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Sometimes, I want to make a recipe (or train one) that involves Italian meringue, but I find it very difficult to whip one up when using small quantities of egg whites.

I find it very hard to whip Italian meringue without using a stand mixer. My experience with hand mixers is that it's difficult to properly beat the whites when adding the sugar syrup. It's hard to ensure I'm getting the beaters to evenly cover the bowl, and then the max speed of a stand mixer is not too fast either. Should perhaps I use a bowl that's deeper but not as wide for this purpose; would that work? Is there some tip or trick to doing it with a hand mixer?

On the other hand, if I do use my stand mixer with too little egg whites in the mixer bowl, the whisk won't quite reach them and I'll be left scratching my head. Should I 'pre whip' the egg whites to gain volume before dumping them on the stand mixer bowl, so the whisk can reach them? Is there some other tool or way to circumvent this?

Any tips on whipping small quantities of Italian meringue are appreciated.

Fimpellizzeri
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    Have you used a handheld milk frother? It might help in small quantities. – zetaprime Jun 25 '19 at 07:04
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    Interesting experience. For me, a hand mixer works better than a stand mixer in exactly the ways you have trouble - I can easily cover the entire bowl, aiming it exactly where I want it, while the stand mixer has a few annoying milimeters of clearance to the bowl, and besides, when it pushes something to the side, it stays pushed. I have no trouble with the max speed even of noname brands. I wonder if it is up to experience with each, I grew up without a stand mixer. – rumtscho Jun 25 '19 at 08:54
  • @zetaprime I don't have a milk frother, but I might try it if I happen to find one. – Fimpellizzeri Jun 26 '19 at 14:45
  • @rumtscho When using a handheld mixer, what kind of bowl do you use: wider but shallower, or deeper but not as wide? (Does it matter?) While you're actually pouring the syrup over the egg whites, how do you do it and what do you do with the mixer? – Fimpellizzeri Jun 26 '19 at 14:47
  • @Fimpellizieri I admit that applications which require pouring are fiddly with the hand mixer. I tend to use wide and shallower bowls, and move the mixer a lot in the bowl itself, trying to catch all areas, but I do that after the pouring. While pouring, I drizzle a bit with the left hand while holding the mixer in the right hand still, then whip it for a bit including hunting, then drizzle more, and continue until everything is incorporated. – rumtscho Jun 26 '19 at 14:52

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Grab a bowl, put a folded towel under it in the way the bowl becomes tilted. This will make it easy to whip, because the whites will concentrate in just one side of the bowl (thank you, gravity!); you also won`t have to use one hand to hold the bowl. With one hand free, you can pour the sugar syrup.

Jamie Oliver has a YouTube video doing some aioli this way. You just need to practice, and for me the most difficult thing is to whip it by hand without injuring your wrist.

Croves
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