A quick and easy version of the more complicated Japanese dish, this delicious cheater chawanmushi or savory egg custard is cooked in a microwave.
Many years ago when we were living in Kuala Lumpur, there was a Japanese restaurant I loved to go to for lunch because they had a selection of set menus/lunch specials to choose from and all of the combos were delicious.
I especially like the one that came with a little bowl of savory custard called chawanmushi, something I had never eaten before that. It was silky soft yet stayed upright on your spoon. And the flavor! Somehow delicate and yet robust.
I searched online for chawanmushi recipes once we moved away from KL and my favorite restaurant but I never got around to making it, until I found a “cheater” version on New York Times Cooking.
According to NYT Cooking, “the key to that perfect, soft-set wibble-wobble texture (think silken tofu) is using your microwave at around 500 watts — or half its power on a 1,000-watt machine. This lower heat lets the eggs and broth steam together gently until they cohere into something ethereal, existing somewhere between liquid and solid.”
I can confirm that I have had great success with my microwave on 50 percent power but depending on the temperature of the eggs and the vessel I cook them in, I’ve had to play with time. I take my eggs out of the refrigerator about 15 minutes before cooking so they aren’t ice cold.
Cheater Chawanmushi - Savory Egg Custard
This version is cooked in two ramekins so they only need about 4 1/2 minutes, then another minute resting. The original recipe calls for the two eggs to be cooked together in one bowl, so the suggested time for that was 5-7 minutes.
Ingredients
2 large eggs
1/2 cup or 120ml instant or kombu dashi, vegetable or chicken broth
Pinch of salt
To serve:
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
Optional: chili crisp, chopped chives
Note: You can make your own kombu dashi by steeping a few pieces of kombu in boiling water until it cools.
Method
Whisk the eggs vigorously with the pinch of salt.
Gradually add the dashi, whisking all the while, until very well combined, at least 30 seconds.
Pour the mixture through a small sieve into a measuring pitcher, to make sure the eggs are smooth. This also removes the large bubbles which we definitely do not want as they mess up the texture of the eggs.
Divide the mixture between the ramekins.
Cover them each loosely with cling film, making sure that they can “breathe.”
Microwave at 500 watts (on 50 percent power on a 1,000-watt microwave) until the eggs have just set and are no longer liquid in the middle, about 4 to 5 minutes. (Every machine differs, so check for doneness at 4 minutes, then in 30-second intervals after that if need be.)
Make sure the cling film is still loose and let them sit in the microwave to cool for 1 minute.
Carefully remove, uncover and drizzle with the soy sauce and sesame oil. Garnish with the chopped chives and chili crisp, if using.
Serve immediately. This is undoubtedly not the method my favorite Japanese restaurant used, but, I tell you what, the chawansushi is perfection. Silky, tender and delicious!
Enjoy!
It’s Sunday FunDay and today we are getting creative with eggs. Many thanks to our host, Sneha of Sneha’s Recipe. Check out all the links below.
- Food Lust People Love: Cheater Chawanmushi - Savory Egg Custard
- Amy's Cooking Adventures: Egg Drop Soup
- Mayuri's Jikoni: Easy Migas Recipe
- A Day in the Life on the Farm: Garden Vegetable Deviled Eggs
- Sneha's Recipe: Hash Brown Omelette With Egg
- Karen's Kitchen Stories: Stir-Fried Eggs and Velvet Shrimp
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