Chawanmushi (Savory Steamed Egg Custard)

Ingredients

• 2 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 3 Tbsp water
• ½ cup dashi (click to learn more about this soup stock) (120 ml)
• ½ boneless skinless chicken thigh

½ Tbsp sake (for chicken)

• 1 large egg (50 g w/o shell)
• 6 slices carrot (thin round slices)
• 6 ginkgo nuts (pre-cooked; optional)
• 1 oz shimeji mushrooms (30 g)
• 6 slices Kamaboko (fish cake) (thin slices)
• 4 Mitsuba (Japanese parsley) (or 1 green onion/scallion)
• Seasonings:

½ tsp mirin

• ½ tsp soy sauce (Preferably use Usukuchi Soy Sauce (light color soy sauce so the egg mixture will not become too dark.)
• ¼ tsp kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)
• 2 pieces uni (sea urchin)
• 2 Tbsp Ikura (salmon roe)

Directions

1. Gather all the ingredients. I use 2 chawanmushi cups (each can fill up to 200 ml). Please note that the size of the cups matters for cooking time. Also, do not choose thick cups as it takes a long time to cook through.
2. In a small bowl, put 2 dried shiitake and 3 Tbsp water and rehydrate for 15 minutes. When shiitake becomes soft, squeeze water out and slice them thinly. Tip: This liquid is Shiitake Dashi. If you want to use this Shiitake Dashi as a part of your dashi in this recipe, remove 2 Tbsp from ½ cup dashi, and replace with 2 Tbsp Shiitake Dashi.
3. Cut chicken thigh into ½-inch pieces and put them in a bowl. Add ½ Tbsp sake and set aside for 15 minutes.
4. Cut out the carrot slices into a flower shape with vegetable cutters.

Tie mitsuba like this.

1. Whisk the egg in a medium bowl. Add the seasonings and ½ cup dashi. Mix well.
2. Then strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into another bowl.
3. In a large pot, bring water to boil. The amount of water should cover ½ of chawanmushi cup. When boiling, reduce the heat to the lowest heat.
4. Divide all the ingredients into 2 chawanmushi cups; I started with chicken, shiitake, ginkgo nuts, and shimeji. Then put more colorful ingredients like carrot, kamaboko, and mitsuba on top.
5. Gently pour the egg mixture into the cups, keeping some ingredients on top uncovered with egg mixture. Cover with the chawanmushi lid (or cover with aluminum foil).
6. Once the water starts boiling, reduce the heat to the lowest heat. Gently place the cups inside the hot water and cover the pot with the lid. Cook for 25-30 minutes on the lowest heat. If you do not add the chicken, the cooking time should only be 15-20 minutes. Insert a skewer in the center of the cup to check if the egg is done. Optionally, before serving, put uni (sea urchin) and ikura (salmon roe) on top.