Equipment:
- Fine-mesh strainer, small bowls, 4 chawan-mushi cups, pot with steamer basket and lid
- 1 chicken thigh, cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 tablespoons sake
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 4 shrimp, shells removed, deveined, and cut in half
- 3 scallops, cut into four pieces each
- 2 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
- Eight ½-inch (3-mm) pieces of kamaboko
- 4 tablespoons (60 g) ikura
- 4 mitsuba stalks
Custard
- 3 eggs
- 1¼ cups (310 mI) dashi stock
- 1 teaspoon sake
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- Pour water into a pot to a depth of 2 inches (5 cm). Insert a steamer basket and set the pot over medium heat.
- Place the chicken pieces, sake, and soy sauce in a small bowl. Let marinate for 10 minutes.
- In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the custard. Pass the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer several times to remove excess bubbles from the mixture.
- Place a few pieces of chicken in each chawan-mushi cup. Top with the shrimp and scallops. Add the shiitake mushrooms and kamaboko.
- Slowly pour the custard into each chawan-mushi cup until ½ inch (6 mm) from the top. Pop any bubbles with a toothpick to keep the top smooth. Cover each of the cups.
- Place each cup in the steamer basket and cover the pot with a lid.Reduce the heat to medium-low and steam until the custard is cooked through, about 20 minutes. The internal temperature of the custard should register 165°F (74°C) on a kitchen thermometer.
- To serve, top each custard with a tablespoon of ikura and a mitsuba stalk.
