Baking a perfectly fluffy soufflé is as prized as it is challenging; however, a delicious soufflé doesn’t have to be unattainable for the average home baker.
A soufflé is essentially whipped egg whites folded into a flavored base of egg yolks and chocolate. Considered a precise science, a soufflé divinely juxtaposes deep and rich flavors against its iconic light and custardy texture.
To make your own soufflé at home, I highly recommend the New York Times’ bittersweet chocolate soufflé recipe. It uses only a handful of ingredients, it is straightforward, and it works. While baking this requires precision and tenacious direction-following, understanding the science behind it may help you avoid simple mistakes. Behold my companion guide to the New York Times’ recipe below!
There are six ingredients:
The recipe directions are fairly straight forward and go something like this:
1. Melt chocolate and butter. Add egg yolks
2. Beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and sugar until stiff peaks form
3. Mix egg white mixture into the chocolate mixture
4. Bake
While I was baking, a few questions burned in my mind. Why do egg whites form stiff peaks when whipped? How does a soufflé rise when exposed to heat? What in the world is cream of tartar?
1: Whipping your eggs into shape
Egg white proteins (albumin) are chains of bundled amino acids like the twisted cord of a pair of earbuds. When the albumin proteins are mixed vigorously (whipped), air bubbles disrupt the intermolecular forces drawing the protein strands together. Protein uncoiling, or denaturation, forms a network of long protein strands that trap air bubbles.
This structural change in the egg whites creates a stable foam. In the oven, the air bubbles expand and are responsible for a soufflé’s iconic loftiness. The longer you whip the eggs, the more air bubbles, and the higher your soufflé will rise (up to a certain point).
Many factors upon the eggs influence the soufflé overall. For example, the NYT recipe calls for room temperature eggs. It’s easier to denature warmer proteins than colder proteins because warm proteins have weaker intermolecular forces holding the protein molecules together.
This leads to my first caveat: Whipping the egg whites for too long can cluster the proteins so tightly around the air and water that, at a certain point, the matrix collapses. Like a flatulent whoopee cushion, air and water are eventually pushed out from the matrix.
My second caveat: Do not leave any yolk in the egg whites because the hydrophobic fats from the yolk will compromise the structural integrity of the protein matrix.
Note: Albumin is the protein of egg whites itself, not to be confused with albumen, which is egg white (proteins and water). In other words, albumin exists in albumen.
2: Cream of Tartar- What is it?
While shopping you might find cream of tartar among the paprika and turmeric, but it is actually not a spice at all. It is a powdery acid and a byproduct from the winemaking process - potassium bitartrate.
Cream of tartar lowers the pH of the egg whites (i.e. makes it more acidic). Its acidity changes the chemical properties of the egg whites in two main ways.
1. The proteins denature more quickly = faster foaming
2. The proteins align, but not to tightly = stronger and more elastic foam
3: Sugar does more than sweeten
When sugar is dissolved in the water naturally present in the egg whites, sugar molecules “stick” to the water molecules. As a result, the water molecules evaporate at a lower rate, and the soufflé will better retain its moisture throughout baking. Sugar also gives the mixture a glossy shine while increasing strength and elasticity.
4: “Don’t burst my bubble”
Lastly, don’t over-mix egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Fold the two together to minimize air bubble loss. Don’t be heavy handed.
Before I tried this recipe I had considered a soufflé too daunting of a task. I feared committing a grave mistake along the way and wasting all the hard work and ingredients I used (especially since the recipe requires half a dozen eggs)! However, my yearning taste buds overcame my reservations about messing up, so I daringly put all my eggs in one basket (pun intended). I successfully baked an anatomically correct bittersweet chocolate soufflé!
The soufflé’s deep cocoa flavor and rich, mousse-like texture pleasantly surprised me, especially since it was my first time attempting this.
Lessons learned? Patience. The soufflé didn’t rise as high as I wished. I suspect I under-whipped the eggs and thus didn’t incorporate enough air. Oh well, I might just have to try it again. Darn :)
For more information:
The original NYT recipe with the masses of the ingredients (a more accurate way to measure than by volume), complete directions, and potential variations of the recipe
Helpful pointers and images as to when whipped egg whites are whipped “enough”
Sources
Fascinating, Lucy...
Greg