needing attention in egg white delivery

sugar

A certain amount of sugar must be added to make stable and smooth protein cream. Sugar not only adds flavor to cream, but also acts as a stabilizer. Sugar-free protein can be sent away, but it is extremely unstable and prone to collapse. Egg whites can be sent with sugar at first, but it will take longer to pass.

According to the amount of sugar used, protein can also be divided into soft protein and hard protein (different from soft foaming and hard foaming).

The amount of soft egg and sugar is 1 egg: 2 tablespoons sugar (25g).

The amount of hard egg white, egg and sugar is 1 egg: 4 tablespoons of sugar (50g).

A dessert made of hard foam.

The less sugar content, the smaller the overall volume of the protein cream, which will be weaker and more prone to collapse. Therefore, soft protein is usually mixed into the mixture to make various dessert cakes. Hard icing is used to decorate desserts. It is squeezed into the oven alone, mixed with custard, or moved into icing.

When adding sugar, when the egg white has a certain volume, it should be added slowly from one side of the bowl. Don't pour it all at once, it is easy to defoam.

Acid-like

tartar

Add a little acidic substance, such as tartar powder, to the egg white before sending. If not, you can also use lemon juice or white vinegar, which can be sent stably to prevent excessive sending. Tata powder not only has a stable effect, but also makes the final color of egg white more pure.

For eggs of normal size, 1/8 teaspoons of tata powder or 1/4 teaspoons of lemon juice/white vinegar can be added to each egg white. For more accurate conversion, please refer to: the dosage of tower powder is 0.05% of the amount of egg white that needs to be sent away.

salt

Many recipes that add salt to egg whites are mostly for taste and have little to do with helping to send them away. On the contrary, adding salt at the beginning will increase the elapsed time and reduce the elapsed volume, and in the end it will be more unstable. If you want to add salt to taste, you can add it to the dry ingredients of the material, not the egg white.

tool

One of the biggest enemies when delivering egg whites is grease. When the grease is sent away, it will hinder the generation of stable foam, so the containers and eggbeaters used must be very clean and free of any grease (fat+emulsifier) and water. Not only the residual oil in food, but also some emulsifier in detergent, which will not be removed if left in the container. Water itself will not hinder the removal, but the grease and emulsifier that may remain in the water during the cleaning process. Therefore, be careful when separating egg whites, and don't leave eggshells or egg yolks in the egg whites.

I randomly searched a kitchenware website, and such a well-made copper container costs 300-600 yuan. Please feel free to buy local tyrants.

In the choice of container, the traditional copper container is used to send egg whites, which is the easiest to send. There is an ion in the copper container that can react with protein during delivery to produce more stable foam and keep the egg white moist, which is similar to the effect of acid, so if copper container or silver container is used, there is no need to add acidic substances. But copper is very expensive, so skip …

We usually use stainless steel or glass containers ourselves. Avoid using aluminum, which is easy to color egg whites (it will have a strange gray color when printed). Avoid plastic or wooden containers, which are easy to leave grease and hinder transportation.

Finally, the size of the container should be able to hold the last egg white, and it is best to have a certain depth.

Eggs (of hens)

Compared with eggs just taken out of the refrigerator, egg whites are easier and more fully distributed at room temperature. However, in the process of high-speed stirring in the eggbeater, the egg white will also slowly heat up. Apart from passing the time a little longer, it has little impact. The key is to choose fresh eggs.

Fresh eggs are not only easy to separate, but also easy to send away. Fresh egg white will be sticky and acidic, which will make protein more stable. The longer the eggs are kept, the more diluted and alkaline they will be, resulting in insufficient bulkiness.

My usual operation is to take the eggs out of the refrigerator first, separate the egg white and yolk while they are still cold and easy to separate, and then heat the egg white indoors (about 30 minutes). There is no need to waste time in the meantime, you can prepare other materials. If the separation is not skilled enough, it is recommended to prepare a small bowl, first separate an egg white into the small bowl to make sure there is no yolk, then pour it into the last container and separate the next one, so that even if you are not careful. If you accidentally mix up the yolk, don't fish it with your hands. Suck or scoop with kitchen paper.

Agitator

If conditions permit, it is recommended to use the chef's machine to deliver egg whites. The matching eggbeater and container can contact the egg white to the maximum extent, and the frequency and direction of rotation can make the egg white distribute more evenly and fully. Especially if the amount of egg white is large, then the chef opportunity is the best choice. On the contrary, if the amount of egg white is small, the eggbeater may not touch the egg white. At this time, it is necessary to change to a hand-held eggbeater, first beat a certain volume, and then beat it with a machine.

Of course, most of our families still use hand-held eggbeaters. It should be noted that the eggbeater should be in full contact with the bottom and periphery of the container during the whole sending process, and should not be sent only in the upper area. Otherwise, there will be uneven distribution at the bottom and around, uneven foam texture, and even egg white with glistening on it, while the egg white at the bottom is still liquid.

Finally, if these tools are not available, you can only beat the egg stick by hand, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and there is no way out.

The related principles of boredom are finished, let's take a look at the actual operation ~

Protein sending step

1 Pour the protein into a clean and dry container. Make sure there is no yolk or egg white in the egg white.

Beat the egg whites with electric egg beater at medium and low speed until they are frothy. If high speed is used at the beginning, the structure of egg white will not be strong enough, resulting in insufficient transportation in the end. As you continue to hair, the egg white will slowly change color and more and more bubbles will appear.

Continue to stir at medium and low speed until the egg white expands to 2-3 times its original volume, and bubbles gradually appear as small bubbles. At this time, tower powder or other acidic substances can be added to one side of the container.

4 Continue to beat until the egg white swells to almost 3-4 times its original volume, and when the foam is about to be fine, you can turn it to high speed, and at the same time let the eggbeater continue to stir, and slowly and evenly add sugar in batches from one side of the container, without pouring too much at a time. Slowly, the egg white will take on several different states and be used to make different desserts.

A

Wet foaming/soft foaming soft peak

At this time, protein is no longer a liquid, showing a shiny state, similar to cream. When the eggbeater is lifted, the protein will not slide easily, but it can pull out a long line. When the eggbeater is turned upside down, the thread will bend to the ground, but it won't last long and will soon be integrated.

Suitable for making: light cheesecake, mousse.

B

Neutral foaming peak

Continue to send to neutral foaming.

At this time, the egg white presents a dense and shiny creamy shape, and its structure is more stable. When the eggbeater is hung upside down, the egg white can draw a long line, which will bend and keep its shape. The sharp corners in front will be more clear and obvious.

Suitable for making: mousse, some sponge cakes.

C

Dry foaming/hard foaming hard peak

After a while, it dried and blistered. At this time, the egg white is very shiny and the structure is more stable. When the eggbeater is lifted upside down, the protein can be stably fixed without bending and pulled out at a very short sharp angle.

Suitable for making: some sponge cakes, almond cakes, and all kinds of biscuits that need to be used to disperse egg whites.

D

Oversend

If you continue to send it, it will be too much. At this time, protein will no longer be soft and shiny, but will form fragments, like cottage cheese (and a little like cotton ...), with a rough surface. If we fight again, protein will separate and eventually collapse.

Use the egg white as soon as it is delivered. If the delivered egg white stays still at room temperature, it will collapse after 6 or 7 minutes and needs to be sent again. Therefore, if egg white is used in a recipe, other materials should be prepared, and then egg white should be used.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Excessive q protein. Is there any remedy?

If the egg white is only rough and lumpy, add some egg white, pat the egg stick with your hand, observe the state of the egg white and stir it, and slowly the egg white will return to a shiny state. But if the collapse is completely separated, there will be no rescue measures ... RIP, send it again.

Q must it foam relatively according to the formula requirements?

It is best to follow the wet or dry recipe. If it is neutral foaming and wet foaming, the state is relatively close, and desserts that are not particularly delicate can be less entangled.

Q: Can I use the packaged meringue?

If it is a stable protein cream, it is not recommended. The packaged egg white is pasteurized egg. In the process of disinfection, protein will be affected, hard to foam, and the texture is very unstable.