At medium speed, start beating your egg whites. You'll notice them start to foam and eventually turn white and then cloud-like. You'll know you've made it to the soft peak stage when you turn over your beater or use a spatula to dip in and then lift it upright to see the tips of the whites curling a bit. They'll definitely be a peak shape, but will flop over and go back into the mixture after a few seconds.
There you have it! Even if your recipe requires you to continue beating your eggs to stiff peaks , you'll usually have to stop at the soft peak stage before you start adding sugar to your recipe. Now that you know how to beat egg whites to soft peaks, give the technique a try with a strawberry-mango pavlova , cocoa-hazelnut macarons , or coconut meringue cheesecake. Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.
During the first few minutes, the mass becomes translucent instead of transparent but is still a pale yellow. After a few minutes of beating, the bubbles become smaller and the mixture starts to turn white and opaque.
More beating and you can no longer see the bubbles. They are still there, of course. When you lift the beaters, a peak temporarily rises but quickly collapses although it may retain some of its shape.
As you reach the soft peak stage, the whirlpool that forms around the beaters rise higher. When you lift the beaters, a peak rises and does not collapse but its tip folds back down. The surface of the mixture is glossy and is no longer flat. The eggwhites have also doubled in volume. Get the print magazine, 25 years of back issues online, over 7, recipes, and more. Start your FREE trial. Fine Cooking. Sign Up Login. Photos: Scott Phillips. Save to Recipe Box.
Add Private Note. Saved Add to List Add to List. Add Recipe Note. Most Popular. Classic Tomato Soup Recipe. Potato Gnocchi Recipe. Watch these stages carefully, because if you over-beat the egg whites the stretched protein will break and let the water in the whites out, creating a really unappetizing mix of eggy water and foam. Fresh egg whites will whip up quicker and be more stable than whites from older eggs.
Eggs are easiest to separate when they are cold but they are easiest to whip up effectively when they are at room temperature. So separate the eggs when they are cold and let the whites sit out for about half an hour to take the chill off them before whipping if you can spare the time. Be very careful when you separate the eggs. Any yolk or other fat, oil, or grease that makes its way into the whites will keep the whites from whipping up as big and fluffy as possible.
When separating more than a few eggs, consider using the three-bowl method: one bowl to crack the egg into, one to put the whites in, and one to put the yolks in. That way the accumulated whites aren't contaminated by yolk if you accidentally break one.
You'll notice a fancy unlined copper bowl in the pictures, a device specifically made for whipping egg whites. While it is a beautiful tool and if you have one, you should certainly use it since the ions from the copper help stabilize the egg whites science is cool!
Any clean, large bowl will work just fine. What to do with the yolks? Make a pudding or make mayonnaise-type sauces aioli is another great option. Use a large clean whisk if you have a balloon whisk, all the better or clean beaters or the whisk attachment on a standing mixer to whip the eggs just until a bit foamy. Both salt and cream of tartar act as stabilizers and will help the egg whites hold their shape when whipped.
Remember: if you do happen to be using a copper bowl, skip the cream of tartar.
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