Alma Lach

Filling the Dish

Appears in
Hows and Whys of French Cooking
Hows and Whys of French Cooking

By Alma Lach

Published 1974

  • About

All soufflés must fill the dish all the way to the top. Then with a spatula level the batter off smooth and straight. Be sure you have sufficient batter to fill the dish to the brim. Better to have a bit too much than not enough. The dish must be full for the best results.

Once the soufflé dish is full and leveled off, take your thumb and push the batter away from the sides, thus making a groove the width of your thumb around the outside edge. By doing this you start the soufflé in the right direction to puff, and the batter pushes up into a lovely “cap” about 2 inches above the dish—a sight to behold.