Instant Pot Chawanmushi (Video) 茶碗蒸し (圧力鍋)

Steamed in a dashi-based sauce, this Instant Pot Chawanmushi is a savory Japanese egg custard made with seasonal ingredients. Delicate and silky smooth, it makes a perfect appetizer to start your meal!

For the warmest and most welcoming appetizer to grace a Japanese meal, it always feels right to start with steaming cups of chawanmushi. Made with a dashi-infused egg mixture with the freshest seasonal ingredients, this Japanese savory egg custard is meltingly smooth and deeply flavored.

It is typically cooked in a traditional steamer or in a hot water bath, but if you happen to have an Instant Pot, you can easily make chawanmushi in the Instant Pot pressure cooker. When you’re busy making main and side dishes on the stovetop, Instant Pot Chawanmushi is particularly convenient and dependable.

Ingredients You’ll Need for Instant Pot Chawanmushi

For the Egg Mixture

• dashi stock (Japanese soup stock) – for vegetarian, make Vegan Dashi
• large eggs – they should weigh 50 g each without the shell
• mirin
• usukuchi (light-colored) soy sauce – or use regular soy sauce or gluten-free soy sauce for GF; we use light-color soy sauce so the broth doesn’t get dark
• kosher salt

For the Chawanmushi Ingredients

• chicken thigh – skip for vegetarian
• shrimp – skip for vegetarian
• sake
• carrot
• mitsuba (Japanese parsley)
• shimeji mushrooms
• kamaboko (Japanese fish cake) – skip for vegetarian

The Perfect Egg-to-Dashi Ratio

The best ratio for the egg mixture to dashi is about 1 to 2.5 (by volume). It’s good to know the basic ratio to start and you can adjust later as you like. See below for the amount of dashi to add:

• for 1 large egg (50 ml), add 125 ml dashi [ml = g]
• 2 eggs (100 ml) – 250 ml dashi
• 3 eggs (150 ml) – 375 ml dashi (can make 5 200-ml ramekins)
• 4 eggs (200 ml) – 500 ml dashi
• 5 eggs (250 ml) – 625 ml dashi
• 6 eggs (300 ml) – 750 ml dashi (can make 10 200-ml ramekins)
• 7 eggs (350 ml) – 875 ml dashi
• 8 eggs (400 ml) – 1000 ml dashi

Note: Since you may not have a kitchen scale, I’ve tried my best to give you the closest measurement possible using a liquid measuring cup. Because the “perfect” amount could display “between the lines” of the exact measurement, this could cause subtle differences/improvements in the final taste. When in doubt, weigh your ingredients!

How to Cook Instant Pot Chawanmushi

Including prep time, you can make this chawanmushi recipe in about 40 minutes total time:

1. Prepare the protein and vegetables and make the dashi if you haven’t already.
2. Make the egg mixture in a large bowl with eggs, dashi, mirin, soy sauce, and salt. Whisk together. Pass it through a strainer/sieve into a liquid measuring cup.
3. Assemble the chawanmushi cups with the prepared ingredients and egg mixture. Place the mitsuba on top. Cover the cups with lids or wrap with aluminum foil. 
4. Steam in the Instant Pot. Set a steamer rack or trivet in the inner pot and place the tea cups inside. Close the lid, Set the cooking time to zero (0) minute, and steam over low pressure.
5. Natural release the pressure for 10 minutes. Insert a skewer to see if the custard is fully cooked. If there is no liquid coming out, it’s done. Serve hot with a small spoon.

3 Cooking Tips for Soft, Silky Chawanmushi

1. Strain the egg mixture.

Straining the egg mixture helps separate any stringy egg whites strands so your custard will have a soft, silky-smooth texture.

2. Use gentle steam on the low heat setting.

When your chawanmushi has a porous texture with tiny visible holes, we call them “su.” These holes in the steamed egg custard are the indicator of strong heat or overcooking, hence it’s considered a failure. Your goal is to make chawanmushi without these air bubbles. To achieve that, make sure to keep an eye on the cooking time and heat.

3. Check doneness by inserting a skewer.

If clear liquid comes out, it’s done. If the juice is not clear, you will need to cook it longer.

What if you don’t have an Instant Pot?

Don’t worry! Here are other methods to make chawanmushi:

Stovetop Steamer:

You can use a traditional steamer to make chawanmushi. You do not need to cover the steaming cups in this setting. Instead, you will wrap the steamer lid with a large kitchen towel so that moisture and condensation from the lid won’t drop into the chawanmushi while steaming. Place the steamer cups in the steamer and leave the lid ajar to let the hot steam escape. This creates a gentle steaming condition inside the steamer. Cook for roughly 18–20 minutes.

Stovetop Water Bath:

Boil water in a large pot that can fit the steaming cups. Once 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 18–20 minutes on the lowest heat. You can follow the step-by-step instructions with photos in my classic Chawanmushi recipe.

Steam in the Oven: 

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and fill a roasting pan (or deep baking dish) with 1 inch (2.5 cm) boiling water. Cover the steaming cups with the lid or aluminum foil and place them inside the roasting pan. Cook for 25–30 minutes (cooking time varies based on your oven/steaming cups).

Substitution Ideas

• Chawanmushi cups – Use ramekins or oven-safe containers instead of chawan tea cups. You can use aluminum foil to cover it.
• Dashi – Do not skip. The flavor of chawanmushi relies heavily on dashi. For vegetarians, you can use Kombu Dashi. I make standard Awase Dashi from scratch or with a dashi packet. Use instant dashi (dashi powder) only in a pinch.
• Eggs – Try to use good-quality large eggs for this dish. Avoid extra large eggs since the weight is different from large eggs.
• Usukuchi (light color) soy sauce – The light color keeps the broth from getting dark. You can use less regular soy sauce and add a pinch of salt.
• Mirin – Small amount, but this is one of the essential Japanese ingredients (read here). If you don’t have it, use sake/water + sugar.
• Chicken thighs – You can use chicken breast or chicken tender. We do not use other types of meat for chawanmushi.
• Shrimp – You can use other seafood of your choice or skip it. If your shrimp are large, cut them in half so they will cook faster.
• Shimeji mushrooms – Use shiitake mushrooms or your favorite mushrooms.
• Kamaboko – You can use different types of Japanese fish cakes (cut into similar sizes and thicknesses) or skip them.
• Mitsuba (Japanese parsley) – Use chopped chives, green onion/scallion, or a few leaves of cilantro.

The seasonal ingredients in this chawanmushi are a delicious treat, but even if you simplify it, your homemade chawanmushi will still taste wonderfully luxurious. I know you’ll enjoy this ethereal egg custard!

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Instant Pot Chawanmushi

4.82 from 44 votes

Steamed in a dashi-based sauce, this Instant Pot Chawanmushi is a savory Japanese egg custard made with seasonal ingredients. Delicate and silky smooth, it makes a perfect appetizer to start your meal!

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Video

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 20 minutes mins

Total Time: 40 minutes mins

Servings: 5 200-ml cups

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

For the Egg Mixture

• ▢ 1¾ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) (for vegetarian, make Vegan Dashi)
• ▢ 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell)
• ▢ 1 tsp mirin
• ▢ 1 tsp usukuchi (light-colored) soy sauce (or use regular soy sauce or gluten-free soy sauce for GF; we use light-color soy sauce so the broth doesn't get dark)
• ▢ ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt

For the Chawanmushi Ingredients

• ▢ 1 chicken thigh (3.4 oz, 96 g; skip for vegetarian)
• ▢ 5 shrimp (2.6 oz, 73 g; skip for vegetarian)
• ▢ 2 Tbsp sake (divided; for the chicken and shrimp)
• ▢ 1.4 oz carrot (1½ inches, 3.8 cm)
• ▢ 5 sprigs mitsuba (Japanese parsley)
• ▢ 2.3 oz shimeji mushrooms (a bit more than ½ package)
• ▢ 1 inch kamaboko (fish cake) (skip for vegetarian)

Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

 

To Prepare the Ingredients

• Gather all the ingredients. If you haven‘t prepared 1¾ cups dashi (Japanese soup stock) yet, make the standard awase dashi and let it cool to room temperature (you can place the pot with dashi in it over a bowl of iced water).
  
• Cut 1 chicken thigh into slanted, smaller bite-sized pieces. I use the sogigiri Japanese cutting technique to create more surface so it will cook faster.
  
• Put chicken pieces and 5 shrimp in two separate bowls and add 1 Tbsp sake to each bowl. This is to remove any unwanted smell from the chicken and shrimp.
  
• Cut 1.4 oz carrot into ¼-inch slices. The next step is optional, but you can cut out the carrot slice into a flower shape by using a vegetable cutter or use the nejiri ume Japanese cutting technique.
  
• Make a knot in each stem of 5 sprigs mitsuba (Japanese parsley).
  
• Cut and discard the bottom end of 2.3 oz shimeji mushrooms and slice 1 inch kamaboko (fish cake) into thin slices.
  

To Prepare the Egg Mixture

• It’s best to use a kitchen scale but if you don’t have one, use a liquid measuring cup. Crack 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) in a large bowl on a kitchen scale (or in the liquid measuring cup). My 3 eggs are 153 grams or 153 ml. You will need to multiply that number by 2.5 (read the blog post on why we multiply by 2.5). 153 x 2.5= 382. Prepare 382 grams (or ml) dashi.
  
• Transfer the eggs into a large bowl that can fit dashi and seasonings and whisk the eggs.
  
• Add dashi (382 ml), 1 tsp mirin, 1 tsp usukuchi (light-colored) soy sauce (or regular soy sauce), and ½ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Whisk all together.
  
• Pass the egg mixture through a strainer/sieve into a liquid measuring cup (for easy pouring later on).
  

To Assemble

• Place the ingredients in each chawanmushi cup or ramekin. You want to show the colorful ingredients on top, so put the non-colorful ingredients like chicken on the bottom. Put more colorful or unique shape ingredients toward the top.
  
• Evenly distribute the egg mixture into chawanmushi cups. Place the mitsuba on top.
  
• Cover the chawanmushi cups with lids or wrap with a sheet of aluminum foil (if you are going to stack one on top of another).
  

To Steam in the Instant Pot

• Fill the instant pot with 1 cup water. Set the steamer rack in place.
  
• Put the chawanmushi cups inside. The 5th chawanmushi cup goes on top of the 4 cups.
  
• Close the lid and click STEAM, make sure it’s LOW pressure and set the timer for zero (0) minute.
  
• It will take about 10 minutes to reach the optimal pressure. Then beep for 0 minute. Then it will naturally release. Set your own timer for 10 minutes natural release.
• At 10 minutes alarm, open the lid and take out one chawanmushi cup and go to the next step. If the lid doesn’t open, then it means the pressure hasn’t fully released yet. Prepare a kitchen towel and turn the nozzle to release pressure. Only a little bit of steam should be left, so don’t be scared. Once the pressure has released, you can open the lid.
  
• Open the chawanmushi cup lid (or aluminum foil) and insert a skewer to see if the egg custard is fully cooked. If the custard look set and there is no liquid coming out, it is fully cooked.
  
• If the chawanmushi is not fully cooked yet (most likely your container is bigger than my chawanmushi cups OR you must have used a colder egg mixture or ingredients), repeat the steam process, and release the air pressure manually. Remember, the egg mixture will continue to cook through from pre- and after- pressure cooking time.
• Place the chawanmushi lid on and serve hot with a small spoon.
  

Nutrition

Calories: 124 kcal · Carbohydrates: 3 g · Protein: 11 g · Fat: 6 g · Saturated Fat: 2 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 167 mg · Sodium: 377 mg · Potassium: 173 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 2 g · Vitamin A: 1504 IU · Vitamin C: 1 mg · Calcium: 44 mg · Iron: 1 mg

Author: Namiko Hirasawa Chen

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Japanese

Keyword: chawanmushi

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