How do I whip cream and egg whites properly?

Both are about trapping air in a structure, but the failure modes differ. Cream over-whips into butter; egg whites fail to whip at all if any fat is present. Knowing which stage you want is most of the skill.

What you'll need

• Cold double or whipping cream
• Eggs
• Clean dry bowl
• Electric whisk (optional)

Step by step

1. Chill the cream, the bowl and the whisk.Cold cream whips faster and holds better. Warm cream can turn to butter before it reaches the stage you want.
2. Whip cream at medium rather than maximum speed.It gives more control and a more stable foam. Maximum speed takes it past the right stage in seconds.
3. Learn the stages: soft, medium, stiff.Soft peaks flop over. Medium hold their shape with a curl. Stiff stand straight up. Most uses want soft to medium.
4. Stop earlier than feels right.Cream keeps thickening as you fold, pipe or spread it. Whipping to stiff in the bowl usually means grainy cream on the plate.
5. For egg whites, use a spotlessly clean, dry bowl.Any fat — a trace of yolk, a greasy bowl, a plastic bowl that has held oil — prevents them foaming. Glass or metal is more reliable than plastic.
6. Add sugar gradually once the whites are foamy.Too early and it prevents them building volume. A spoonful at a time once they hold a soft peak.
7. Add an acid for stability.A pinch of cream of tartar or a few drops of lemon juice makes egg white foam considerably more stable.
8. Fold rather than stir when combining.A large spoon or spatula, cutting down and lifting over. Stirring knocks out the air you just spent time creating.

Tips

• Over-whipped cream can sometimes be rescued by whisking in a splash of cold unwhipped cream by hand.
• Room-temperature egg whites whip to slightly more volume than fridge-cold ones, though the difference is small.
• If cream refuses to whip, check the fat content. Single cream and most low-fat creams cannot be whipped at all.

Common mistakes

• Whipping cream to stiff peaks for folding — It continues thickening as you fold and ends up grainy and split. Stop at soft peaks.
• Getting a trace of yolk into egg whites — The fat prevents the foam forming at all. Separate eggs one at a time into a small bowl so one bad separation does not ruin the batch.
• Adding sugar to egg whites too early — It weighs down the foam before it has built volume. Wait until they hold a soft peak.

Questions people ask