Microwave-Steamed Eggs Recipe (2024)

Growing up in Korea, I loved gaeranjjim (steamed eggs) in the morning with breakfast. This is a quick and easy adaptation of the old classic. However, I don't get why you'd need maple syrup in this dishi. The classic does not use any sweeteners and tastes delicious on its own. Instead of maple syrup, I recommend adding a bit of sesame oil, which is usually included in the dash. If you want to make it especially umami, you can also add a bit of saewoojut (Korean-style fermented shrimp sauce).

I tried the maple syrup/soy sauce Because I grew up eating the sesame oil version. Eric Kim's recipes are often For Us who grew up eating the same dishes; I don't get why we don't embrace him for this dialogue, instead of the "no, our moms did it this way" auto-response. Anyway the maple syrup is there not just to add sweetness (1/2 teaspoon for 2 eggs isn't much, and is nicely balanced by the soy), but to impart a different (smoky maple vs. roasty sesame) depth. Lovely variation on the classic.

READ THIS if you're struggling getting the right texture.It took some trial and error for me, but a few things I changed helped get the dish spot on.1. Adjust amount of water used. I ended up using 3/4 cup instead of 1.2. Use a wider, shallower bowl. My first attempt I used my "cereal" bowl and eggs did not come out silky.3. Adjust microwave power. This will depend on your own microwave but my microwave is on a scale of 1 - 10 and 4 was the sweet spot.Hope this helps!

We traditionally do ours on the stove in a steam bath and it works wonderfully. I can’t wait to try this version and the dashi is genius. I normally use 2 cups water to 5 eggs and better than bouillon chicken stock in the water. Drizzle with soy, sesame and green onions or chives. It’s also excellent with hot chili crunch and caviar.

I made this for my definitely-not-a-foodie Korean dad. He said I should try making this for my friends. Closest to a compliment on my cooking I've received from him in 30 years.

I wasn't sure how to adjust my microwave so I set it for "defrost" for 6 minutes and it worked perfectly.

Wow! I just tried this. It’s fabulous. I was so excited by the description that I didn’t take the time to read the instructions again. I just mixed boiling water with a teasp. of chicken bouillon, added a teasp. of tamari to it as well as a teaspoon of maple syrup and a dash of salt. Mixed it thoroughly with egg and blew away the bubbles. Microwaved 4.5 minutes on half power and voila, silken eggs. I’ll be adding some fresh chives and sesame oil next time. So much fun. Thank so much.

I can only taste sweet and salty bc COVID, so texture is EVERYTHING. This with a bowl of buttered rice was perfect. I think I’ll go lie back down now.

My gaslighting former roommate only ever made her eggs in the microwave. Every day during the pandemic I’d have to listen to her make these eggs at 6:15am like clockwork. Do not encourage this behavior or you run the risk of being tortured by the remnants of microwave eggs in your sink that your roommate refuses to clean up, even though you don’t eat microwave eggs. It’s just not worth the risk

For those looking to make a larger quantity for a family, we make this on the stovetop--4 large eggs plus 1 can of chicken broth, preferably Swansons regular (not low sodium). Mix well and pour into a heatproof container. We use a Corning-ware square dish. Put on a steamer basket in a wok with some water in the bottom. Cover and steam on high heat for 8 minutes. Drizzle some soy sauce and sesame oil on top. Sprinkle with scallion. I am curious to try this microwave version!

I make something like this all the time! I’ve never added any sweetener. Instead of dashi, I use knorr chicken powder and bit of powdered kelp, roasted sesame oil, tiny dash of light soy sauce (saltier and doesn’t impart as much colour) and white pepper. If you can find Chinese or Korean chives, those are really good as they have more body and a lovely light garlic flavour. The texture is infinitely better if you use a stick blender to whizz the egg and liquids before adding the chives.

Indeed, RoLo, I agree! Eric knew what he was doing, and is not reproducing a specific dish. A touch of maple syrup stands in for mirin used to balance the soy, which together with sake and konbu dashi makes for balanced, elegant umami in the chawanmushi version of silken savory custards. Thank you, Eric!

Great! I've been wondering what to do with all the dried kelp I have around the house.

I don’t know if anyone else found this too watery? I made it with kelp-infused water but a cup was far too much. I also didn’t like what the maple syrup did to it, it must be a personal preference. But I loved the texture, so second time round I used vegetable stock it concentrate, a mere half cup, and then anointed with soy sauce and homemade chili oil I made with gochugaru and crushed Sichuan peppers. It was perfect!

I made this and it was delicious. Is the liquid suppose to be fully incorporated with the eggs? Mine had a lot of liquid. Thank you.

Lovely recipe and sooo simple! While I can already imagine serving as an unexpected side/ starter for a group it was also perfect for a party of one. Thanks Eric!P.S. if you’re on the fence about using the maple syrup, try it! It was really good!

I’ve made this twice now, and I can’t really get the technique right. The most recent time I cooked, covered, at half power for 5 minutes and then nuked on high for another minute or so until it had solidified to my liking. First time I subbed sesame oil for the maple syrup which was okay. I actually prefer the syrup version (light touch). Now I’m wondering, why not both??Will continue trying to nail the technique because it’s fun and yummy.

Delicious! Thought it looked way too watery at first but it cooked up great. I really think it’s all in the microwave. I didn’t follow the instructions to do 30 second blasts after 5 minutes and I think the texture would have been perfectly silky (instead of close to perfect) if I did. A Chinese friend made something very similar for me about a year ago and she definitely was checking it frequently when it was almost done. Lesson learned!

A complete mess! I whisked 2 eggs with 1 cup of vegetable broth and a pinch of salt, then put it in my 1,200-Watt microwave at 40% power for 5 minutes. Still mostly liquid. Then 2 more minutes. Soggy. Then another 4 minutes. All I got was a wet mess of overcooked eggs and a bowl that was really hard to clean. I can't figure out what I did wrong. This is easily my worst outcome from a NYT recipe.

I double this recipe and use a large soup bowl (think pho-shaped bowl). I substitute Totole mushroom or chicken bouillon for dashi and skip the maple syrup. If there are chives or green onions around those are going in. When in doubt with microwave power go lower power and longer time. 450 watts for 11 minutes plus some last bursts at the end works great for doubling the recipe.

This is very easy! I didn't use the maple syrup. I did reduce the water to 3/4 cp. I would have liked it better sweetened. The texture reminded me of flan. Next time, I'll use milk & see, if it can become the quickest, easiest recipe for flan.Another time I'll also try using the recommended ingredients I didn't have this time.

Use a little less than a full cup of Dashi. I used a little more than 3/4 of a cup this time.

I am someone who needs to eat a good breakfast in the morning, but I do not enjoy sweet things at that time of day. I love this recipe. It's hearty but light and very easy on the stomach. I use knorr's no-salt powdered chicken bouillon (which if you know how good better-than-bouillon is, try this option when you want to add flavor but not sodium). I use a corelle bowl with a corelle dish inverted on top, and it takes almost 10 minutes in my microwave.

Will use way less liquid next time

If you have long covid or similar, 13 minutes on defrost in shallow paper bowls is your ticket back not only to chawanmushi but lots of other egg custard dishes I thought were lost to those of us no longer in a position to fool around with bainmaries! I’m still experimenting, but it seems to work just fine with dairy or plant milk and cream instead of broth. Doubling the liquid gets you pudding texture, tripling gets you egg nog. I added spices and maple syrup afterwards. Experiment!

Pro tip - use a crème brûlée torch to quickly wipe out all the bubbles on top. Takes 2 seconds.

This was a waste of cholesterol. A watery mess. I’ll stick with microwave scrambled eggs.

This is a total success, and so helpful if you’re tired and want something comforting. I get more consistent results if I follow the suggestion you kind people have left in the comments to use the defrost setting—13 minutes works for me. And you don’t necessarily have to use dashi, I make a cup of hot bone broth using my preferred concentrate — I imagine miso would work equally well — and then pour it into the whisked eggs while stirring, the way I would tempering eggs for avgolemono.

This was a TOTAL FAILURE. I tried it exactly as the recipe instructed, but after 7 minutes at half power, the eggs were still completely liquid. I continued to cook the eggs for a total of 20 minutes before they solidified. Though the eggs seemed food safe, they had turned into a curldled, spongy, grayish mass floating in broth. Not worth the trouble.

This turned out ok for the first try, but the eggs had a slightly rough texture and there seemed to be a lot of broth left compared to what I expected. Maybe my expectations are off. It also only took 4 minutes, so I'll try adjusting the liquid and power down a bit like some others and see how it does next time. Very tasty with veggie broth since I didn't have any Dashi on hand!