The Trick To The Egg White Foam: Dry Shake
How does an egg white turn into foam? Its a technique called a dry shake. Heres what to know:
- Use the Dry Shake technique. Most cocktails are shaken with ice in a cocktail shaker. But in a whiskey sour with egg white, youll do whats called a Dry Shake. That means youll shake the ingredients first without ice. Then youll add the ice and shake again. This results in a lovely white layer of foam on top.
- Theres also a Reverse Dry Shake. Another technique gets even more foam: its called the Reverse Dry Shake. You shake the ingredients with ice first, then strain out the ice and shake again. This method gets it even more foamy. But we like the texture of the foam in a dry shake, and its most common for classic cocktails.
Crack An Egg Per Drink
This the to go method when you are just making one or two cocktails at a time at home. It is not the fastest method but you have almost zero waste of having the egg whites just sitting around in a container.
You do this in case you drop a piece of eggshell or yolk in. Easier to remove and an egg is cheaper to replace than replacing other ingredients.
Dry Shake Egg White Cocktails
The trick to creating the best foam on top of egg white cocktails is to dry shake . It’s a bartending technique first documented in the 1950s, though it may have been used earlier. While it fell out of favor along with egg drinks during the mid-20th-century, the cocktail renaissance of the 2000s brought it back.
The primary purpose of dry shaking is to emulsify the egg white and aerate the proteins. While it produces a meringue-like texture, a shaken egg doesn’t get as foamy as whipping egg whites for food. The drink’s other ingredients slow that down process, but the dry shake revives some of that froth.
Dry shaking adds one extra step to mixing a drink: Combine all the ingredients in a shaker without ice, shake vigorously for about 30 seconds, and then add ice and shake for another 30 seconds before straining the drink. Some bartenders also use the reverse dry shake: Shake all of the ingredients except the egg with ice for 25 seconds, remove the ice, add the egg white and shake again for 20 to 25 seconds .
Whichever approach you use, the additional benefit is that you avoid an overly diluted cocktail. Shaking as long as needed to emulsify the egg with a shaker full of ice also breaks down the ice and adds some water to the drink.
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The Cocktail Bar Standard Aka Using An Egg White
Elijah Craig
- 0.75 oz. fresh lemon juice
- 0.75 oz. simple syrup
Add all ingredients to a shaker tin. Dry shake ingredients without ice for five seconds to whip the egg. Add ice, seal tins and shake hard for 10 to 12 seconds. Strain into coupe or martini glassitll come out white at first, and the color will emerge over the course of a minute under a paper-smooth head of foam. Express a lemon peel over the top of the foam for aroma and discard and decorate the foam with a few drops or dashes of Angostura Bitters.
The smoothest and most elegant way to make a Whiskey Sour is to make it with egg white. Now, if you were disinclined to try it before, I doubt I just sweetened the pot with the promise of a raw egg, but hear me out: Just like when you eat them, egg whites dont taste like anything really, but serve here to give the whole cocktail a velvety texture, a pretty white head, and most importantly, to bind to the tannins in the spirit, smoothing out the rougher edges of the whiskey.
A necessary note: egg whites are largely safe, but if youre nervous or immunocompromised, feel free to use in-shell pasteurized eggs. If youre vegan, you can use aquafaba, which functions more or less identically. If all you have is a carton of pre-cracked, pre-separated egg whites, perhaps consider making it as below.
Classic Whiskey Sour Cocktail With Egg White
This tart and frothy drink, whipped up with egg whites, is enjoying popularity once again thanks to Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in the movie Once Upon a Time, in Hollywood.
In our house we’ve had many debates about cocktails made with egg white. Nancy’s great-grandfather was a famous bartender who wrote a drinks guide in 1914. In fact, I use his book to research drinks, and it is shown in some of our cocktail photos. The first time we read through it we noticed many drink recipes contained egg white. Nancy thought it sounded gross. I couldn’t really disagree.
The last time I gave much thought to drinking raw eggs was when I watched Sylvester Stallone do it in Rocky.
So, it was with some trepidation one night when, at our speakeasy, the bartender served me a drink made with egg white. Much to my surprise, it tasted great. In addition to giving it more texture and flavor, it just looks frothy and delicious. Now I’m a believer!
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Why Is There An Egg White In My Cocktail
Its not easy to achieve richness in a cocktail without piling on the calories. Most rich drinks tend to include stuff like coconut cream if you like walks in the rain or half and half, which explains why The Dude tended to opt for a loose-fitting bathrobe over well-tailored pants.
But theres one way to impart richness to a drink that you either may not know about, or be too grossed out by: the humble egg white. Before you go grab a bottle of hand sanitizer and rock back and forth in a corner, just bear in mind: if youve had a pisco sour or boozy eggnog, youve consumed an egg white cocktail and lived to tell the tale.
As long as the eggs are fresh if you can do farmers market, all the better and as long as your hands are washed and the eggs are washed, you should be safe from salmonella. Not that were recommending you use egg whites if youre still worried. No matter how good the cocktail, fear always tastes icky.
Whiskey Sour Ingredients Are As Simple As They Come: A Squeeze Of Fresh Lemon Juice A Spoonful Of Sugar And Plenty Of Whiskey For A Boston Sour Add An Egg White Too
- Shaking with ice chills the cocktail without over-dilution.
- Fresh squeezed lemon juice beats sour mix in terms of flavor and aroma.
- Toasted sugar tastes less sweet than plain, with subtle notes of caramel to complement the whiskey.
It ain’t fancy, but that’s a big part of its appeal. Because at the end of a long dayscratch that, a long weekyou just want a nice, easy drink. The whiskey sour, with the gentle bite of lemon tempered by a whisper of sugar, is a simple, go-to classic for a reason.
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Classic Gin Fizz Cocktail
You cant have a truly fizzy gin fizz without adding an egg white. Thats just a fact.
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The egg white is what gives it its that signature fizzy, frothy appearance.
You can get a moderate amount of bubbles with the soda water. However, egg white is a must-have if you want your gin fizz to look spectacular.
Are you looking for something a little more tart and elegant? Then, give the Clover Club cocktail a try.
Its a gorgeous pink drink with a bright, berrylicious flavor.
Dont Slack On The Shaking
There is something to be said about the importance of the technique and glassware for serving a Whiskey Sour. To be served perfectly it must both be shaken well, and shaken to completion, to achieve perfect dilution. If you opt for a rich-bodied Whiskey Sour with an egg white, the technique must be focused as the shaking comes in two parts: the wet shake and the dry shake .
It is important to have the proper head of foam , Abalos explains. Generally when we do training on shaking egg white cocktails, we tell bartenders to pay attention to the sound and feel of the tin. If it still sounds clanky it is not ready you want it to feel and sound like a tennis ball is in your tin.
Start with a vigorous wet shake to emulsify the ingredients and add the necessary dilution to balance the cocktail. Then, dry-shake to further dial in the texture, adding to the frothiness of the Whiskey Sour.
Many bartenders will serve a Whiskey Sour in a rocks glass over ice, even though both Wall and Abalos make the point that it is meant to be served up. While both methods yield a delicious sour, serving the Whiskey Sour over one large cube is our recommended serve as it dilutes slowly due to the ice employed, and keeps your cocktail chilled over the drinking session. If you opt for it up, however, a Nick and Nora glass is your best service vessel.
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How Strong Is A Million Dollar Cocktail
Adding an egg white not only gives a cocktail a frothy top, but it also helps knock down the alcohol content. With it, the million dollar cocktail should shake up to 19 percent ABV or so. That makes it one of the lighter options in the classic martini family, which can easily reach 60 proof.
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How To Make A Whiskey Sour Wet Or Dry
There are a few different ways to make a drink containing egg white. When using a cocktail shaker you can mix it either “wet” or “dry,” meaning with or without the ice. You can even make it wet, strain it out, remove the ice and shake it “dry” again. You are shaking to ensure you get the egg integrated into the other ingredients to form that smooth, creamy topping. Or you can mix the egg white separately with a whisk until they are nice and thick to give your cocktail a frosty look.
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How To Make A Whiskey Sour
The egg white makes the shake in the whiskey sour extremely important. First, well do whats called a dry shake. Dry shaking is shaking cocktail ingredients with no ice.
This will help break down the proteins in the egg white and make them foamier and silky smooth. If you shake with ice first and only, it tends to dilute the egg whites and makes them more watery.
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History Of The Whiskey Sour
The Whiskey Sour goes back a long way. Its said that sailors invented the Sour cocktail to avoid scurvy on the open seas.
Several Sour cocktails, including the Gin Sour and the Brandy Sour, were first mentioned in The Bartenders Guide by Jerry Thomas in 1862.
Later, a Wisconsin newspaper, the Waukesha Plain Dealer, first wrote about the Whiskey Sour cocktail on Jan. 4, 1870.
Since then, the Whiskey Sour has found its way onto bar menus everywhere. It even has its own national holiday National Whiskey Sour Day is Aug. 25 each year.
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Are Egg Whites In Drinks Safe
Eggs add a host of outstanding qualities to a cocktail. They can add thickness and silkiness, which is very evident in cocktails like eggnog. Some people may be worried about an eggy taste, but its actually quite subtle.
Of course, there is always a concern that using raw egg or egg whites in a cocktail would be unsafe. Follow these tips for using egg whites in a cocktail safely.
Be sure to buy pasteurized eggs in the shell, which is the USDA recommendation for any food or drink that includes raw eggs. Pasteurized eggs are gently heated in their shells, just enough to kill any bacteria. If needed, you can pasteurize eggs at home.
Raw egg warning: Consuming raw or lightly-cooked eggs poses a risk for food-borne illness.
What Is It Called When You Add An Egg White To A Cocktail
There are many different names for cocktails that include an egg white. Some of the most common are the Aviation, the Daisy, and the Pisco Sour.
The Aviation is a cocktail made with gin, maraschino liqueur, lemon juice, and an egg white. It gets its name from the blue color that the egg white gives the drink.
The Daisy is a cocktail made with bourbon, dry curacao, lemon juice, and an egg white. It gets its name from the white flowers that often bloom in the springtime.
The Pisco Sour is a cocktail made with pisco, lime juice, simple syrup, and an egg white. It gets its name from the sour fruit that pisco is made from.
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Why I Love This New York Sour Recipe
I first came to know the New York Sour when I was a waitressknowing very little about whiskey then, I recommended it purely for its visual appeal. I now have many more reasons for why you should try this glorious cocktail!
The New York Sour is the ideal cocktail. Its tart, slightly sweet, and perfectly warming.
Classic Chicago Fizz Cocktail
Vibrant, slightly sweet, and delightfully zesty, this one looks like a million bucks. Youll love this fantastically fizzy, four-minute cocktail.
It features a brilliant red hue and a ton of bubbles. If any cocktail could leave you with a milk mustache , this one would do it.
Check it out the next time you want something with a wallop of bold flavor.
Ah, the White Lady. Heres another enchanting cocktail that looks stunning on every table.
Its lovely enough for formal events but easy enough to make for casual occasions.
Its blend of gin and Cointreau makes it a deceptively strong drink with a crisp, invigorating flavor.
Its very citrusy and bright, and while its on the dry side, its not bitter. Instead, itsbrisk.
I know thats not a word used to describe the taste, but in this case, it fits.
Its a brisk, zingy drink thatll delight your tongue and taste buds and leave you wanting more.
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Russells 10 Year Reserve
This 90 Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon packs a punch.
Theres no getting around that this is one of the dearer whiskeys on our list, but its worth every penny. Tobacco and seasoned oak are balanced out by notes of caramel and vanilla in what is the absolute standard for a bourbon.
What the Russell 10 delivers is what every other bourbon aspires to be. If youre a whiskey aficionado, then this might actually be the best whiskey for a whiskey sour, and certainly the best bourbon.
The price tag here is the only thing stopping it from stealing the top spot from the Elijah Craig Small Batch but, if youre able and willing to make the investment, this is your pick.
Why And How To Dry Shake A Cocktail
The reason you dry shake a cocktail is to foam up the egg white and to get all of the ingredients meshed together. A dry shake is just shaking your cocktail ingredients in a cocktail shaker WITHOUT ice for at least 30 seconds, longer if you can. Your arms will be screaming but your cocktail will thank you. After you dry shake, add ice to the cocktail shaker, and you wet shake for another 30 seconds or more.
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Can You Get Sick From Egg White In Cocktails
The sours drinks, which contain spirits like whiskey, gin or pisco, as well as lemon juice, syrup and ice, are mixed with raw egg white. Bartenders do this to give the drink a silkier texture and a frothy head on the top. But eggs can carry salmonella bacteria, which cause unpleasant food poisoning.
Dont Forget To Garnish The Cocktail
A garnish should always add something to a cocktail. Whether visual appeal or an aromatic quality, both factors are important to consider. If you opt for the common Whiskey Sour with an egg white, the garnish is crucial.
An egg white cocktail that sits for a few minutes without any aromatic element develops notes of sulfur from the eggs. To avoid having an eggy-smelling Whiskey Sour, there are a few garnish options worth considering. Usually I like to do some wild Angostura bitters dashes or drawings on top of the egg white froth to ‘wow’ the guest, says Rio. But anything from an orange or lemon twist, to a couple cherries or a dehydrated slice of citrus would do.
It really comes down to your flavor preference, but the garnish is essential and will add the aromatic element that is necessary to complete your perfect Whiskey Sour.
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Build Your Best Whiskey Sour
April 20, 2021 | Ted Simmons
Bright and buoyant, the Whiskey Sour is whiskey dressed for a summer day. The drink may have originated with 18th-century sailors combining ingredients they had at hand, but the unbeatable balance of spirit, sugar, and citrus makes this drink transcend the whims of cocktail fashion. Its beautiful in its simplicity and its delicious and it manages to be really fun, and its also a really nice access point for whiskey for a lot of people, says Dan Sabo, director of food and beverage at Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.
As long as you stay focused on a balance of sweet, sour, and spirit, the Whiskey Sour leaves plenty of room for interpretation or tweaking to suit your palate. There are a thousand things you can do to add a little twist to it and thats one of the things that great classics can do, says Neal Bodenheimer, co-owner of Cure in New Orleans. It can handle a little bit of innovation, but the basic version is as good.
Skip the bottled sour mix and get creative using these fun tips. As Bodenheimer says, Theres really no limitation to what you can do with a Whiskey Sour.