Cooking whites

[anthrax]

This is an issue that prevents me from sleeping at night
Really
...
OK, I'm a bit exagerating but it's disturbing


When you cook egg whites at moderate heat
the whites first "opacify" (from translucid to whitish)
but they are still liquid
Then, they become more like a gel
the gel becomes even more dense
....
...
and here is the drama :
While still heating the gel "break"
and it gets all liquid again

and it is irreversible : you can't have a gel like form again

WTF ?
How to prevent this phenomenon and be sure to have some gel/souffle-like consistency ?

 

[jenscats5]

This is an issue that prevents me from sleeping at night
Really
...
OK, I'm a bit exagerating but it's disturbing


When you cook egg whites at moderate heat
the whites first "opacify" (from translucid to whitish)
but they are still liquid
Then, they become more like a gel
the gel becomes even more dense
....
...
and here is the drama :
While still heating the gel "break"
and it gets all liquid again

and it is irreversible : you can't have a gel like form again

WTF ?
How to prevent this phenomenon and be sure to have some gel/souffle-like consistency ?

Let me make sure I understand.......when making scrambled egg whites, they go from a liquid to slightly opaque....then as they cook, the cooked part surrounds a type of "pocket" of liquid whites that then break, spilling the liquid?

 

[anthrax]

Let me make sure I understand.......when making scrambled egg whites, they go from a liquid to slightly opaque....then as they cook, the cooked part surrounds a type of "pocket" of liquid whites that then break, spilling the liquid?

If you cook at low/moderate temperature and mix the whites
you incorporate air in the liquid
and you get some kind of ...... don't know how to describe it ... souffle or a gel with a lot of air bubbles in it
but this structure break down and it gets all liquid again (as it was before heating)

.... not sure if it is more understandable

 

[obiwan9962]

If you cook at low/moderate temperature and mix the whites
you incorporate air in the liquid
and you get some kind of ...... don't know how to describe it ... souffle or a gel with a lot of air bubbles in it
but this structure break down and it gets all liquid again (as it was before heating)

.... not sure if it is more understandable

when protien is denatured, water is a by product

you can mechanically denature protien
chefs do it when we make meringue
it makes egg whites stiff and fluffy
as the protien strand relax, a bit of water is given off as the bonds of amino acids break apart

 

[anthrax]

"Fluffy"
That's what I was looking for

OK, but it is a bit tricky to know when to stop heating and what is the right temperature to prevent "liquidification" (BTW the same thing happen whern you add some acid like tomatoe sauce in those fluffy whites)

 

[obiwan9962]

"Fluffy"
That's what I was looking for

OK, but it is a bit tricky to know when to stop heating and what is the right temperature to prevent "liquidification" (BTW the same thing happen whern you add some acid like tomatoe sauce in those fluffy whites)

yep
you still need to cook it enough to kill any salmonella bacteria that might be present
that is another reason i am dead set against consuming raw eggs
damn rocky

 

[jenscats5]

If you cook at low/moderate temperature and mix the whites
you incorporate air in the liquid
and you get some kind of ...... don't know how to describe it ... souffle or a gel with a lot of air bubbles in it
but this structure break down and it gets all liquid again (as it was before heating)

.... not sure if it is more understandable

Is it like a gel even after you're done cooking? I've had that happen B4, it's weird.....

I usually cook my eggs on very high heat and haven't had that problem since I've done that.....I used to when I undercooked them to take to work....

 

[anthrax]

yep
you still need to cook it enough to kill any salmonella bacteria that might be present
that is another reason i am dead set against consuming raw eggs
damn rocky

You use regular eggs ?

Aren't liquid whites and liquid yolks more convenient and cost effective ?
(and those are salmonella free)

And you don't want to incorporate some yolk when you prepare some meringues, do you ?

 

[obiwan9962]

You use regular eggs ?

Aren't liquid whites and liquid yolks more convenient and cost effective ?
(and those are salmonella free)

And you don't want to incorporate some yolk when you prepare some meringues, do you ?

i use only fresh organically farmed eggs
blah for liquid eggs
the freezing denatures them abit
and i don't like the colour
true technically there should be no yolk in meringue
but if there are traces it will not hurt it

 

[anthrax]

Apart from the absence of dioxins, PCBs and other chemicals, have you noticed any difference between organic and regular eggs ?

Different taste ?