Airy, bouncy, and lightly sweet, Orange Chiffon Cake pairs the citrusy fragrance of orange zest with the warm aroma and delicate spice of cardamom. This soft and moist dessert is served with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar and topped with curly ribbons of orange peel. Enjoy this delicious Japanese pastry with a cup of coffee or Earl Grey tea.
With abundant navel oranges in the kitchen, I knew exactly what I wanted to make — Orange Chiffon Cake (オレンジシフォンケーキ). My daughter loves chiffon cake, and many JOC readers have specifically requested this recipe for a long time. To make it extra special and wow-worthy, I sneaked in a pinch of cardamom for a charming flavor.
Navel Oranges + Cardamom Flavor
I fell in love with cardamom when my Indian neighbor, who became my very good friend, made Chai every time our kids had a playdate at her house (I shared her recipe here). The cardamom pods smelled so inviting and delicious. It was a new spice that I had never seen or tasted in Japan.
When I was looking for a unique flavor that would complement orange, cardamom came to mind. I don’t remember exactly what dish I had tried, but it must have been a dessert that immediately caught my tastebuds off guard with the combination. Like clove, but more subtle, cardamom pairs beautifully with citrus flavors, adding warmth and depth that makes this chiffon cake so memorable.
Ingredients for Orange Chiffon Cake
I love making chiffon cakes as the ingredients are so simple. Eggs, sugar, and flour are the ingredients we usually have in the pantry, right? For the flavoring, you can literally work with anything you can think of – black teas, coffee, spices, seasonal fruits, or more unique Japanese flavors like matcha or black sesame. It is probably one of the most versatile cakes to make at home.
Another reason I like chiffon cake is it’s never too sweet. If you’re familiar with Japanese (or Asian) sweets, they are in general not overly sweet or laden with sugar, so you can enjoy the baked treats and not feel bogged down.
Navel Oranges: What’s your favorite kind of orange? I love navel oranges as they are sweet and juicy, which I used to make this chiffon cake. You can also use Cara Cara Oranges since they are in season right now.
Cardamom: This highly aromatic spice adds a hint of pine-like fragrance and delicate yet spicy flavor to the chiffon cake. Although you can do without cardamom for the recipe, I’d recommend giving it a try. You should be able to find cardamom in the spice aisle at any major grocery store or specialty spice shop. If you’re not sure what else to do with it after baking the chiffon cake, use cardamom just like you would with cinnamon. Try a pinch of the spice with your cold brew coffee, baked goods, curries, or roast meats. It can be a game-changer.
Neutral Oil: Use canola or vegetable oil; please do not use olive oil or other kinds of oil.
Cake Flour: I’ll talk more about it in detail below. If you are making a chiffon cake, use cake flour, not all-purpose flour. At least you can make homemade cake flour with all-purpose flour and cornstarch (See Notes in the recipe below).
Eggs: I use large eggs for all my recipes on the blog as they are the standard size in American recipes.
My Favorite: Super-Fine Unbleached Cake Flour from Bob’s Red Mill®
This post was sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill®. I couldn’t be any more thrilled when I get to work with Bob’s Red Mill® to develop this Orange Chiffon Cake recipe. When comes to baking and breakfast products, I highly recommend Bob’s Red Mill®. Have you tried any of their flours or other products before? What I genuinely admire about the company is that they use honest ingredients and methods for their wide range of products, which I think it’s important for consumers.
As an employee-owned company, Bob’s Red Mill® uses high-quality whole grains to satisfy all vegan, paleo, and gluten-free friendly cooking and baking needs. From almond flour, cake mixes, and coconut flour to various grains, it offers the largest lines of organic, whole-grain foods in the country. You can be assured that all of its products are certified Kosher and made with ingredients grown from non-GMO seeds. If you’re curious, you can go to the website and learn more about the founder, Bob Moore, and his mission too.
To achieve the perfect light texture for the chiffon cake, I used Super-Fine Unbleached Cake Flour from Bob’s Red Mill®. Because it is sifted to a very fine texture, the cake flour is fantastic for all sorts of cakes – especially delicate ones like chiffon cakes. You should be able to find the cake flour at any major grocery store. Alternatively, you can also buy it on Amazon.
First Time Making Chiffon Cake?
I’ve shared some helpful tips on How to Make the Perfect Chiffon Cake – Tips & Troubleshoot. Take a look before you start making your first chiffon cake.
I also want to go over some kitchen tools that I use in this recipe. I know some of you have never baked or rarely bake, but I would love to try making this Orange Chiffon Cake.
Chiffon Cake Pan: It’s important to get a chiffon cake pan to make a chiffon cake to maintain the height structure and airiness. Aluminum material works best, and make sure it doesn’t come with a non-stick coating. Why? Because the batter needs to cling to the wall of the cake pan and climb up tall with the help of beaten egg whites. A nonstick pan is slippery and the batter will slide down and flop. You can get this 7-inch angel food cake pan on Amazon or a Japanese chiffon cake pan on Nihon Ichiban (ships internationally).
Zester 1: This zester features several sharp holes at the tip of the tool which works brilliantly in zesting off any citrus fruits. There is also another larger hole that allows you to peel off long curly strips for garnishes. With the two different features, you can create zest in different textures.
Zester 2: Microplane is a versatile tool to have in every kitchen. You can get very fine zest and triple the amount from any citrus fruits. It is particularly useful for baking when you need the citrus flavors to be dispersed into the batter. Aside from zesting, you can also use it to grate cheese and ginger.
Hand Mixer: I still use a stand mixer (even though it doesn’t show up in my recipe videos/photos), but this hand mixer has been pretty handy and helpful for our filming (easy to show you the process). It takes a little longer than a more powerful stand mixer, but it still does a great job. So if you don’t want to spend too much money on equipment you don’t use often and don’t want to lose your arm from whipping egg whites with a whisk, I strongly recommend this hand mixer.
Other Delicious Chiffon Cake Flavors
Chiffon cakes are very popular sweets in Japan. Not only it’s cleverly designed to feed a crowd on many occasions, it also keeps so well that you could serve it for breakfast or afternoon tea for the whole week. So far I have the following flavors of chiffon cakes:
Have you tried any other interesting chiffon cake you’d like to make at home? Let me know in the comments below. Maybe I’ll be able to share the recipe next time.
Sign up for the free Just One Cookbook newsletter delivered to your inbox! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram for all the latest updates.
Orange Chiffon Cake
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) (yolks and whites separated)
- 10 pods cardamom (for ½ tsp ground cardamom)
- 3–4 oranges (for the zest and 4 Tbsp (60 ml) of juice; I used navel oranges)
- 85 g sugar (½ cup minus 1 Tbsp; divided into thirds)
- 40 ml neutral oil (3 Tbsp minus 1 tsp)
- 75 g cake flour (⅔ cup minus 2 tsp; weigh your flour or use the “fluff and sprinkle“ method and level it off; see Notes below for how to make Homemade Cake Flour)
- 1 tsp baking powder
For Serving
- 1–2 Tbsp orange zest (long curly strips; see blog post for more information)
- 1 Tbsp confectioners’ sugar (for dusting; optional)
Instructions
- Before You Start: I highly encourage you to use metric measurements using a kitchen scale for this recipe. Click on the “Metric“ button at the top of the recipe to convert the ingredient measurements to metric. If you‘re using a cup measurement, please follow the “fluff and sprinkle“ method: Fluff your flour with a spoon, sprinkle the flour into your measuring cup, and level it off. Otherwise, you may scoop more flour than you need.
- Gather all the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 340ºF (170ºC). For a convection oven, reduce cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). You will need a 17-cm (7-inch) chiffon cake pan. If you have a different size pan, read this post to adjust the ingredient measurements. Make sure you use an aluminum pan with a removable base (read my blog post for more details). Please see my Notes at the end of this recipe for additional details on ingredients, equipment, and techniques.
- Crack and separate 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell). Keep the egg yolks in a medium bowl and the egg whites in a large bowl. If you plan to use a stand mixer, keep the egg whites in the stand mixer bowl. Refrigerate or freeze the stand mixer bowl and egg whites for 15 minutes until cold. (It‘s okay if the egg whites are partially frozen). Tip: In Japan, we chill the egg whites to make smooth, fine-textured meringue and do not use cream of tartar.
- Crush 10 pods cardamom and remove the shells. Grind the seeds to a fine powder. You will need ½ tsp finely ground cardamom. Set aside.
- Next, zest 3–4 oranges. As I mentioned in the blog post, I use two types of testers for more texture and flavor—a microplane for fine zest and a citrus zester for long curly strips. For the cake batter, reserve 2–3 Tbsp of fine zest and some of the strips. Reserve another 1–2 Tbsp orange zest of long curly strips for decorating the cake. Set aside.
- Cut 1–2 oranges in half and juice them until you get 4 Tbsp (60 ml) of fresh orange juice. Set aside.
To Mix the Batter
- Start mixing the batter. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and one-third of the 85 g sugar (½ cup minus 1 Tbsp) with a hand whisk. Whisk vigorously until it‘s a creamy pale yellow color.
- Then, add 40 ml neutral oil (3 Tbsp minus 1 tsp), ½ tsp finely ground cardamom, and 2–3 Tbsp fine orange zest for the cake batter and whisk well.
- Add 4 Tbsp (60 ml) orange juice to the egg mixture and whisk well.
- To a flour sifter or fine-mesh sieve, add 75 g cake flour (⅔ cup minus 2 tsp) and 1 tsp baking powder. Sift one-third of this flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Whisk by hand to incorporate the dry ingredients well. Check that there are no lumps in the batter, then sift another one-third of the flour mixture into the bowl. Mix to incorporate. Then, sift in the rest of the flour mixture and whisk until just combined; do not overmix. Make sure there are no lumps in the batter. Set aside while you beat the meringue.
To Make the Meringue
- Take out the bowl of egg whites from the refrigerator or freezer. Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, start whipping the egg whites on medium-low speed (or Speed 4 on a KitchenAid stand mixer) until the egg whites are bubbly, opaque, and foamy.
- Add another one-third of the sugar and continue whisking for 30 seconds. Then, increase the mixer speed to high (or Speed 10 on a stand mixer) and gradually add the remaining sugar in small increments.
- Beat vigorously until stiff peaks form (see the next step for how to check). It takes about 2 minutes of beating at high speed to reach stiff peaks. Tip: When using a stand mixer, I usually pause beating when the egg whites are almost done. I take off the whisk attachment from the mixer and use it to hand-mix the looser egg whites near the bowl‘s edge into the stiffer whites near the center until it‘s all homogenous in texture. Then, put the whisk back on and continue beating.
- To check for stiff peaks, pull up your beaters or whisk. The meringue in the bowl or on the whisk should be firm enough to hold a peak, pointing straight up (or maybe folding over a little bit just at the very tips). By this time, the meringue should have a glossy texture, too. Tip: If you overbeat the meringue, it will become very stiff and grainy and won't incorporate into the batter at all.
To Fold In the Meringue
- Using a spatula or hand whisk, add one-third of the meringue into the batter. Mix well by hand until it‘s homogeneous.
- Gently fold in another one-third of the meringue. Take care not to deflate the air bubbles in the meringue and batter as you fold.
- Finally, transfer the batter into the bowl with the remaining egg whites. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter without breaking the air bubbles. Once it‘s well combined and homogenous, fold the batter one last time and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure there is no zest accumulation. The final batter should fall in ribbons when you lift the spatula or whisk.
To Bake
- Prepare an ungreased 17-cm (7-inch) chiffon cake pan. From 6–8 inches high, pour the batter into the pan at just one spot to prevent air pockets from forming.
- Run a wooden skewer through the batter to release any remaining air pockets. While holding the removable base in place, gently tap the pan a few times on the work surface to release any air pockets in the batter.
- Put the cake pan on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Bake at 340ºF (170ºC) for 30 minutes. To check if it‘s finished baking, insert a toothpick or wooden skewer into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean and the top of the cake springs back when gently pressed, it‘s done. Tip: If the top of the cake gets dark too quickly, cover the top loosely with aluminum foil to prevent burning. (The cake may be too close to the heat source.)
- Remove the cake pan from the oven and gently drop the pan onto the work surface to shock the cake. This stops the cake from shrinking. To cool the cake, prepare a tall, heavy bottle with a long neck, such as a glass wine bottle. Invert the center tube of the cake pan onto the bottle's neck and let the cake cool completely in its pan. Cooling the cake upside down helps it stretch downward and maintain its loft.
- Once the cake is completely cool, run a long offset spatula around the outer edge of the pan and a small offset spatula around the inner tube. Gently take out the removable base and cake from the outer pan. Then, run the offset spatula along the bottom of the cake to release it from the base. Tip: I used to use a knife for this step, but the tip of the knife tends to poke the cake while moving around, so I now recommend using offset spatulas.
To Serve
- Invert the cake with the removable base onto a plate or cake stand. The cake will slide off the inner tube. Chiffon cake is served “upside down” with the flat bottom on top. Dust the top with 1 Tbsp confectioners’ sugar (optional) and sprinkle it with 1–2 Tbsp orange zest of long curly strips. Slice and enjoy!
To Store
- I strongly recommend consuming the cake sooner for the best freshness. However, you can keep the cake covered on a plate or stand at room temperature in a cooler place for 1–2 days. To keep it longer, wrap individual slices in plastic wrap or put in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 3 days or in the freezer for 2 weeks.
Notes
- Make sure your beaters and mixing bowl are clean and dry. A speck of oil or egg yolk on either one can minimize the volume of the beaten egg whites.
- Avoid plastic bowls, as even clean ones may hold oily residue that can affect the beaten quality of the egg whites.
- Use a bowl that’s wide enough to keep the beaters from being buried in the egg whites.
- Do not overbeat or underbeat the egg whites or your cake may fall. Egg whites should have a stiff peak, pointing straight up (or maybe a little bit folding over just at the very tips).
I tried making Chiffon cake for the first time and I decided to follow your recipe. The end result is an airy, bouncy and fragrant chiffon cake. Everyone in my family loves it. Thank you Namiko
Hi Sue! We are so happy to hear Nami’s instructions and tips worked very well for you!
Thank you very much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback.🙂
Very well detailed. I’ve had a hard time making chiffon cakes with so many fails. I will follow yours to the “T”
Thanks 🙏
Hi Jai, We hope this recipe works well for you! Thank you for trying this recipe!
Hello! The recipe is really easy to follow and make, so I’m ready to try the other recipes! The cake was soft and fluffy.
I do have one question. I left my cake to cook upside down, but the weird thing is, when I came back to check on it, juice dripped out?? The cake was all cooked through, only the bottom got all wet because juice dripped out. Has this every happened to you and what do you think went wrong?
Thanks!
Hi Claudia, Thank you very much for trying this recipe!
Hum… We have never experience juice dripped out from the cake. Is it happen during the baking or when you are letting it cool? If this happened when you were cooling the cake, the moisture might be built up.
Hi Naomi,
Sounds odd right? Hahaha. It was when I was cooling the cake, should it have been cooked longer? Or how do I prevent moisture from building up?
Hi Claudia, I see…First, We recommend making sure to bake through before taking out the cake from the oven by using the toothpick insert. The toothpick should come out clean, and the top of the cake springs back when gently pressed. Second, make sure to let it cool by stick the cake pan on a TALL, heavy bottle (Step 20) so that the moisture will escape. We hope this helps and your next baking will be successful! Good luck!
I’ve baked several chiffon cakes (vanilla, matcha, purple yam/ube, citrus, mocha) @ 325C for 45 minutes to 1 hr depending on pan size. They’ve always turned out so well despite some recipes calling for higher temperature and shorter baking time. I live in North America so I’m used to whipping egg whites at room temperature w/ cream of tartar. Should try it the Japanese method.
Hi Diana! Thank you very much for trying Nami’s recipe from North America! We hope the Japanese method would work well in your area, and you can enjoy this recipe! Let us know how it goes!🙂
Very fragrant and light orange chiffon cupcake!
Hi Niffler, Thank you very much for trying this recipe! We are so happy to hear it turned out well!
I made this as a sweet surprise for our New Year’s Day dinner and it was a big hit! I had a little problem with the egg whites, but I had started them in a plastic bowl, which is not the most conducive for making stiff peaks. Once I switched to my stand mixer, they came out perfect.
Hi Lisa!
Thank you very much for trying this recipe!
We are so happy to hear it turned out great, and it was a big hit! Yay!
Hi Nami! Thanks for your wonderful recipe.I’ve been making chiffon cake using your recipes and it’s been working out beautifully.
I’m planning on making a chiffon for a work party but a few guests are gluten free. I was wondering if you got any tips on how to convert your orange chiffon cake recipe to become gluten free?
Much appreciated
Anne
Hi Anne,
We’ve never used gluten-free flour for this recipe before, so we’re not sure how the outcome will be…But we see the reader tried it and said it turned out great.
Please let me know how it goes!
Hi Nami san!
Thank you for sharing this beautiful recipe. I tried to make the the first time, and turned out to be a success! I also tried the chocolate chiffon but had mocca icing on it. Sooooo delicious. If I could only send you a picture of what I did……Thanks too tired your tip on not using cream of tartar for the egg whites.
Hi Dana!
We are so happy to hear it turned out beautifully.
Thank you very much for trying this recipe and the Chocolate version!
excellent and flavourful chiffon! My mother adores this flavour, thank you so much for this recipe :))
Hi Rens,
We are so happy to hear she enjoyed this Chiffon Cake.
Thank you very much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback.😊
Hi, is it possible to change the carmadon pods to the powder form?
Hi Siah,
Sure. It may not have the same strong aroma as freshly grounded, but it will work.
We hope this helps!
I made my version of Gluten Free Mixed Berries Chiffon. Made it in a square 8inch alum pan with blended and sieved mixed berries and it turned out perfectly well! You should try this and include this flavor in your collection too! Cheers!
Hi Hayley!
Thank you very much for sharing your baking experience with us!🙂
The cake turned out great but it fell off the chiffon pan when I overturn it. Any idea why?
Hi Soo,
Thank you for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback!
Did you grease the mold or used non-stick bakeware? As Nami mentioned in Step 1, these will not work well for this Chiffon Cake. 😉
Thanks for your prompt reply! No I didn’t grease the pan or use a nonstick one. I used the same pan for the green tea chiffon cake and it sticks well to the pan when I overturn it.
I noticed the orange chiffon cake was a little wet in the inner ring and the cake seems a little more dense. I’m not sure if it’s the wet/dry ingredient ratio but I did measure the ingredients the best I could. Not sure how I can prevent it next time as I really love the recipe. Would increasing the amount of flour helps?
Hi Soo!
If the cake is not fully baked, it will drop when you make it upside down (or not) because the structure is not built properly inside. Try baking it a bit longer, and make sure you preheat the oven for a good decent time to make sure the oven is as hot as it specifies. And make sure to put the cake pan and close the door immediately to keep the heat. Otherwise, it will take a long time to get the temperature back. Also, make sure the meringue is correctly made and thoroughly blended with the cake batter to be consistent.
We hope this helps!🙂
Got it! Thanks for your suggestions, will definitely try that next time 🙂
Yey! Let us know how it goes!😊
Hi Nami! I tried this recipe & I love it! It’s very refreshing & zesty. I replaced Cardamom with cinnamon powder & it turned out great! I have also tried your Earl Grey Chiffon cake recipe & it’s wonderful!
Just 1 quick question on pre-heating the oven. Do you pre-heat to a higher temp than 170°C ? Cause when I open the oven to put the cake in, the temp dropped & took awhile to go back to 170 °C. Thank u! 🙂
Hi Honey! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe and Earl Grey Chiffon Cake! Thanks for trying both of them! In general, when you open the oven, you really have to put the cake pan right away (this is kind of like a basic rule for ALL baking recipes). You should be ready to pop it in and close right away, and you should never let the door down etc. You lose the heat so much. I preheat my oven to 170 ºC WHEN I START preparing (Step 1). You need to preheat the oven for a long time so the oven is really hot. Hope this helps!
Hi Nami! Thank you for your reply & advice. I will try it next time, to be as quick as possible when putting the cake pan in. Lucky my bakes turned out fine. 😂 It’s just that I find it difficult to maintain the same temp after opening the oven door. Thank u once again! 🙂
Hi Honey! No problem, it depends on the oven but everyone has similar issues too. The temperature won’t magically go up quickly, so preheating is VERY important so the oven inside is THOROUGHLY hot when you open and put the cake pan inside.
May I know why other oil cannot be used for chiffon except for vegetable or canola oil? Can I use coconut oil?
Hi VK! Coconut oil is typically not recommended because it doesn’t rise well.
https://www.cotta.jp/special/article/?p=1414
https://www.cotta.jp/special/article/?p=1475
Hope this article explains well (Use google chrome to translate).
Hi Namiko, I really want to try your orange chiffon cake recipe but my chiffon cake pan is 9. 5 inches (24 cm). Would you please advice how to adjust all the ingredients? Thank you so much!
Hi Jinny! Probably try with 10-inch pan measurement and don’t fill up the pan with all the batter. 🙂
https://www.justonecookbook.com/perfect-chiffon-cake/