Chawanmushi – Famous steamed egg dish of Japanese cuisine ẩm

Japanese cuisine always makes diners admire and delicate. In traditional Japanese dishes, it is impossible not to mention steamed eggs – Chawanmushi. Chawanmushi is a delicate steamed egg whose name means steamed in a tea cup.

Ideally, each portion of Chawanmushi is served in a small cup with a lid. One can have this dish as an appetizer or part of a larger meal. In addition to the main ingredient of eggs, steamed eggs have many other ingredients such as dashi (Japanese sauce), soy sauce, mushrooms, tofu, ginkgo seeds or steamed shrimp.

Chawanmushi is a delicate egg pudding, whose name means steamed in a tea cup.

Chawanmushi began to appear more than 300 years ago in the Edo period in cuisine. It is believed that the dish originated in Kyoto and Osaka during the Kansei period, then spread to Edo and Nagasaki. Chawanmushi can be served hot, warm, or cold, and can be garnished with flowered carrots, Japanese parsley, or even topped with seafood. Since it is not possible to eat with chopsticks, this is one of the few traditional Japanese dishes that use a spoon.

Chawanmushi can be served hot, warm or cold.

There are two variations of Chawanmushi: Odamakimushi, a traditional custard dish steamed with udon noodles and ingredients like Chawanmushi’s. This is a food rich in energy and nutrients that many people love because of its convenience. The second variation is Kuyamushi (steamed eggs with tofu that are poured with kuzu sauce after steaming). Kuzu sauce is a sweet sauce whose main ingredient is galangal starch with soy sauce and sugar.

Odamakimushi, a traditional custard dish steamed with udon noodles mixed with Chawanmushi ingredients.

Ingredients in Chawanmushi:

To perfect this appetizer requires ingenuity and sophistication. The main ingredients in Chawanmushi include:

Water use: Chawanmushi’s flavor comes from the broth, that’s why you must use a high-quality variety. Traditionally, Chawanmushi is made with dashi, a Japanese soup made from katsuobushi (dried tuna) and konbu (kelp). However, this steamed egg dish goes well with any kind of broth such as chicken bone broth, mushroom broth.

Egg: Eggs are what turns broth into custard. For Chawanmushi, you need to apply a 3:1 ratio between the juice and the egg. So, for example, if you have 1.5 cups of broth, you need 1/2 cup of eggs.

Spice: For some chefs, just a little salt is needed to add a subtle flavor to the broth, but there are many other options including adding soy sauce. Just be aware that if you use soy sauce, the color of the Chawanmushi may turn brown.

Multiply part: There’s no limit to what you can add to this steamed egg dish. Traditional ingredients include chicken, shrimp, crab, ginkgo nuts, mushrooms, and kamaboko (fish cakes), but many restaurants add them with a certain improvisation and creativity. In general you will notice 3 main flavors including:

1) Flavor – ingredients with a variety of umami flavors such as meat, fish and mushrooms. Umani in Japanese means “delicious taste”. Umani is the 5th core taste along with the sweet, sour, bitter and salty taste buds. The taste of uranium is the taste of glutamate, an amino acid that makes up proteins.

2) Create a texture difference – contrasting ingredients with soft custard like Edamame Japanese soy, shrimp, or mandrake…

3) Color – colorful elements make Chawanmushi fun to eat and can include things like Kamaboko Japanese fish cakes and greens.

Decorative layer on top

Actually the coating is not necessary, but a little color can be added on top to help add beauty and appeal to the dish. The chef can add raw foods such as salmon roe, herbs, carrots …

After preparing the ingredients, people will pour the eggs into a porcelain glass with a lid, when steaming, close the lid so that the steam does not drip into the face, causing the eggs to fall apart. Steaming time depends on the amount of eggs in the glass, which falls between 12-15 minutes. Steaming for too long will make the eggs hard, but not enough time, the eggs and the filling will not cook.

Chawanmushi is both simple and delicate, so that when combining ingredients, it is harmonious in taste and aesthetically pleasing, not everyone can succeed at first.

So, if you want to experience the cuisine of Phu Tang, don’t forget to taste the smooth and delicious taste of this steamed egg dish!

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