This Matcha Steamed Cake (Mushi Pan) is light and fluffy and has the most aromatic flavor. It is steamed instead of baked so it makes the perfect healthy snack and breakfast. Less than 20 minutes to make!
Steamed Cake or we call it Mushi Pan (蒸しパン) is a light, fluffy, and soft cake. As the name suggests, it is steamed instead of baked, and it takes less than 20 minutes to prepare from the beginning to the end. I shared another version two years ago and that steamed cake recipe has been one of the most popular recipes, especially among readers from Asia.
Since then, I’ve kept experimenting with the ingredients and came up with this recipe that I enjoy and have been using for a while. To make the steamed cake moister, I added honey and used yogurt instead of milk. I love the changes I made and I hope you give this updated version a try if you tried other steam cake recipes before. Let me know what you think!
What Does Matcha Taste Like?
It’s a bit difficult to describe. It has a unique rich bitter taste as well as sweetness. When matcha is used in recipes, the flavor becomes subtler. If you are a matcha fan, you might be interested in my other matcha recipes like Green Tea Ice Cream, Green Tea Cookies, and Green Tea Crème Brûlée.
This simple and quick steamed cake recipe is perfect for an after-school snack or when you have sudden guests. Hope you enjoy “steaming” these little cakes! Itadakimasu!
Creative Matcha Steamed Cake
JOC reader Angel tried this recipe and made these absolutely gorgeous steamed cakes that I want to share with you.
When I asked her how she made them, she agreed to share her tutorial with us! Here’s her tutorial:
- Just before adding matcha powder, portion out 2 tsp. of plain batter for pink color and 1.5 tsp. of batter for brown color into two bowls.
- Add 1 tsp. of sifted flour into 2 tsp. batter and mix well and add in some pink food color.
- Add ¾ tsp of cocoa powder to 1.5 tsp. of plain batter and mix well.
- Transfer both batters into piping bags.
- Add matcha powder to the rest of the plain batter and mix well.
- Filled matcha batter into cupcake liners and drop the liners on the countertop a few times to remove air bubbles before pipe pattern on the cakes as desired.
Note:
- The batter should be slightly thicker yet able to pipe.
- Add in a little bit more batter if it’s too thick or flour if it’s too thin. It should be at the right consistency as pipe design may sink while steaming if the batter is too watery.
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Matcha Steamed Cake
Ingredients
- 1 large egg (50 g w/o shell)
- 1 Tbsp neutral-flavored oil
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 3 Tbsp plain yogurt
- 1 ½ Tbsp sugar
- ½ cup all-purpose flour (plain flour)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp matcha (green tea powder)
For Garnish (Optional)
- sweet red bean paste (anko) (for my homemade recipe, click here)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients. I use these glass ramekins from Pyrex.
- Wrap a frying pan lid with a kitchen towel. This will prevent condensation from falling onto the cakes while steaming.
- Place four empty ramekins in the pan and pour water into the frying pan to halfway up the exterior of the ramekins. Take out the ramekins, cover the pan with the lid, and bring water to a boil.
- Place a cupcake liner inside.
- In a medium bowl, add the egg and vegetable oil and whisk well.
- Add the honey and yogurt and mix well.
- Add the sugar and mix thoroughly.
- Sift the flour and baking powder together and add into the egg mixture.
- Sift the matcha powder and fold until powder is well incorporated into the batter.
- Pour the batter evenly into four cupcake liners.
- When the water starts to boil, place the ramekins inside the pan.
- Cover with the lid and steam over medium-low heat for 12-14 minutes.
- To test if the steam cake is ready, insert a skewer in the center of the cake and see if it comes out clean without wet batter. Do not overcook as the cakes will become hard. Remove the ramekins from the pan and serve with sweet red bean paste.
To Store
- I recommended enjoying it right away or on the same day as the steamed cake gets harder. You can re-steam before serving (I don't recommend microwaving).
