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Dessert

Parmesan Cheese Soufflé

A baked soufflé made with Parmesan cheese, sour cream, flour, eggs, and chives.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓

Parmesan Cheese Soufflé

Serves 4
Oven350°F (175°C)
Time1 to 1½ hours

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. Butter a 2-quart (2 liter) soufflé dish.

  3. Add 1 cup cheese, tilting dish to evenly coat the bottom and sides. Shake out any excess cheese.

  4. Set dish aside in refrigerator.

Make the batter

  1. Place the sour cream in a large mixing bowl.

  2. Sift the flour into the sour cream, then whisk until well combined.

  3. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, whisking after each addition.

  4. Stir in salt, cayenne, chives, and remaining 2 cups cheese.

Bake and serve

  1. In a large clean bowl (copper is ideal), vigorously whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

  2. Gently fold egg whites into the sour cream mixture.

  3. Pour the batter into the prepared soufflé dish and bake until soufflé has risen 2–3 inches above the rim and top is golden brown (1 to 1½ hours).

  4. Serve immediately.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

854Calories
47 gProtein
26 gFat
104 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Yogurt170g plain Greek100
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Chives1 tbsp (3g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,516 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

  2. Flour + chivetop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,168 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Butter + parmesan cheesetop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,163 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  4. Pepper + chivetop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,885 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  5. Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together124,287 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Egg whites
Whipped to stiff peaks, they trap air and make the soufflé rise and stay light.
Egg yolks
Add richness and emulsify into the batter, helping it set into a custard-like texture.
Parmesan cheese
Adds savory flavor and fat, and browns on the surface as it bakes.
Sour cream
Provides moisture and tang, forming the base that the whipped whites are folded into.
All-purpose flour
Thickens the sour cream base so it can hold the risen structure.

The step that matters

Folding in the egg whites. Stir too hard and the whipped whites collapse, deflating the batter. Fold gently with a spatula so the trapped air stays in, which is what lets the soufflé rise in the oven.

Swap the chive

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, parmesan cheese, cream, flour, egg, pepper):

  1. Spinachfits better
  2. Asparagusfits about as well
  3. Chivethe original
  4. Potatofits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, parmesan cheese, cream, flour, egg, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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