They say only a true foodie can appreciate the delicacy of a souffle. Primarily made of egg whites, a souffle is a culinary art only a few can master. Now you might think that baking is expensive and requires all sorts of fancy utensils and measuring cups. However, if you consider yourself a dedicated baker, none of these things would matter to you. However, you still would want to have some souffle dish substitutes to satisfy your taste buds.
When baking souffle, the souffle dish might look fancy on the website you’re reading the recipe from, but it’s not a necessity. Any dish that allows the egg white in the batter to properly get baked and spread a little would be good to go. So, before you give up on baking the perfect souffle just because you don’t have a souffle dish, we’d want you to go through this article because we’ve done all the homework for you.
Compromising only a few ingredients and having a precise baking method, a lot of newbies and sometimes even experienced chefs, think twice before giving it a try. But once you find the right recipe and technique, there’s no going back, after all, no such thing as too much souffle.
Souffle Dish Substitute
1) Ovenproof coffee cups
Who doesn’t have a spare coffee mug hanging around in the kitchen? If you can’t get your hands on a souffle dish, just use a coffee mug. However, make sure that you’re using an oven-proof mug. The last thing you would want is to clean a broken coffee mug in the oven.
Most coffee mugs have a wide bottom and would provide enough space for the souffle to get baled properly.
2) Unglazed flowerpots
Are you a fan of collecting cute little colorful utensils? Every time you go to buy a necessary utensil, you end up buying something else too. If that’s the case, then you would surely have an unglazed flowerpot somewhere.
It is very safe to bake in a flowerpot but keep an eye on the oven when you do this. Flowerpots add a very colorful addition to the serving table and what is better than a cute serving pot with a well-baked souffle inside?
If you used a flowerpot for planting, please make sure to clean the pot properly. Use baking soda and vinegar to thoroughly sterilize the pot off any worm eggs or soil particles.
3) Ceramic baking or casserole dish
Ceramic baking dishes are used for baking all sorts of desserts. They are oven-proof, provide balanced heating, and bake evenly. So, if you already have a ceramic or casserole dish lying in your kitchen cabinet, there is no need to invest in a souffle dish.
However, most souffle dishes are small in size and are built to provide a single serving. While using a ceramic dish, which is usually large, you would have to use double the ingredients used in the recipe. The essential part is that the material spreads evenly.
4) Heat resistant dish
You do not need to panic if you have neither of the above-mentioned alternatives in your kitchen. Remember, baking is as flexible as you’d want it to be. Look around the kitchen or ring a friend to ask for any sort of heat-resistant dish. The shape and size don’t matter. The most important thing is that you have a dish that can withstand the high temperature of the oven and not break.
Make sure you preheat the oven properly and place your dish in the center. Thoroughly clean the dish before you pour in the batter. Egg whites which make up the main constituent of a souffle do not get along well with grease. So, clean the utensil twice before using it to bake the souffle or you will spoil the whole dish.
When baking a souffle, make sure the recipe is properly integrating all the ingredients, if you don’t have a souffle pan, use any evenly placed heat-resistant dish. The smaller the dish, the better your souffle would rise, and the easier you’d dig your spoons into it. Make sure you’re using an alternate dish that has flat sides and can evenly absorb heat. The last thing you’d want would be to take out a half-cooked souffle. Happy souffl-ing!