Chawanmushi Japanese Steamed Egg

Why this recipe works

As long as you remember the 3:1 ratio of soup stock to egg, you can make chawanmushi from any combination of ingredients. Taking care not to incorporate air into the custard mixture, and removing any bubbles that float to the surface is the key to making a smooth chawanmushi. Steaming the cups on a dish towel in a water bath allows the custard to cook through slowly, giving it a satiny texture.

Ingredients for Chawanmushi

Stock - The flavor of the chawanmushi comes from the stock, which is why it’s essential to use a high-quality one. Traditionally chawanmushi is made with dashi, which is a Japanese soup stock made from katsuobushi and konbu. Still, this steamed egg works with any flavorful stock such as chicken stock or mushroom stock. Egg - The egg is what turns the stock into a custard. For chawanmushi, you want to use a 3:1 ratio of stock to egg. So, for example, if you have 1 ½ cups of stock, you’d need to add ½ cup of egg. Seasoning - I like to keep things simple and just use salt (along with the stock) to season the custard, but there are many options here, including soy sauce. Just be aware that if you choose to use soy sauce, the color of your custard will turn brown. Mix-Ins - The sky’s the limit in terms of things that you can add to this steamed egg. Traditional ingredients include chicken, shrimp, crab, ginkgo nuts, mushrooms, and kamaboko (fish cake), but there’s so much room for improvisation. Generally, you want to think about mix-ins in three categories: 1) flavor - ingredients with a lot of umami like meat, fish, and mushrooms 2) texture - ingredients that will give a contrasting texture to the silky custard such as edamame, shrimp, or water chestnuts 3) color - colorful elements make your chawanmushi fun to eat, and can include things like kamaboko and greens. Toppings - Toppings aren’t necessary, but they add a splash of color on top, and you can add ingredients that you either don’t want cook (like ikura, uni, or shaved truffles), or that you want to precisely control the cooking time for (like carrots, or shrimp).

How to make Chawanmushi

The first thing you need to do is make the custard by mixing the eggs, stock, and salt. I usually like to beat the eggs separately to ensure they are evenly mixed before adding the stock and salt. It’s also very important to try and limit the amount of air you beat into it. I’ve found that using chopsticks held vertically with a side-to-side (as opposed to circular) motion works best. You will inevitably end up with some air bubbles in your finished mixture, which will eventually pop if you let the mixture rest. If you are in a hurry, you can use a mesh skimmer to remove the foam from the surface. Then the mixture should be strained through a fine-mesh sieve, such as a tea strainer. This removes any remaining clumps of egg white and chalaza that can affect the texture of the steamed egg. Once your custard is done, you can add your mix-ins to some heat-safe cups and divide the egg mixture evenly between them. Be sure to pour it into the cups slowly to avoid introducing new air bubbles. These get covered with lids, or if you don’t have any, you can use aluminum foil. To steam the chawanmushi, I bring about ½-inch of water to a boil in a pot that’s big enough to hold the cups. Then I lay a dishtowel in the pot to keep the cups from coming into direct contact with the bottom of the pot. The pot gets covered with a lid, and then, the egg is steamed for about 20 minutes, or until the custard reaches a minimum temperature of 160 degrees F (71 C). When the chawanmushi is done, they can be served hot or cold. I like to garnish them with additional toppings before serving, but this is totally optional.