Chawanmushi

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the fillings: pat the chicken and prawns dry with kitchen paper. Cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces and thinly slice the shiitake.

2. 2

   Heat about 1 tsp of the vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium heat and quickly sear the chicken pieces just until they lose their pink colour, 2–3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3. 3

   In the same pan add a little more oil if needed and fry the shiitake for 30–60 seconds until just softened. Remove and keep with the chicken.

4. 4

   Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat gently with a fork until the whites and yolks are just combined; avoid whisking in air or making froth.

5. 5

   Warm the dashi in a small saucepan until just below a simmer (do not boil). Stir in the mirin, soy sauce and salt, then remove from the heat and leave to cool for about 1–2 minutes.

6. 6

   Temper the eggs: slowly pour roughly one-third of the warm dashi into the beaten eggs while stirring gently to combine. Then pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining dashi and mix gently.

7. 7

   Strain the combined egg and dashi mixture through a fine sieve into a jug to remove any foam or chalaza for the silkiest texture.

8. 8

   Lightly oil four 150–200 ml ramekins with a little vegetable oil. Divide the seared chicken, prawns and shiitake evenly between the ramekins.

9. 9

   Carefully pour the strained egg-dashi mixture into each ramekin over the fillings. Cover each ramekin with a small square of aluminium foil to stop condensation dripping onto the surface.

10. 10

    Place the ramekins in a steamer basket or on a steaming rack inside a deep pan with an inch of simmering water. Cover with a snug lid and steam over a very gentle simmer on the hob for 13 minutes. Check at 12 minutes by inserting a skewer near the edge — the custard should be set with a slight wobble in the centre.

11. 11

    Remove the steamer from the heat and leave the ramekins covered for 90 seconds to finish setting gently.

12. 12

    Uncover each ramekin, garnish with sliced spring onion and serve warm.

Tips

• Beat the eggs very gently and strain the mixture — these two steps make the biggest difference to a perfectly smooth custard.
• Keep the steaming water at a very gentle simmer; an aggressive boil will pockmark the surface with bubbles.
• If you don’t have a steamer, use a deep pan with a small rack or upturned heatproof saucer and a snug lid; cover each ramekin with foil to prevent condensation.
• Test one ramekin first to learn your hob’s steam behaviour — timing varies with equipment and ramekin size.
• Leftovers reheat gently in a steamer or in a saucepan over very low heat with a lid — do not microwave, which can make the texture rubbery.

Substitutions

• dashi stock → kombu-only dashi (soak kombu in cold water and heat gently) for vegetarian, use same volume

  Noticeably different

• boneless skinless chicken thigh → diced cooked chicken breast or leftover roast chicken, same quantity

  Stays close

• raw peeled prawns → surimi sticks or cooked prawns, same quantity

  Stays close

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

180

Calories

17 g

Protein

3 g

Carbs

11 g

Fat

1 g

Fibre

3 g

Sugar

500 mg

Sodium

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