Overview
Meringue is a foam-based confection made from whipped egg whites and sugar, often stabilized with an acid such as cream of tartar or vinegar. It can be baked into crisp cookies, used as a topping for pies and custards, or folded into batters and frostings. The texture ranges from light and airy to dense and chewy depending on the ratio of sugar to egg white and the method of preparation.
Origin and history
The precise origin of meringue is uncertain. The name first appears in print in 1692 in François Massialot’s “Le Cuisinier Royal et Bourgeois,” though similar preparations of whipped egg whites sweetened with sugar existed earlier in European cookery [2]. The two principal European styles — French meringue (uncooked egg whites whipped with sugar) and Swiss meringue (egg whites and sugar gently heated before whipping) — developed in the 18th and 19th centuries. Italian meringue, made by whipping hot sugar syrup into egg whites, became standard in pastry kitchens for its stability [1]. Meringue traveled globally through European colonial and trade routes, adapting into local dessert traditions across the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East.
Varieties and aliases
- French meringue: Raw egg whites whipped with granulated or confectioners’ sugar; the simplest method, used for cookies and as a base for some cakes.
- Swiss meringue: Egg whites and sugar heated over a water bath to 50–60°C (120–140°F) before whipping; denser and more stable than French meringue.
- Italian meringue: Hot sugar syrup (cooked to 118°C / 244°F) slowly whipped into egg whites; the most stable, used for buttercreams and mousses.
- Pavlova: A large meringue cake with a crisp exterior and soft marshmallow interior, named after Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova and claimed by both Australia and New Zealand [2].
- Zefir: A Russian and Eastern European confection made from apple-pectin and egg-white meringue, piped into rosettes and lighter than standard marshmallow [5].
- Kievsky tort: A Ukrainian layered cake made with crisp hazelnut-meringue disks, cream filling, and often cocoa [5].
Culinary uses
Meringue appears in three primary forms: as a standalone baked confection (meringue cookies, pavlova, zefir), as a topping (lemon meringue pie, baked Alaska, egg pie), and as a structural component in buttercreams, mousses, and frozen desserts. The ratio of sugar to egg white determines the final texture: a 1:1 ratio by weight produces a soft meringue suitable for topping, while a 2:1 ratio yields a crisp, stable meringue for cookies [1]. Acidic stabilizers like cream of tartar or vinegar help denature the egg proteins and prevent over-whipping. Cornstarch is sometimes added to absorb moisture and prevent weeping in humid conditions.
Cross-cuisine context
Meringue has been absorbed into dessert traditions across multiple cuisines represented on the Yum platform. In Filipino cuisine, brazo de Mercedes is a soft meringue roll filled with custard, and egg pie is a single-crust custard pie topped with browned meringue [3]. Peruvian criollo cooking produces suspiro a la limeña, a layered dessert of manjar blanco (milk caramel) topped with port-spiked meringue [4]. Russian and Ukrainian pastry traditions include Kievsky tort (hazelnut-meringue layered cake) and zefir, a piped apple-pectin meringue confection [5]. Persian shirini features naan-e gerdoui, small flourless walnut-meringue cookies. Vietnamese egg coffee (cà phê trứng) uses a whipped egg-yolk-and-sweetened-condensed-milk foam that functions analogously to meringue as a topping, though it contains no egg whites. Japanese yogashi (Western-style confections) include Mont Blanc, a piped chestnut-cream nest atop a meringue or sponge base.
No widely recognized analogue exists in Mexican cuisine for meringue as a standalone confection, though Mexican pastry traditions use egg-white foams in certain baked goods and the technique of whipping egg whites with sugar is present in some convent-style desserts.
Notes for cooks
- For stable meringue, ensure all equipment is completely free of grease and egg-yolk residue. Even trace fat prevents egg whites from foaming properly.
- Meringue is hygroscopic and softens quickly in humid conditions. Baked meringue cookies should be stored in an airtight container, ideally with a silica gel packet or in a dry environment.
- Substitution: Aquafaba (the liquid from cooked chickpeas) can replace egg whites in meringue at a ratio of roughly 3 tablespoons per egg white, though the texture is slightly less stable and requires longer whipping.