# My meringues always end up flat, brown and chewy. Any ideas why?



## tiemu (Jul 24, 2014)

I've tried several different recipes for Pavlovas and meringues from reputable cookbooks, but they always end up this way. What is the most likely reason for this?

- Their texture when going into the oven looks the same as foamed shampoo/bubble bath, no matter how much I whisk it (by hand). But on TV, the whipped egg whites look more like a bright white whipped cream. I wish I knew what the texture should look and feel like.

- I beat them in a ceramic bowl. I know they say to use metal, but does this actually matter?

- The bowl is dry and has been cleaned with regular dishwashing liquid. I doubt there's any grease in it.

- I'm not very good at cracking eggs, so the egg whites aren't 100% clear (there could be a speck of yellow, or white in it). Does this actually matter?

When I look in the oven they fall flat and brown pretty fast.


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## brandon odell (Aug 19, 2012)

Yes. All that matters. You can't skip details in a recipe and expect the recipe to turn out. Follow the recipe and try a hand mixer or Hobart/Kitchen aid automatic mixer that can go faster and longer than you can by hand. 

A meringue needs to already be stiff when it goes on a pie.


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## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

Perhaps the addition of confectioner's sugar to the egg whites would help the meringue hold its shape.


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## brianshaw (Dec 18, 2010)

Brandon ODell said:


> Yes. All that matters. You can't skip details in a recipe and expect the recipe to turn out. Follow the recipe and try a hand mixer or Hobart/Kitchen aid automatic mixer that can go faster and longer than you can by hand.
> 
> A meringue needs to already be stiff when it goes on a pie.


This...

plus a bit of Cream of Tartar as a stabilizer. The browning is overbaking.


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