The Original Chawan Mushi Recipe

This original recipe was requested by a friend and she suggested that I posted it to follow-up on the original post of Green Onion Custard. I thought that it made sense should one be not too adventurous to try the Green Onion recipe. So here's the Chawan Mushi recipe

Ingredients:

3 eggs - large (4 if using small eggs)
1 2/3 cups bonito stock (you can use the instant bonito powder instead of real flakes)
1 Tbsp mirin (use 1 tsp salt if not available - this isnt so important)
1 Tbsp light shoyu (1/2 Tbsp if using regular shoyu)
2 tsp sake or sherry wine or white cooking wine

Nuggets you can use as filling:
sliced cooked shrimp
pumpkin - cooked and diced - to give it an earthy taste
crab chucks
shiitake mushrooms - thinly sliced
chicken breast fillet
Corn - yes I used sweet corn with a bit of everything above


Directions:
Break the eggs into the bowl, to minimize bubbles in the final product, do not beat the eggs but very gently stir them with a chopstick in a slicing action.
Add the rest of the custard ingredients to the egg mixture. When everything is incorporated, strain through a fine sieve. The next step is to your liking, place whatever ingredients you want to add into the custard - chicken, prawns, mushroom, etc. I tried using a sliver of salted duck egg and it was delish.

Pour the custard into cups or ramekins but do not top. Leave enough room for the custard to expand. Cover with lids or aluminum foil. Steam the cups over high heat then at 10 mins, check for doneness. To test, insert a bamboo stick into the custard, if a clear liquid flows it is done. Try not to overcook the chawanmushi or it will become bland and the broth will separate from the egg.

Enjoy


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