Chawanmushi

We love Chawanmushi! We tried this many times at home and it gets better (timing) with each attempt. They’re easy to make and I’m so glad we don’t have to run off to a sushi place every time we need a Chawanmushi fix.

Chawanmushi (Japanese egg custard steamed in a tea cup)

Ingredients
(makes 4 cups)

A) For the egg custard mixture::
3 eggs (4 if the eggs are small)
1 2/3 cups dashi (kombu and bonito) stock
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp sake or white cooking wine
3/4 to 1 tbsp light soy sauce

B) Things you can put as filling::
Kamaboko fish cake slices
Gingko nuts
Pumpkin, small dices
Shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
Prawns, shelled
Chicken breast fillet, thinly sliced
Shredded crabstick
Imitation sharks fin
Hon Shimeji mushrooms, just the tops (great for garnishing the top because they float up easily)

Directions
1. Break the eggs into the bowl and beat lightly with a fork.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients from A to the eggs mixture. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve for 1 -3 times.
3. Place the desired filling from B into each cup and pour the egg mixture over (do not fill to the brim, leave some gap on top).
4. Cover the cups with lids, heat-safe food wrap or foil.
5. Steam the cups over high heat for about 10 mins. To test if the chawanmushi is cooked, insert a bamboo stick into the mixture: if a little clear liquid comes out, it is cooked.

References
Cooking Around the World: Japanese by Masaki Ko
Chawanmushi Recipe from About.com