Ingredients

For the dashi:

• 1L water
• 15g kombu
• 15g Katsuobushi (bonito flake)

For the chawanmushi:

• 2 eggs
• 2 shiitake mushrooms
• 40g chicken thighs
• 4 prawns
• 8 mitsuba leaves (if it’s available)
• 4 gingko nuts (edamame if it’s not available)
• 300ml dashi
• 2 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 pinch salt

Tools

• Kenwood Cooking Chef XL

Method

For the dashi:

1. Soak kombu in 1L water for 1 night. (kombu water)
2. Heat kombu and water and bring to boil. Take kombu out before boil.
3. Keep boiling kombu water and take scum out.
4. Take off from heat and add bonito flake, leave 3 mins and strain. (Katsuo dashi)

For the chawanmushi:

1. Peel prawn, cut chicken thigh into 1cm dice, cut shiitake into 4-6 and cut mitsuba leaf into 2cm.
2. Place egg, cold dashi, light soy sauce and salt into a mixing bowl. Use whisk attachment and mix at low speed. (do not make bubbles) Once you have mixed it together, strain the mix through a very fine sieve to make sure that the mixture is perfectly smooth.
3. Place mitsuba leaf, gingko nut, shiitake mushroom and chicken thigh into the cup. Pour 110ml of egg dashi mix into the cup. Cover top of each cup with cling film.
4. Pour 650ml water into the mixing bowl, set steaming tray into the mixing bowl, set timer 30mins and start steam. When the steam coming up then put cups on the steaming tray.
5. 3mins later lift the splash guard at the lid with chopstick to leave steam out. Keep steam for 15mins.
6. Take chawanmushi cup off from steaming tray, unseal cling film and put one each prawn on the top of chawanmushi. Put chawanmushi cups back onto the steaming tray then steam 10 mins.
7. Take chawanmushi cup off from the tray. If you see it’s nicely set when you shake the cup gently then stick bamboo skewer into chawanmushi. If you see clear dashi come up from chawanmushi and it’s cooked.

Chef's Notes:

1. When making this recipe it is a good idea to start making the dashi the day before.