This site uses only a few technical cookies necessary for its operation. By continuing to browse, you accept their use.
To find out more...
To find out more...
How to beat egg whites
Beat egg whites is very common in cooking and pastry, here are some tips to get there easily.
564 K 3.5/5 (109 reviews)
5 min.
Easy
4 eggs whites
2 IngredientsLast modified on: February 21th 2011
For 4 eggs whites, you will need:
4 
½ teaspoon lemon juice (optional)
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 5 min.
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 5 min.
Whisk at high speed.
You can add a teaspoon of lemon juice before you start beating to prevent them from "graining" (forming small grains), which can happen with very fresh egg whites.
If the egg whites are to be sweetened (for meringues, for example), add 2 tablespoons of the sugar halfway through the whipping, to support them and help them rise.
You can add a teaspoon of lemon juice before you start beating to prevent them from "graining" (forming small grains), which can happen with very fresh egg whites.
If the egg whites are to be sweetened (for meringues, for example), add 2 tablespoons of the sugar halfway through the whipping, to support them and help them rise.
Stage 2
Beating egg whites incorporates air, which creates a foam made up of ever smaller bubbles of air and drops of white (albumen + water), see the microscope photo on right.
This fact give us some rules for egg whites:
This fact give us some rules for egg whites:
- Fresh egg whites give better results that old ones, because they contain more water.
- If you add water or a liquid which contains some (fruit juice, ...) to egg whites to be beaten, you will have a greater volume of foam.
- Fat is the enemy when beating egg whites, because it obstructs or prevents the formation of foam, so it's necessary to be sure that the egg whites contain no traces of yolk (not a drop), and that the container that you're going to use is completely clean (be particularly careful with plastic bowls).
Remarks
Contrary to popular belief, adding a pinch of salt to the egg whites before beating them doesn't help.
Keeping: 1 hour bfore use.
Source: Home made.
Nutritional information
| Proteins (gr) | Carbohydrates (gr) | Fats (gr) | Energy value (in k-calories) | Energy value (in k-joules) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole recipe | 6 RDI=2 % | 0 | 0 | 30 RDI=1 % | 110 RDI: 1 % |
| Per 100 g | 5 RDI=2 % | 0 | 0 | 20 RDI=1 % | 90 RDI: 1 % |
| Per egg whites | 1 RDI=1 % | 0 | 0 | 6 RDI=0 % | 30 RDI: 0 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 4 eggs whites : 0.35 €
- Per egg whites : 0.10 €
Change currency: 
Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
This recipe uses (among others)
Egg white
Like these other recipes: Coconut "croute à thé", Italian Meringue, Like MaronSui's, Peach and verbena feuilleté, Brioche royale, ... See them all 52
Other recipes you may also like
Nanou's chocolate cake
A moist melting cake, very very chocolaty... June 22th 2013290 K4.6 1 hour 45 min.
Exotic fruit tart
An exotic fruit tart (bananas, kiwi and pineapple), with crisp pastry and almond cream which are cooked beforehand. It's a rather simple recipe, but the final result will impress your guests. May 27th 2020329 K5 2 hours 25 min.
Pear tart with almond cream
This is a very quick and easy tart to make, as everything (or almost) can be done in advance. A piece of sweetcrust pastry, some almond cream and pears? You have "everything you need". March 17th 2011371 K4.3 1 hour 15 min.
Express apple tart
A fine apple tart, very quick to make. April 8th 2020376 K 24.6 55 min.
Flambéd bananas
The trick of this recipe is to end up with bananas caramelised on the outside, still firm on the inside, coated with a tasty syrup which is not 95% butter. February 21th 2011335 K 14 40 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2025-09-07)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe (as 5 people already do)
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.