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1
Distribute the pre-cooked chicken, kamaboko, shiitake, shrimp, ginkgo nuts, and mitsuba evenly among four chawanmushi cups or small lidded vessels. All filling ingredients must be pre-cooked or par-cooked before being placed in the cups; raw protein introduced into the custard will toughen its surrounding matrix during steaming. The filling should sit cleanly in each cup, visible from above.
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2
Beat the eggs gently — without incorporating air — then combine with the ichiban dashi, light soy sauce, mirin, and salt. Stir until fully homogeneous. Strain the mixture twice through fine muslin, passing it slowly to remove all air bubbles and every trace of egg membrane. The strained liquid should be perfectly clear and uniform, with no visible threads or foam on its surface.
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3
Pour the strained custard mixture carefully over the fillings in each cup, filling to within 5 mm of the rim. Tilt the cup gently if any filling has shifted. Place the lids on each cup to shield the surface from condensation drips during steaming. The surface of the poured custard should be flat and entirely bubble-free before the lid goes on.
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4
This is where the dish lives or dies. Bring the steamer to temperature, then reduce to maintain 80–85 °C — never above 90 °C. Insert a folded damp towel in the gap of the steamer lid, or wedge a chopstick in the lid gap, to allow gentle steam escape and suppress internal temperature. Steam for 15–20 minutes over low, patient heat. Excessive steam temperature causes 'su' — the pockmarked, porous surface that is the irreversible mark of a failed chawanmushi.
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5
Test each cup by inserting a toothpick into the centre of the custard. The custard is done when the toothpick withdraws clean, with no wet egg clinging to it, and the custard trembles as a single mass — jiggly and barely set — when the cup is nudged. The surface must be smooth, unbroken, and pore-free. Serve immediately in the covered cups.