How to Make Egg Wash

In its simplest form, an egg wash is just a whole beaten egg that’s lightly brushed onto the top of a baked good before it goes into the oven to enhance its color and give it a sophisticated glossy finish. 

An egg wash creates a bakery-quality finish on breads, rolls, pie crusts, and pastries. It’s nice to use an egg wash on  pastries with intricate details as it highlights any designs or complex latticework. An egg wash can also be used as an adhesive to seal up edges for items such as fruit hand pies and turnovers.

An egg wash is commonly diluted with a little water or dairy to make it easier to apply a thin, even coating, but we usually skip this step since it can also make the egg too thin to effectively seal layers together.

In the test kitchen, we usually prefer plainer washes like water and milk for sandwich bread and dinner rolls, and reserve egg washes for richer, egg-based breads like challah and brioche. Each of these washes enhances browning by triggering the Maillard reaction, in which carbohydrates and proteins recombine under heat to produce new flavor compounds (and deeper color). But each does it a different way for a slightly different finish. 

• Water causes some of the starch on the surface of the dough to break down into glucose. Once the water evaporates, the glucose interacts with the flour proteins to create browning. Water will produce decent browning but little shine. 
• Milk’s naturally occurring sugars work in conjunction with proteins from the flour. Milk will produce good browning and moderate shine.
• In an egg wash, the egg itself provides the proteins necessary for good browning, a moderately shiny, satiny finish; and a subtle egg taste.

1. To clean a natural bristle pastry brush, start by rinsing it briefly to remove debris.

2. Rub warm, soapy water into the bristles and rinse thoroughly. 

3. Blot the brush with a towel and lay it flat to dry. (Replace the brush if it begins to smell.)