Cheese Soufflé is a classic French dish made from basic ingredients – eggs, milk, butter and cheese – that turns into something special. It puffs up beautifully with a golden top and airy centre. There’s no need to be intimidated, with the right technique, soufflé is easier than you think! I promise!
Nagi's Notes
If there’s one thing I learnt from watching JB make over 30 versions of soufflé, it’s this: getting that big golden puff is easy. But getting one that’s custardy-fluffy inside, actually tastes of cheese, and stays puffed long enough to get to the table, allow time for the oohs, ahhs and photos and still be puffed when you dig into it? That’s a unicorn.
But that’s exactly what you get with JB’s Cheese Soufflé. Hand on heart, this is the best soufflé I have ever had in my life. It is a stunner. I hope you love it as much as I do!
Cheese Soufflé
Hi everyone, thanks so much for the kind feedback after my first recipe, Chicken Chasseur. I couldn’t resist following it up with another French classic, Cheese Soufflé!
It’s one of those dishes that looks tricky to make but really isn’t. You just have to make sure it’s served straight away while it’s still puffed and proud! I still remember my restaurant days when soufflé was on the menu, it was pure chaos every time one came out of the oven. The second it was ready, someone would yell “Soufflé!!” across the kitchen and hope the wait staff would magically appear immediately to dash it to the table. Because if there’s one rule we all lived by, it’s this: Monsieur Soufflé doesn’t wait.
Here’s what a soufflé looks like straight out of the oven, and then again five minutes later. Sure, it’s best to dive in when it’s puffed and golden, but even after it drops a little, it’s still soft and airy inside and just as good to eat.
About this Cheese Soufflé
This is a very classic French soufflé made by folding Mornay sauce into whipped egg whites for that golden, fluffy rise. (Mornay sauce is simply béchamel sauce with cheese melted through it.)
What makes this recipe different from most soufflés is that I use almost twice the usual amount of Mornay sauce. It gives the soufflé a real cheese flavour (rarer than you’d think!) and a luxuriously custardy, cloud-like centre that is truly restaurant quality – the standard the chefs I worked for expected of me.
A bit of cream of tartar helps the soufflé stay stable without losing its light texture. We didn’t use it in restaurants, but I recommend it for home cooking as a little safety net.
I’ve lost count on how many times I’ve tested this. Probably over 30 by now. But this didn’t affect my desire to show you how to make it so let’s get started!
Ingredients
Nothing fancy here, just everyday ingredients that turn into something really special once they hit the oven!
Milk, full fat – Just plain cow milk. Low fat works as well. Do not substitute with non-dairy milk.
Unsalted butter – For making the roux (the base of the Mornay sauce). If you only have salted, reduce the added salt.
Plain flour (all-purpose flour) – Thickens the béchamel and stabilises the whipped eggs so it stays aerated and fluffy once baked. Make sure to cook it for a couple of minutes with the butter so you don’t end up with a raw flour taste.
Egg – We use the yolks to enrich the sauce. And the whites are the secret to that beautiful lift! Separate the eggs when fridge cold – it’s easier – then let them come to room temperature before you start the recipe. Bonus point: you’ll have an extra yolk to use for one of these recipes!
Gruyère cheese – Classic choice for cheese soufflé! With excellent melting qualities, Gruyère gives beautiful flavour without being overpowering. Comté is the closest match but can be a bit pricey here in Australia, feel free to use it if it’s affordable where you are. Swiss cheese / Emmental would be my next choice. Otherwise use your favourite melting cheese like Cheddar (mild ones), Monterey Jack, Colby or Tasty.
Cream of tartar – Helps stabilise the beaten egg whites so they stay fluffy and don’t weep. We use the minimum amount here because using more compromises the texture (I tested). Using it also allows you to get more time to fold, fill, and bake your soufflé without losing volume. If you don’t have any, no worries, your soufflé will still rise beautifully, it just won’t stay puffed up quite as long.
Salt – Cooking salt / Kosher salt, just enough to bring out the cheese flavour. Remember, cheeses can vary in saltiness, so taste your Mornay sauce before adding more.
White pepper – Used instead of black pepper so you don’t get little black specks showing through your beautiful golden soufflé. It gives a gentle warmth and mild spice. But if you don’t mind the look, black pepper works fine too!.
How to make Cheese Soufflé
Soufflés have a bit of a “scary” reputation, but honestly, they’re easier than you think. It’s just a fancy name for a cheese sauce puffed up with egg whites after all. Once you know how to do that, you’re set. The oven does the rest!
1. Preparation
Preheat the oven – Preheat to 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan). The oven needs to be really hot before you start, that first burst of heat helps the soufflé rise tall. If the oven isn’t hot enough, the soufflé won’t lift properly.
Prepare the ramekins – Brush the inside of 4 (325 ml / 1 1/3 cup) ramekins well with melted butter using a pastry brush, then place them on a baking tray. (There is a brushing upwards technique often used for soufflés but that’s only useful when the soufflé mixture goes in cold. Ours is warm, so no need for that trick, yes, I’ve tested it! It works great for cold mixtures like chocolate soufflés. Coming soon? Maybe!!!)
2. Make Mornay sauce (cheese sauce)
Mornay sauce is simply béchamel sauce enriched with egg yolks and cheese. It’s not difficult to make at all.
Heat the milk – Pour the milk into a small saucepan and place it over medium heat. Warm it until you see steam rising, but don’t let it boil. Set it aside.
Make the roux – While the milk warms, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk gently. It will look thick and pasty at first, like wet sand. Keep whisking for about 2 minutes until it becomes smooth and shiny. Make sure to scrape into the corners of the pan and don’t let it brown. If it’s cooking too fast, lower the heat.
Make Béchamel – Slowly add one-third of the hot milk to the roux while whisking quickly. It will thicken right away. Then add half of the remaining milk, whisk until smooth, and finally add the rest along with the salt and pepper. Keep whisking for about a minute until the sauce is thick, smooth, and lump-free.
Check the thickness – When you drag a spatula through the middle of the sauce, it should leave a clear path that holds its shape for a moment before slowly closing.
Add the yolks – Turn off the heat and whisk in the egg yolks one by one. They won’t cook, they will just blend in to make the sauce richer.
Add cheese and turn it into a Mornay sauce – Turn the heat back to medium and whisk in the grated Gruyère until melted and smooth. Scrape down the sides, cover with a lid, and set aside. Congratulations – you’ve just made a Mornay sauce!
3. Folding in the Egg Whites and Baking
Beat the egg whites – Put the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, start beating on medium speed for about 2 minutes until soft peaks form.
Finish the egg whites – Increase the speed to high and beat for another 30 seconds until firm peaks form (see photo above). Starting slowly helps the whites build a stable structure. If you rush, they’ll turn foamy and collapse later, I’ve learned that the hard way!
Fold gently – Using a hand whisk, give the Mornay a quick whisk to make it smooth again. Add a quarter of the beaten egg whites and whisk it in to loosen the Mornay sauce. Then, using a rubber spatula, gently fold in one-third of the remaining whites. Use slow, sweeping motions from the bottom of the bowl, you want to keep as much air as possible. (See video at 2.15 minutes). Rough folding = flat soufflé.
Finish the mixture – Repeat folding two more times until all the egg whites are just combined. Don’t worry about a few white streaks, they’ll blend in later.
Fill the ramekins – Use a ladle or large spoon to fill the ramekins to about 1 cm / 0.4″ below the rim. Smooth the tops with the back of a spoon dipped in water. ⚠️ Don’t overfill or they’ll overflow. And if you don’t fill enough, they won’t rise above the rim impressively.
Clean the rims – Run your thumb around the inside rim of each ramekin to clean it, this gives the soufflé a clean edge to rise against.
Bake – Place the ramekins on a tray and bake for 20 minutes until tall and golden, but it jiggles if you give the ramekin a gentle shake. Do not open the oven door, the sudden drop in heat will make them sink. So no peeking! 🫣
Serve immediately – Once out of the oven, serve right away. Soufflés rise beautifully but fall fast, that’s just how they are! So make sure everyone’s ready at the table to enjoy the moment.
How to serve Cheese Soufflé
I personally love soufflé on its own but you could definitely pair it with a mixed leaves salad seasoned with an everyday dressing, a side of roasted cauliflower, garlic butter mushrooms or sautéed spinach. And maybe some bread because it’s French. ☺️
And there you have it, the classic French Cheese Soufflé. It looks fancy, but it’s made from simple ingredients. If you’ve ever thought soufflés were too hard, I hope this recipe changes your mind. Just follow the steps, don’t peek in the oven, and trust the process, it will rise! Serve it straight away with a glass of white wine (Chablis would be my choice), and you’ll feel like you’re in a little café in France.
You’ve got this! Bon appétit 😋 – JB
FAQ – Cheese Soufflé / Soufflé au Fromage
The soufflé will still hold a decent shape until the 2 minutes mark and then will gradually deflates. It will stop collapsing after about 5 minutes, that’s its final stage of settling (check photos above).
If you put too much mixture, the soufflé will rise and spill over the sides. If you don’t put enough, it won’t rise properly and will look a bit flat.
Of course you can! I use large ramekins for this recipe, 250ml / 1 1/3 cup (10 cm/ 4″ wide and 6.5 cm / 2.5″ tall (main course size).
Here are other options:
Family size ramekins – If making one big soufflé (1.25L / 5 cups ramekin for 5 people), use 5 egg whites and 4 yolks. For larger sizes, just click on servings at the top of the recipe card to scale the recipe up.
Medium ramekins – 250ml / 1 cup (9 cm / 3.5″ wide and 5.5 cm / 2.2″ tall). Makes 5 portions and cooks in around 15 minutes. Great for both starters and mains, depending on what you serve with it.
Small ramekins – 150ml / 2/3 cup (8.5 cm / 3.3″ wide and 4 cm / 1.6″ tall). Makes 10 portions and also cooks in 15 minutes. Perfect for appetisers.
Unfortunately you can’t. That was part of my testing. Cheese soufflé has a base full of butter and cheese. If you chill it, those parts harden, and when you bake it later, it won’t rise properly and can turn heavy instead of light and fluffy.
Same as for the Chicken Chasseur, Nagi and I worked on the photos as a team. I led the styling, and she did most of the editing. I’m still learning, so there’s plenty of room to grow! I shot the video myself with Herron, our video editor (the same one who edits Nagi’s videos), and she handled the final edit.
I developed this recipe based on others recipes I’ve used in the past , then adapted it for home kitchens. I’ve lost count, but I’ve probably cooked it around 40 times, testing everything from fewer eggs and more flour to different cheeses and ratios. It was a long process, but a fun one!
Nagi tested it three times, twice when I asked for her feedback and again for the final version. And of course, she made sure to be there for every taste test as you can imagine! ☺️
Watch how to make it
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JB’s Cheese Soufflé – Soufflé au Fromage
Ingredients
- 2 cups full fat milk , but works with lite milk too
- 75 g (5 tbsp) unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup plain flour (all-purpose)
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt (halve for table salt, + 50% for flakes)
- 2 pinches ground white pepper (substitute black pepper)
- 150 g (1 1/2 cups) Gruyère cheese , shredded using a standard box grater (tightly packed if using cups) (Note 2 for other cheeses)
- 3 egg yolks from large eggs (55g/2oz each in shell), at room temperature (Note 1)
- 4 egg whites from large eggs, at room temperature (total egg whites ~ 120g/4.2oz, Note1)
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar , sifted if lumpy (Note 3)
- 15 g (1 tbsp) unsalted butter , melted (to grease the ramekins)
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
- Melt butter, cook flour 2 minutes, whisk in warm milk in 3 batches. Add salt and pepper, turn off heat, whisk in yolks one at a time, then melt through gruyere over low heat. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar to firm peaks, starting on medium for 2 minutes, then increasing to high. Whisk 1/4 of the whites into Mornay Sauce, then fold through remainder in 3 batches. Fill butter brushed ramekins to 1cm/0.4” from rim, clean inside of rim. Bake at 200°C/400°F (180°C fan) for 20 minutes. No peeking! Serve immediately.
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F (180°C fan-forced). A properly hot oven is crucial, it's what gives the soufflé its famous lift. A cold oven = a sad soufflé.
- Prepare the ramekins (Note 4) – Brush the insides of 4 (325ml / 1 1/3 cups) ramekins generously with melted butter (use all the butter). No need to brush upwards (see post for why). Set on a baking tray.
Make Mornay sauce (cheese sauce)
- Heat the milk – Place the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. Warm it until it’s steaming but not boiling. Set aside.
- Make the roux – While the milk is heating, let’s start our roux. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the flour. Whisk it gently, it will be thick and pasty at first like a wet sand. Cook, whisking constantly, for about 2 minutes. It will thin up and become smooth and glossy. Make sure to use the whisk to get into the corners of the pot and don’t let it brown. Reduce heat if you think it’s too high.
- Make Béchamel – Add a third of the hot milk to the roux while whisking vigorously, it will thicken very quickly. Add half of the leftover milk, whisk until smooth and then pour the rest of it along with the salt and pepper. Keep whisking for 30 seconds to a minute until thickened and smooth, lumps will go away. It will be thick enough so you can draw a path with a spatula in the middle, it should hold its shape for a moment before slowly sinking back.
- Turn it into a Mornay sauce – Turn off the heat and whisk in the egg yolks, one at a time, until fully combined (don't worry the egg yolks won't cook). Then, turn the heat back on to medium and whisk in the grated Gruyère until melted through. Scrape down the sides and cover with a lid. Set aside.
Folding in the Egg Whites and Baking
- Beat the egg whites, gently at first – Add egg whites and the cream of tartar in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium speed for 2 minutes then high speed for 30 seconds until you get firm peaks. Starting slowly helps the protein structure to develop properly. Rush it and you risk unstable, foamy whites that collapse when folded in.
- Fold gently – Give the Mornay a quick whisk to make it smooth again then add in a quarter of the egg whites and whisk it in to loosen it. Then gently fold a third of the remaining egg whites in using a rubber spatula until mostly incorporated. Use slow, sweeping motions from the bottom of the pot, you want to keep as much air in as possible. (See video at 2.15 minutes) Rough folding = flat soufflé. Few lumps are ok. Repeat twice more with the rest of the egg whites.
- Fill the ramekins – Pour the mixture evenly into the ramekins using a ladle or a large serving spoon, filling to about 1cm / 0.4" below the rim. Smooth the tops with the back of a teaspoon dipped in water, no need to be 100% meticulous here, just get rid of big bumps. Run your thumb around the inside rim of each ramekin to clean it, this gives the soufflé a clean edge to rise against.
- Bake – Place the ramekins on a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes until tall and golden. Do not open the oven door while it's baking, the sudden drop in heat will make them sink. When it's cooked, the soufflés should jiggle a bit when you shake the ramekin.
- Serve immediately – As soon as they’re out, serve straight away. Soufflés don't wait. So make sure all your family/guest are seated so they can enjoy the show!
Recipe Notes:
- Eggs – Separate the yolks from the whites when fridge cold, it’s easier. Then let them come to room temperature, this will help the yolks to mix in more smoothly and the whites to whip up to more volume and stability.
- Gruyère – The classic choice for cheese soufflé! It melts beautifully and has a rich flavour that’s not overpowering. Comté is the closest match (though pricier in Australia), while Swiss/Emmental are good too. Otherwise, use any mild melting cheese like Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Colby or Tasty.
- Cream of tartar – Helps stabilise the beaten egg whites so they stay fluffy and don’t weep. We use the minimum amount here because more compromises the texture. If you don’t have any, no worries, your soufflé will still rise beautifully, it just won’t stay puffed up quite as long.
- Ramekin size –I use large ramekins for this recipe which are 325ml / 1 1/3 cups, 10 cm / 4″ wide and 6.5 cm/ 2.5″ tall (main course size). You can also make smaller or larger ones. Check the FAQ for other size options.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Dozer helping me to finalise the post, making sure things are done right!
Thank you for your editing and final approval Dozer. What would we do without you? Love your beret.
I totally agree and the beret is adorable, JB is obviously a good human as Dozer appears to be looking lovingly at him
My Mum used to make us these and they were delicious. But she greased the ramekins and then coated in breadcrumbs which I seem to remember added a beautiful texture to thee crust
Hi Lisa, I love how your mum tweaked to get that extra crunch! That’s gold!
Oh thank you so much for this recipe and reassurance it is totally do-able. My significant other adores soufflé but I have avoided making it for 45 years! He is going to get a huge surprise tonight.
I second the call for a Grand Marnier souffle recipe sometime soon please.
Thanks Sue! I’m very interested to know how it went!
Meant to tell you that my first effort was a huge success with request that it go on steady rotation. I felt my mornay sauce was a bit over thickened so I will watch out for that tonight when I make my second batch of souffle , perhaps followed by crepes. Thanks JB.
JB, we have just returned from a wonderful trip around France and had the most superb huge calvados soufflé at La Couronne in Rouen. I would love to try my hand at recreating this with your expertise. If possible could you post a suitable recipe in the coming months. Thank you for your wonderful contribution to Nagi’s fabulous site.
Thank you so much Barbara! I’ve never had a calvados soufflé before, it does sound interesting!
Have you tried making more mornay sauce (minus the egg yolks of course) so you can pour additional cheesy goodness into the souffles?
Ive seen that being done with chocolate shuffles where chocolate sauce is poured into it.
Hi Deborah, that could be a fun idea! I haven’t tried it with cheese soufflés, extra Mornay is dangerously good 🙂
Oh my goodness! Thank you JB for your video and very clear instructions! I always thought my soufflé was a flop because it would deflate so rapidly as I let it cool before serving! Now I understand that Monsieur Soufflé demands immediate attention for his puffed up performance! I’m looking forward to trying soufflés again using your recipe!
Hi Jamie, I’m so glad the video helped and you are gonna give this another go!
I LOVE Dozer’s little black beret! Adorable!!
He is the best! 🙂
Wow!!! Love this recipe and such wonderful detailed instructions. 💗But how do you jiggle the ramekin if you can’t open the oven?
Hi Russell, we check the jiggle when the top is golden at the 20 minutes mark, we found that watching how it looks is the best way to tell when a soufflé is ready!
Ooohhh, un soufflé ! J’adore ! I’m a French Transplant from Annecy living in the US, and this sings to my soul! Two questions: fan (convection) on or off? And how to know how long to cook it for in you use a bigger size ramequin?
Making this one this week end for sure! Can’t wait for the sweet version… If I may, pleasepleasepleaseplease give an option for Grand Marnié, my absolute favorite dessert soufflé. 🙏 Merci !
Hi Menolly, I’m glad it brings back memories! Yes, turn the oven fan and yes you can do it if you have a large soufflé dish (see FAQ for options). I haven’t tried to cook it yet. It would probably take longer than 20 minutes. Just wait for that golden top. We found that going by visual was a good indicator for when the soufflé was done.
I have only every made a souffle once, which I added Ortega Chili’s to. It was tasty. Thank you for all your lovely recipes.
Thanks for your comment Jamie!
I’ve always felt intimidated to do a cheese soufflé, but after watching the video, I think I can do it and I’m going to give it a try. Looks amazing and delicious!
Thanks Janet! I’m so glad you get to try it!
Thanks, JB, this looks wonderful. But, I usually turn off heat when cheese is melted to prevent grainy texture.
Now I need ramekins!
Thanks Claire, turning off the heat is totally fine and a good idea. It will just take slightly longer for the cheese to melt. 🙂
This looks amazing… I’m so going to give it a try!! Just one word of caution for all dog owners… cream of tartar is deadly for dogs. So Dozer, none for you big boy!
Thanks Fiona! We made sure he stayed away from it 🙂
Sounds delicious, can’t wait to try it! Thank you for such straight forward instructions!
You are welcome Paloma!
This looks so good, and straightforward, I’ll have to try them soon!
Now, I know you said it wasn’t great for preparing in advance, because the butter and the cheese would harden when cold.
But what if I only prepared the Mornay sauce in advance, then reheated to combine with the (freshly) whisked egg whites? Do you think that might work?
I am so pleased to see your recipes alongside Nagi’s. I have to admit I Iook forward mostly to the French home cooking recipes!
Hi, thank you! You can definitely make the Mornay sauce ahead, then just reheat it gently before folding in the egg whites. That’s actually a very good trick! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the French recipes, there’s plenty more coming!
Can’t wait to try. I have had twice baked cheese souffle at a restaurant before. The. Most memorable dessert souffle was a passionfruit souffle where the waiter cracked the top of the souffle and poured in an anglaise custard. Delish.
Food memories are the best 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the detailed recipe. I can’t wait to try this! It’s so helpful that you have suggested other affordable cheese options.
The FAQs are great as always but I think there’s a typo with the ramekin size: the volume provided is the same for both the large and medium ramekins (250 ml). Elsewhere in the blog post and the recipe, the correct volume is provided, just not in the FAQs.
Maxwell & Williams make 325ml ramekins. Bought them through Amazon yesterday.
Thanks Vanessa for pointing that out!! Fixed 🙂
I’ve been making soufflés for 50 years, but there were some tips here that I didn’t know, so merci for that. I’m off to Poligny for some Comté so will try this when I get back. I have always placed the rack in the lower half of the oven–is that right?
Thanks Beatrice! Middle to lower half is good. As long as it’s not too close to the top of course 🙂 Poligny? Do you live in Jura?
No, we live several places in Europe–AT, PT, DE, and often cross France. Did try to buy a chateau last year, though! I love stopping for foie gras, butter, poussins, cheeses…sigh.
Cheese souffle! Yes, please! Chocolate souffle? Yes yes yes please!
Maybe coming soon!!!
thank you so much for providing the recipes for the different size ramekins. I will use them all over time. Havent made a souffle for years. dont know why. Droolin at the thought
Thanks Vicki! Glad that you are gonna give this one a go. 🙂
Cheese soufflés are great, so thanks for your excellent instructions and video. BUT what about the CHOCOLATE soufflé, the ultimate dessert?
There’s no béchamel sauce in that surely, so please tell me you’re going to release that secret. (My attempts have always been ho-hum).
I am harassing him to make that next!! I also want a version with a chocolate sauce that’s poured over and makes it collapse then fills the well…SO GOOD!
Oh yes please 😋. Actually both versions would be like a cherry on top.