Your Guide To Making Egg White Cocktails The Easy Way

July 13, 2022 by Sonja Edridge

Although at first you may wince at the thought of adding egg white to your cocktail, stay with us and find out why egg white cocktails are definitely one to try at home. Frothy egg whites magically transform a super sour sip into something rather luxuriously smooth.

Why add egg white to cocktails?

Chicken eggs in a box from above

Not only does egg white add visual appeal to your cocktail, as it gives your drink a creamy head, it also elevates the overall flavour and balance of your cocktail. Cocktails that are overtly sour get their balance restored by the addition of the frothy egg white for a silky-smooth mouthfeel. And don’t worry – adding egg whites will NOT make your cocktail taste like egg! We pinky promise!

Egg white is made up of proteins and, when shaken, the proteins emulsify, trapping the air in amongst it to give your cocktail a silken meringue-like texture. The texture is not as dense or solid as if you’d whipped up on a meringue; instead, it gives a smooth whipped cream texture. This aeration helps change the texture and body of your drink without altering the taste, so add egg whites to cocktails if you need to soften the sour, add richness and give texture. Clever, right?

How to include egg whites in your cocktail

A lot of cocktail recipes stress the importance of shaking your cocktail over ice. However, when making egg white cocktails, you must never shake your egg whites over ice! Adding ice would reduce the body that the egg whites bring as it dilutes it. What’s more, achieving the perfect frothy head works better at room temperature. So, you can still shake your drinks, just without the ice! Give your cocktails about one minute of vigorous shaking to achieve a nice froth before straining it into your glass. You can also blend or froth it in your blender if you have one.

Our favourite classic egg white cocktails

The technique of adding foamy egg white to cocktails is not a new fad – it’s actually been around for many centuries! You’ll no doubt recognize some of the classic cocktails that enjoy a little foamy magic, such as pretty-in-pink Clover Club Cocktail, which bartenders have been mixing up since the beginning of the 1900s, and the Million Dollar cocktail, a martini-style drink with gin, sweet vermouth, pineapple juice, grenadine and topped with egg white foam. Get started at home with the oh so familiar Whiskey Sour, shaking egg whites up with bourbon, a dash of lemon juice, a little simple syrup and a dash of Angostura bitters.

Modern egg white cocktails

Other modern frothy numbers worth a try are:

Chicago Fizz: a chic and delightful mix of ruby port and rum shaken with egg white to create a pretty pink fizz sipped in a Collins glass.

Pisco Sour: it has a South American brandy base called Pisco, distilled from grapes that has unusually strong floral notes for brandy. Being Peruvian, this cocktail enjoys a healthy squeeze of lime, making this a refreshing sip on a hot summer’s day
Lemongrass Sour: our latest cocktail crush is a tangy mix of lemongrass infused vodka for a zesty modern twist to the Whiskey Sour

Christmas egg cocktails

The Christmas holidays are a popular time to make enriched drinks to enjoy fireside. An eggnog (or two) helps to fend off the icy cold winters and keep us all warm at heart. Although these aren’t strictly egg white whipping cocktails, if you are partial to eggnog, then you’ll enjoy an Eggnog Martini or a Tom and Jerry for ultimate comfort vibes.

Vegan-friendly versions

Don’t let the fact that you are plant based stop you from sipping a foamy topped cocktail — have you heard of aquafaba? This game changing liquid comes from a can of chickpeas so, next time you’re making hummus, don’t ditch the liquid down the drain! Instead, save it for that moment when you’re craving a pretty Clover Club Cocktail. It can be used just as you would egg whites; you’ll need 40g of aquafaba to equal an egg white and we promise it won’t make your favourite drink taste of garbanzo beans!

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Although adding egg white to cocktails may seem strange at first, you will see how it can tone down the sharpness of a cocktail like a Whiskey Sour or a Gin Fizz. It softens the acidity of the drink, giving it a rather luxurious texture and mouthfeel without altering the flavour.

For mixing just one cocktail with froth, recipes normally call for 20g, which equals the whites from a small egg. This will give you the perfect amount of frothy foam texture needed for a cocktail.

Shop bought egg whites tend to be pasteurized, which you can absolutely use, however pasteurised eggs do lose some volume. You may need to use a bit more than unpasteurised egg whites to create the volume you need.

The best way to froth your egg whites is by shaking them, without ice, in your cocktail shaker or mason jar. You can do this along with your other ingredients, just leave out the ice to get the froth going. Adding ice will just prolong the process as the proteins in the egg will get diluted and make the shaking affair a whole lot longer.

Adding egg white into a cocktail is the same as eating a meringue - it’s not thoroughly cooked, so it’s not recommended for those who are immunocompromised. For the safest frothy egg additions, choose the freshest eggs and store them in the fridge. Before using, wash them to prevent any bacteria on the shell entering your cocktail. You are at all concerned, just choose pasteurised eggs or shop bought egg whites, but bear in mind this doesn’t give as much volume as regular.