Three peaks, one whisk

Read the tip, not the bowl

Whisking stretches proteins into films that wrap around air bubbles. The more you whisk, the stiffer that foam gets — and the only reliable way to tell where you are is to lift the whisk and look at what the peak does. A drooping tip is soft, a tip that curls over like a bird’s beak is medium, and one that stands straight up is stiff.

1. Droops over
2. Bird’s beak
3. Stands straight

Worth remembering Lift the whisk. The peak tells you; the bowl doesn’t.

Which stage you want, and why

Soft peaks fold into a batter without fighting it — that is what a soufflé or a sponge wants. Stiff peaks hold their own shape, which is what a meringue or a piped decoration needs. Choosing the wrong one is not a small error: stiff whites folded into a batter tear it into lumps instead of blending.

Worth remembering Soft peaks to fold. Stiff peaks to hold a shape.

Past stiff, it breaks

Keep going and the films tear. Cream splits into grainy butter and buttermilk; whites go dull, clump, and weep water. Cream caught just over can be rescued by folding in a splash of fresh liquid cream. Whites cannot — once they weep, there is nothing to do but start again with new ones.

1. Droops over
2. Bird’s beak
3. Stands straight

Worth remembering Stop at glossy. Dull and clumpy means you went one minute too far.

Folding is how you keep it

All that air is the only leavening a sponge has, and stirring shears the bubbles apart in seconds. Cut down through the middle with a spatula, sweep along the bottom, and lift over the top — turning the bowl as you go. Stop the moment the streaks disappear: every extra fold costs height.

Worth remembering Beaten in over minutes, knocked out in seconds. Fold, never stir.