Why Is My Meringue Too Soft After Adding The Sugar?

Asked by Ludmilla. Answered on 11th February 2025

Full question

Dear Nigella & Co, when I whip my egg whites for the Mini Pavlovas and for other meringues it all goes according to plan: I just add a sniff of salt, as we say in the Netherlands and the whites are as stiff as you like. I whisk them in a Magimix. I can do the well known test of keeping the bowl upside down over my head.

The trouble begins when I start putting in the caster sugar. I add it spoon by spoon, as it is described in the recipes, not too quickly, but in the end the egg whites get softer and softer and I can't shape it easily or put it in a piping bag to make beautiful piped meringues. What oh what am I doing wrong?

Mini Pavlovas

By Nigella

Our answer

Nigella has several recipes involving meringue, including Mini Pavlovas (from How To Be A Domestic Goddess), Lemon Meringue Cake and the Toasted Marshmallow And Rhubarb Cake. When a Magimix is mentioned, we wonder if that is a food processor and if it is then you may get better results using a hand-held electric or free standing mixer instead, as it is easier to control the mixing.

When you whisk egg whites for meringues, generally you don't want to whisk them so stiffly in the first stage that can you do the "upside down bowl" test. That is usually applied after the sugar has been added. Our suspicion is that the egg whites are actually being whisked just a little too much at that first stage and then become over whisked as the first couple of spoonfuls of sugar are added. The whites then break down and liquefy and will not become stiff again. You should whisk the whites until they just form a pointed peak when you lift the beaters, or if you are worried about overbeating then to the point where the very top of the peak of egg white just slightly flops over. Add the first tablespoon of caster (superfine) sugar and you will notice that the meringe softens a little, so whisk back to firm peaks and repeat with the next 2-3 tablespoons of sugar then add the remaining sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking constantly. When all the sugar haas been added you can whisk for a moment longer to get a firm meringue, at which point you should be able to do the "upturned bowl" test. We would also mention that pavlova meringue and even French meringue is not ideal for piping, as both tend to lose definition during piping and baking. Swiss and Italian meringues are much more stable and tend to hold their shape better, making them more suitable if you wanted to pipe intricate shapes.