How to make a French meringue with this easy and foolproof recipe, for a smooth and firm meringue texture, perfect to fill or cover a cake, to decorate a lemon meringue pie, or make a berry pavlova recipe or small meringue cookies.
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The French meringue is a basic recipe and a classic type of meringue in French pastry, used as a frosting or as a filling in cakes, or as a baked version for small crunchy cookies perfect to decorate your pastries.
Among the 3 types of meringues known, this one is the easiest, because unlike the Swiss meringue or the Italian meringue which are more technical, here we simply whip sugar and egg whites until we obtain a shiny meringue with firm peaks.
This is a very simple and quick recipe, follow my advice and tips to have a perfect and firm meringue and small crunchy meringues without cracks.
Why you'll love this recipe
Want to explore more French recipes? Give these a try: French diplomat cream, this French almond cream, or this French puff pastry.
Ingredient Notes
You need these ingredients to make this classic French meringue recipe:
- Egg Whites: Use only room temperature whites, ensuring they're completely free of any egg yolk traces for optimal consistency.
- Sugar: Opt for superfine sugar. Avoid powdered sugar or flavored sugars, as they can alter the texture and stability of the meringue.
- Cream of Tartar or White Vinegar (Optional): A dash of either adds acidity, which helps stabilize the egg whites. This results in a more robust and consistently fluffy meringue.
>> Don't throw away your egg yolks, use them to make a pastry cream or a lemon curd and Egg yolk Chocolate chip cookies.
How To Make The Best French Meringue Recipe
Here are some quick visual instructions. Don't forget that full recipe instructions with exact ingredients can be found in the recipe card below!
Step 1: Place egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer and whip egg whites at medium-low speed for 5 minutes until they start to bubble.
Step 2: Increase the speed of the mixer a little and beat again until you get soft peaks.
Step 3: Add the caster sugar to the egg whites in small batches while keeping the mixer running at medium speed and continue mixing for another 10 minutes until the sugar is fully incorporated.
Step 4: Then whip the meringue at high speed until stiff peaks form with a glossy and shiny texture.
Enjoy! Use the meringue mixture immediately to fill or decorate cakes and pies or follow the baking step below to make baked meringues.
Baked meringue
Step 1: Preheat oven to 212°F / 100°C and prepare a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
Step 2: Pipe your meringue with a large pastry bag and a decorating tip directly onto the prepared baking sheet.
Step 3: Bake the meringues for about 1 hour, until they come away easily from the parchment paper.
Enjoy! Let them cool completely in the oven with the door open before placing them in a jar or using them for your desserts.
Serving Suggestions
- Lemon Meringue Pie: Crown a tangy lemon curd pie with swirls of meringue for a classic dessert.
- Eton Mess: Crumble the meringue and mix with whipped cream and fresh berries for a quick, delicious treat.
- Pavlova: Shape the meringue into a nest and fill with whipped cream and fresh fruit for an elegant dessert.
- French Meringues: Pipe small dollops and bake to create light, crispy meringue cookies.
- Baked Alaska: Top your favorite ice cream and cake with meringue and briefly torch for a show-stopping dessert.
- Chocolate-Dipped Meringue: Dip meringue pieces in melted chocolate for a simple yet indulgent snack.
- Macarons shells : perfect meringue for homemade French macarons.
Tips for this recipe
Secret Tip
Heat the sugar in the oven: at 392°F / 200°C for 5 minutes, and spread it on a baking sheet so that it melts more easily into the whites.
Storage instructions
Room temperature: Baked meringues can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container box with a tight-fitting lid or a glass jar for several weeks.
Variations & substitutions
Frequently Asked Question
How do I know when my French Meringue is ready?
The meringue is ready when it forms stiff, glossy peaks that hold their shape when you lift the whisk. You should be able to turn the bowl upside down without the meringue sliding out.
Can I flavor or color French Meringue?
Yes, you can add extracts like vanilla or almond, and food coloring to French Meringue. Be sure to add them at the very end of the whipping process to avoid deflating the meringue.
Why is my French Meringue grainy?
A grainy texture usually means the sugar wasn’t fully dissolved. Try using superfine sugar, or whisk for a longer time to ensure the sugar dissolves completely.
Why does my meringue ooze during baking?
Your meringue may ooze during baking due to overwhipping, undissolved sugar, humidity, or incorrect baking temperature.
Why is my meringue cracking?
Meringue may crack if baked at too high a temperature or if it cools too quickly. To prevent this, bake at a low temperature and allow the meringue to cool gradually in the oven.
More Meringue Recipes
I hope you love this French meringue recipe. If you make it, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Happy Baking!
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French Meringue
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 30 meringues
Description
How to make a French meringue (for about 25-30 meringues or a 8 inches 20 cm pie filling)
Ingredients
- 100 g egg whites - about 3-4 whites at room temperature
- 200 g (1 cup) Caster sugar - extra fine
Instructions
-
- Place the room temperature egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on medium slow speed for 5 minutes until bubbly.
- Increase the speed of the mixer a little and mix the whites again until you have soft peaks.
- While leaving the mixer running on medium speed, fold in the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, leaving about 1 minute between each addition.
- Mix on medium-high speed for 10 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved (if you still have visible sugar grains, continue beating for another 10 minutes).
- Finish by beating the meringue on high speed for about 5 minutes and until you have a firm, glossy texture with stiff peaks (when you lift the whisk you should have a bird's beak that does not fall off).
- Use immediately to decorate desserts or follow baking instructions for baked meringue cookies.
Baking :
-
- Preheat the oven to 212°F/ 100°C (fan oven) and prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Fill a piping bag with all the meringue and pipe small piles onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 5 cm apart.
- Bake the meringues in the oven for about 1 hour and until the meringues peel off the baking paper easily.
- Let the meringues cool in the oven with the door open.
Notes
Storage: Several weeks in a storage box with a tight lid.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Calories: 14
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 3
- Carbohydrates: 3
What can I say..... these meringues are so sweet and the photos are sublime as usual !!!!
Hello, thank you very much for this beautiful work. I need to know what type of icing tip is used to achieve this shape in the last photo, and congratulations again
Hello and thank you , I used a round plain tip to make these meringues.
Fadela
Hello, how long can I keep these meringues?
Hello, they can be kept for several weeks.
This is the first time I've read about putting the sugar in the oven before incorporating it into the meringue.
It's amazing! Does it really make a difference?
I really like your blog, which I've just discovered =)
Great recipe, adding 1 dash of lemon to the egg whites guarantees success.