Egg White Foam is foam prepared with the white of an egg or albumen and is popularly used in the preparation of products such as cakes, soufflés and meringues, in order to make these food products light, airy and porous. Egg whites are traditionally prepared by beating the whites of eggs with electric mixers, blenders and wire whisks. The preparation of egg whites could also include the addition of an acid such as cream of tartar, to make the white additionally frothy and airy. The process of beating the egg white is continued until the mixture attains the desired results. The mixture becomes ‘soft’ when the peaks stand straight and bend very slightly at the tips and ‘stiff’ when the peaks stand straight and do not bend at the tips. Following the formation of the desired foam, salt or sugar may be added to the foam to lend the desired taste to it.
This paper aims to study the effects of various compounds on the texture and consistency of egg whites and how the addition of these compounds contribute to the volume and the stability of the egg white foams. By doing so, the researcher aims to gain experience and understanding in the preparation of successful egg white preparations.
For conducting the experiment and studying the effects of four types of egg foams, the following ingredients would be required:
- 300 ml of egg whites
- 4 beakers of the same size
- ¼ Tsp of cream of tartar
- 3 Tbsp of sugar
4 types of foams will be studied through this experiment a) standard, b) over beaten, c) add cream of tartar, d) sugar added.
75 ml of egg whites are placed in the 4 beakers and are beaten until they are foamy and their peaks are stiff. Care should be taken to note that the whites of eggs are also firm and there should be no liquid in the beakers. These eggs are then placed in appropriately labeled glass beakers which are then packed. The initial volume of the foam is recorded. The experiment is conducted with the other 3 beakers by over beating the eggs, and adding cream of tartar and sugar at the soft beat stage, until the formation of stiff peaks but while the foam is still glossy.
It will be observed that when the egg whites are beaten, air is added to the mixture. When the egg is beaten, these air bubbles cause the egg white to foam and to become stiff and stable. In the over beaten experiment it is observed that with the increase in beating time of the egg white, there is a simultaneous increase in the volume and the stability of the foam and the surface of the foam has a dry appearance.
When the acid, cream of tartar, is added to the foam, it becomes more acidic in content and as a result, additionally stable. The stability of the foam is better than the over beaten egg white, resulting is better quality of foam.
When sugar is added to the foam, the beating time of the egg white increases considerably, and the resultant foam is more stable than the other 2 beakers. The foam with sugar also appears to be less stiff, more plastic and definitely more stable than the foam in the other 2 beakers.
Thus, this experiment proves that the quality of foam is greatly affected by the addition of compounds such as cream of tartar and sugar. The foam is of excellent quality when sugar is added to the foam. However, the beating time is slightly increased. Stable egg white foams necessitate the addition of compounds such as sugar and acids to improve the foam quality.