Chawanmushi

Name: Chawanmushi
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Japan
Ingredients: 1 large egg, about 50 ml without shell; 150 ml prepared, cooled dashi: instant dashi granules dissolved in water at the packet ratio, or homemade; ½ tsp soy sauce; ½ tsp mirin; A pinch of salt; 2 small shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced; 20 g cooked fish cake or cooked chicken, diced

Dashi makes a delicate Japanese savoury egg custard.

Japan · Silky · Easy · Researched

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 20 min
Serves: 2

Go to the method

Equipment

Pot with rack and lid · Two 200 ml heatproof cups · Fine sieve · Foil · Tea towel · Oven gloves · Food thermometer

Ingredients

1 large egg, about 50 ml without shell
150 ml prepared, cooled dashi: instant dashi granules dissolved in water at the packet ratio, or homemade
½ tsp soy sauce
½ tsp mirin
A pinch of salt
2 small shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
20 g cooked fish cake or cooked chicken, diced

Method

Mix the custard

Beat the egg gently and add cooled dashi, soy, mirin and salt.

Look for: Dashi and egg blend without foaming.

Fill the cups

Divide mushrooms and cooked fish cake or chicken between the cups. Pour the custard through a fine sieve into each cup, which removes the stringy white and any foam, then cover each cup loosely with foil.

Look for: The cups have room above the liquid.

Steam on low heat

Place the cups on a rack above simmering water. Wrap the pot lid in a tea towel so condensation does not drip onto the custard. Cover the pot, steam on high for 1 minute, then turn the heat to low, set the lid about 1 cm ajar and steam for 15–20 minutes, checking at 15. If the water boils hard, the custard turns spongy with holes; keep it at a gentle simmer.

Look for: The liquid becomes a soft, unified custard.

Check the centre

Check for 71°C / 160°F at the centre and no loose egg. Remove with gloves and serve warm.

Look for: A spoonful releases clear dashi rather than cloudy raw egg.

Equipment & heat

Use a pot with a rack and a close-fitting lid on any compatible hob. Maintain gentle steam, checking the water does not run dry. Reduce induction power once steam forms; keep gas flames under the pot. On electric, move the pot off the hot ring to stop cooking.

Nonstick: No frying pan needed.

Troubleshooting

Too much heat makes a pocked surface. Raw, bulky fillings can slow setting; this guide uses small, cooked protein pieces.

About this version

This small home version uses a 1:3 egg-to-dashi ratio by volume; RecipeTin Japan uses 1:2.5, which sets a little firmer. Japanese home recipes usually put small pieces of raw chicken and peeled prawns in the cups and let them cook in the custard. This version uses cooked fillings so the custard’s gentle set and the meat’s safe cooking do not have to coincide. If you use raw chicken, cut it into 1–2 cm pieces and check that the chicken reaches 74°C / 165°F. Ginkgo nuts and other fillings need their own preparation before adding.

Unless stated otherwise, use large chicken eggs, approximately 60 g in the shell, refrigerated. Timings are starting points: use the visual checkpoints and any stated temperature check.

Sources

This guide was written from the references below. Egg Atlas has not kitchen-tested it.

Illustrations by Egg Atlas. They show the method; they are not photographs of a tested result.