Essential Tips To Make Italian Meringue

• Preparation

   

  Ensure all the tools are completely dry and clean with no oil, liquids, or chemicals attached - This is very important to make a fluffy meringue - Egg whites do not get whipped well when coming in contact with them. Even a small amount of them can affect the result! Egg yolks contain natural oil, so carefully separate eggs.
• Meringue

   

  Make a very fluffy meringue by the time the hot sugar syrup is ready. The timings are very important! The finished Italian meringue gets loose when the hot sugar syrup is added to the loose meringue. Also, do not over-whip the meringue until it gets separated. Pay close attention to both at the same time and control the timing. I usually start whipping it at a low speed and gradually increase the speed toward the end to adjust the timing. 
• Hot Sugar Syrup

   

  * Ensure the sugar is completely wet before you heat the pot. It's essential to avoid the risk of sugar crystalization while heating it. Wash off any sugar attached to the sides with a pastry brush. (You can also cover a pot with a lid while heating it for the same effect instead of applying the water.)

   

  * Don't shake a pot or touch the syrup while heating it until it starts to thicken slightly. It could also cause sugar crystallization by lowering the temperature of the syrup or letting it touch the air. We'll need a little patience here!

   

  * Heat it to 244ºF | 118ºC. (Or between 242.6 - 246°F | 117 - 119°C.) to make a stable, stiff meringue. Aim for 242.6ºF (117°C) for a slightly softer meringue and 246°F (119°C) for a slightly stiffer one. The meringue can get too loose by heating less or too stiff and grainy by heating more than the range.

   

  * The sugar syrup gets too thick and sticky quickly as the temperature goes down. Don't wait more than 5 - 10 seconds before you pour it into the meringue. 
• Finishing Italian Meringue

   

  * Add the sugar syrup to the meringue slowly, letting it slide down from the side of the bowl. The syrup gets picked up by a whisk more easily that way to let it incorporate well with the meringue. When pouring hot syrup onto the top of a whisk, for example, it could scatter everywhere or stick to the whisk. When adding a lot of it at once, it could sink to the bottom of the bowl. 

   

  * Flip a pan toward the end to drop all the sugar syrup in a pot. Leaving too much sugar in a pot can mess up the ratio.

   

  * Continue whipping at high speed initially to make very fluffy Italian meringue. The bowl or the meringue feels very hot at this point.

   

  * Stop whipping it when it cools down to room temperature. (Very slightly warm is fine when you are piping it. The temperature goes down by the time you finish piping or frosting.) It'll slowly lose the volume if you continue whipping it after it cools down.

   

  * Use it right away: It is important to use it right after the Italian meringue is made while it's still elastic. The meringue gets set and hard as it sits and it'll collapse by trying to re-mix it.