Chawan mushi

I wrote in my Vietnam travel blog that we were fortunate to have a long enough layover in Japan to explore Narita, the delicate, spotless town that serves Tokyo. We witnessed a Buddhist ceremony in a beautiful old temple. And then we got to eat.

We had lunch twice in Narita, grilled eel with white rice, followed by sushi.

The sushi was accompanied by a few pickled items, common enough, but also a savory custard, something I've not yet experienced in the US.

Reading Frank Bruni's review of Momofuku Ko in today's New York Times, I've learned that the custard is called chawan mushi. I browsed for online recipes and reviewed a couple.

The gently beaten eggs are thinned with chicken, fish, or dashi stock and flavored with soy sauce. They might contain small pieces of cooked chicken or vegetables. The mixture is placed in small bowls or tea cups, covered, and steamed for 12-18 minutes. The goal is a smooth, creamy, light, runny custard, with no bubbles (hence the gentle mixing earlier).

It was an odd, but appreciated addition to a fine sushi lunch-- which was a reasonable $10-$12.

The Sushi lunch:

The "odd" accompaniments. The charan mushi has the red spoon protruding from it.