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1
Prepare the ichiban dashi and allow it to cool until just warm. Beat the 4 eggs gently — without incorporating air — then combine with 800 ml dashi, salt, light soy, and mirin. Stir to dissolve seasoning. Pass the mixture through a chinois sieve twice. Skim any foam from the surface with a sheet of paper towel. The mixture must be clear and completely bubble-free before it goes into the cups.
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2
Divide the topping ingredients — mushroom or matsutake first at the base, then shrimp, ginkgo nut, and lily bulb — among four lidded chawanmushi cups. Place mitsuba on top. Pour the strained egg-dashi mixture over the toppings to within 5 mm of the cup rim. Fit the lids.
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3
Bring the steamer to full steam. Reduce the heat to maintain 85°C — the water must not boil aggressively around the cups. If a thermometer is unavailable, a wooden chopstick held in the steam should show rising vapour without vigorous bubbling at the water surface. Place the covered cups in the steamer. This is where the dish lives or dies: if the steam temperature rises above 85°C, the protein tightens too rapidly, the surface pockmarks, and no subsequent adjustment will restore the custard.
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4
Steam for 12 to 15 minutes without opening the lid. Do not lift the steamer lid until the minimum time has elapsed — a sudden temperature drop causes the surface to collapse. When time is reached, tilt one cup gently: the custard should tremble as a whole, like jelly, with no solid zone at the centre. Any resistance or firm patch indicates over-cooking.
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5
Remove the cups from the steamer. Serve immediately in the lidded cups. At table, lift the lid to release the first steam — the surface, if correctly made, will be mirror-smooth and appear to vibrate.