the do’s and don’ts of the successful soufflé

• The two most vital things about making a soufflé are buttering the soufflé dishes properly and not overbeating the egg whites.
• eggs especially egg whites must be at room temperature or warmed as is sometimes specified in these recipes. Egg size is important, and milk should be quality and fresh. Whisk and bowl must always be meticulously clean, and a metal bowl is best.
• a soufflé should not taste of egg, nor should it be just meringue. Sacrificing taste for height is not to make a great soufflé.
• soufflé dish size …..10.5 cm base diameter and 5cm high soufflé dishes are my preferred entrée size. Choosing wider rather than deep they cook more evenly whereas, the higher (same volume soufflé dishes tend to dry out the edges before the centres are just cooked. Small soufflé dishes 8.5 cm diameter and 4 cm high are good for combination desserts and entrees or when the meal has been rich and complex, and a small dessert is appropriate.
• single large soufflés
  They are spectacular to bring to the table, but for more than four they tend to be dry on the edges and undercooked in the centre. The only alternative is the free form and so very famous mountains of vanilla soufflé, Salzburger Knockerl that comes to the table in the great restaurants of Salzburg and Vienna held high above the tables so that their beauty and aroma seduces all diners to order this wonderful dish.
• collared soufflés are a matter of choice but until you master the free form it can be a good idea. Baking parchment and a stapler does the trick but remember to count the staples when you remove the collars.
• don’t be tempted to add that last spoonful of soufflé into the soufflé dish….chuck it in the bin. Uncollared soufflés will burst their crust and spill out onto the baking sheet and ruin the soufflé.
• serving a soufflé is a two-person job you need one person to put them on the serving plate and another to rush them to the table.

AO 7 OCTOBER 2021