Essential Equipment

A wire whisk is the best tool for whisking a few eggs or egg whites by hand, and for making a roux and bechamel sauce like we do for the soufflé in this class. Make sure to buy a whisk with sturdy wires. The handle should be firmly anchored to the wires and comfortable. If you’re using nonstick saucepans or skillets, you'll also need a nonstick whisk with silicone-coated wires to avoid scratching your cookware.

For those recipes that give an internal temperature to determine the doneness of egg dishes, an instant-read thermometer is key. Many baked egg dishes are done when they reach 170 degrees; overbaking egg dishes can lead to a tough, rubbery texture. For a perfectly silky quiche filling and supremely tender soufflé we rely on our thermometer to tell us when they’re done

A must for making tall soufflés, the best 2-quart soufflé dishes sport straight-sided walls that are neither too thick nor too thin, which ensure that the soufflé will bake evenly. We prefer 2-quart soufflé dishes that are actually slightly larger than 2 quarts; smaller soufflé dishes often won’t hold all of the soufflé batter. To add flavor and browning we coat the inside of our dish with grated Parmesan before baking the soufflé in this class.

If you are a serious cook or baker, dealing with a hand-held mixer for mixing batters and whipping cream and egg whites, though doable, will get tiresome. A stand mixer offers the luxury of hands-free mixing, which means multitasking—such as making additions to a batter as it’s mixing—is far simpler. And with a motor more powerful than any you will find in a hand-held mixer, a stand mixer can handle bigger jobs. We use our stand mixer to whip egg whites to stiff peaks for both the omelet and the soufflé in this class.

A sturdy yet flexible spatula is used for many tasks including folding egg whites delicately into other ingredients, loosening cooked egg dishes from a skillet, as well as scraping out the contents of a mixing bowl. We prefer those that are made from heatproof silicone or rubber, which ensures that the spatula won’t melt or become misshapen over time. We rely on our favorite silicone spatula to scrape the filling into the crust for the quiche in this class, ensuring every drop of rich custardy goodness makes it into the dish.

Many egg dishes like frittatas start in a skillet on the stovetop, then finish in the oven. For these jobs, a heavy-duty, nonstick skillet with a handle that’s ovenproof is a must. Our favorite nonstick skillet has a smooth coating and a thick bottom, ensuring even browning on dishes like the fluffy omelet in this class. For high-heat baking and broiling, you'll want a skillet that can withstand those temperatures (not all nonstick skillets are safe to use at these temps). A well seasoned carbon-steel or cast-iron skillet is also a good investment.