Chawanmushi Recipe (Japanese Steamed Egg Custard/茶碗蒸し)
November 23rd, 2008 | Japanese Recipes | 22 Comments
This is a special post to my readers who have requested for a chawanmushi recipe. Chawanmushi or steamed egg custard (茶碗蒸し) is a popular Japanese dish, one that is mostly ordered as an appetizer at Japanese restaurants.
From the name of this dish in Kanji 茶碗蒸, I believe chawanmushi is originally a Chinese dish, but has since been perfected by Japanese chefs. The Chinese version of steamed egg custard or 蒸水蛋 is a lot simpler, but not as tasty as chawanmushi, in my honest opinion. The reason is very simple: chawanmushi is loaded with treasures that are buried at the bottom of the steamed egg custard while the Chinese version is usually plain! Plus, the use of dashi stock and sake are great seasonings for an otherwise plain steamed egg taste…
For my recipe, I used shrimp and chicken–two common ingredients for chawanmushi. Inspired by my favorite Japanese restaurant in Beverly Hills, I also added a bay scallop in each serving. I did it without gingko nuts but traditional chawanmushi recipe calls for them.
All in all though, I love chawanmushi and made them two days in a row! It does take some techniques to make them picture perfect and silky smooth (which I am still learning), but am very pleased with the results.
Other popular Japanese recipes on Rasa Malaysia:
1. Chicken Karaage (Sesame fried chicken)
2. Tamagoyaki (Japanese Rolled Omelet)
3. Steamed Asari (Manila) Clams
4. Spicy Miso Ramen
5. And more….
Adapted from Japanese Cooking: The Traditions, Techniques, Ingredients and Recipes
Ingredients:
4 medium shrimp
4 gingko nuts (optional)
2 inch carrot
3 oz chicken breast
1 teaspoon sake
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 fresh shiitake mushrooms (thinly sliced, stalks discarded)
For the custard:
3 extra large eggs, beaten
2 cups water*
1/2 teaspoon dashi-no-moto (or equal amount of dashi stock)*
1 tablespoon sake
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
Water
*Ratio of eggs to dashi stock/water is 1:3. The above measurement of water is for reference only.
Method:
Blanch prawns and set aside. Cut the carrot slices into maple leaf shapes. Blanch in salt water and drain. Cut the chicken into small cubes and marinate in sake and soy sauce for 15 minutes.
Put all egg custard ingredients in a bowl and mix with chopsticks and strain into a bowl. Bring a steamer to boil and then set the heat to very low.
Divide the chicken, shiitake, prawns and carrots among four ramekins. Divide the egg mixture among the ramekins. Put the scallion on top and cover each ramekin with aluminum foil. Steam on low heat for 15 minutes. Insert a tooth pick into the egg and if it comes out clear, it’s done.
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Those look perfect. Great photo! And the blend of flavors sounds delicious, I will definitely have to give this a try.
i am obsessed with chawanmushi!! thak you for putting up a recipe of this – i have everything to make it tmr. awesome :) love the photos.x
Bee I love chawanmushi, my mum’s Japanese friend makes it all the time. It has such a delicate flavour. Thanks for the recipe.
I have already gotten my chawanmushi ramekins ready for this post!
Thanks lots!
Looks good:-) Chawan means bowl and mushi means steamed in Japanese. I’ve found that using bain-marie setup (like making creme brulee) in the oven works well in the texture department.
i prefer the chinese style with all the salted egg,preserved egg n etc etc…but this is still just as tempting!
That looks good! I have been wanting to try chawanmushi for a while now.
My husband and I are big fans of Japanese food…mainly sashimi and sushi, but the first time we tried chawanmushi we were smitten! We love this egg custard! :) Thanks for the recipe!
This looks really good!! I’ll try to make it one day.
looks fantastic and I love the idea of using ramekins :)
love chawanmushi, love both jap and chinese version. and thanks for sharing the recipe!
The Chawan mushi（茶碗蒸し）picture looks great & I think the taste must be perfect:)美味しそう！..Think I need to improve the photo skill in order to get more good 1st impression of the food.. Get more free japanese food recipe @ http://www.youlinchng.com
Love chawanmushi. Never fail to order this whenever I have Jap food.
My recipe is a hybrid. Replace Sake with chinese rice wine. Hahaha ;)
This looks lovely. Just wondering what kind of sake do you prefer to use?
Ha! We made savory custards back in July, and were so smitten we had three versions within 48 hours! Know how you feel!
Yours look gorgeous. I’ll have to look into the addition of dashi.
Chinese egg custard also has little tid bits of goodies on the bottom. My grandmother would make it with minced flank steak and minced dried shrimp.
how much serving does this recipe make? please answerr :) :) :)
4 medium shrimp
4 gingko nuts (optional)
Divide… among four ramekins.
Somehow I have an inkling it might be a recipe for four people.
I have this down to a science almost now – I practically live on chawan mushi – it is so delicious. My version is a little over 1/2 cup liquid (dashi stock is a must) to 1 egg. maybe a dash more dashi…(I usually do 1 1/4 cup dashi with 2 eggs) and I would probably fo 11/2 cups and a smidge more with 3 eggs.
I add a bit of chicken and shrimp marinated in mirin and soy, and some shelled edamame or green peas to the bowl and steam for about 20 minutes or until done. It is so simple and so satisfying. I have never bothered doing the straining of the egg. I mix it well and I find it smooth enough. It presents best in individual ramekins for serving to guests – but I eat the whole batch myself so I cook it in one big double boiler.
hey there, i finally tried e chawanmushi recipe n it turned out great! :))
this webbie is a treasure-trove of asian recipes. keep up e good work! ^^