Definition

1. Noun:
   • A light, fluffy baked dish: A soufflé is a light, fluffy baked dish made primarily from a base of egg yolks and stiffly beaten egg whites, which create its characteristic airy texture. It is often combined with ingredients like cheese, chocolate, fish, or fruit, and can be either sweet or savory.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • For dessert, we had a delicious chocolate soufflé.
  • The cheese soufflé rose perfectly in the oven.
  • A successful soufflé requires carefully folding the egg whites into the base.

Advanced Usage

• "To fall like a soufflé": This idiom is sometimes used metaphorically to describe something that collapses or fails dramatically, much like a soufflé can deflate quickly after being removed from the oven.
  • His ambitious plans fell like a soufflé when the funding was cut.

Variants and Related Words

• Souffléed (adj): Describes food that has been prepared in the style of a soufflé or made light and puffy.
  • The souffléed potatoes were a crispy delight.

Synonyms

• Mousse: A similar light, airy dessert, but typically chilled and stabilized with gelatin or cream, not baked.
• Quiche: A savory baked custard tart, which is more dense than a soufflé.

Notes on Different Meanings

• The primary and most common meaning of "soufflé" is the culinary dish described above.
• In a medical context (from French), "souffle" can refer to a soft blowing sound heard through a stethoscope. However, this is a specialized term and is not the common usage of the English word "soufflé" (which is typically spelled with an accent). The English culinary term is the dominant meaning.

Noun

1. light fluffy dish of egg yolks and stiffly beaten egg whites mixed with e.g. cheese or fish or fruit