Old style Chinese egg cake calls everybody’s childhood memory. This is also referred as mini Chinese sponge cake.
I am always wondering where those yummy little cakes are originated. But I am familiar with them when I was just a little girl. At that time, cakes were quite treasure because we cannot make them at home. However they are always available at larger stores. You can even smell the aroma from miles away.
Growing up, I love to recall the food in my childhood from time to time. At the very beginning, this Chinese egg cake is steamed other than baked. Then at sometime, baked version was on almost every store. Compared with steamed version, I prefer baked version because I can still taste the raw egg taste even after adding lemon zest in the batter.After made this successfully around two weeks ago, I make this little egg cake at least twice every weekend for a quick breakfast.
There are many easy and quite yummy cakes during my childhood. This one is made with egg and flour and we have another one made with yeast and rice flour, check that recipe here-Chinese steamed rice cake(sometimes is also known as sugar cake)
The muffin tin I am using is around 50*15mm for each cupcake.
The most important step of this recipe is to whip the egg until really light(white and no large bubbles anymore). I would suggest using warm water to speed up the process in cold winter days.
I got lots of requests concerning about measuring the ingredients in volume like cups, tablespoons and teaspoons.For traditional Chinese stir fries or soups, I used to skip any measurement process and made adjustment based on personal experience. But I started measure in volume especially for seasonings once I realize that reliable personal experience need years of practice. I use my kitchen scale for almost all of my baking and dessert recipes, as the precise ingredient amounts are so important of a successful baking. So Elaine still highly recommend buying yourself a kitchen scale. Technology changes cooking skill only if you use it.
However, I understand that many of you come across with a desperately needed recipe but there is no kitchen scale on hand. So I update this recipe with volume measurement. I am using US volume measurement. So 1 cup=240ml, 1 tablespoon=15 ml and 1 teaspoon=5ml.
Chinese Egg Cake
Ingredients
- 2 middle size eggs ,room temperature eggs
- 60 g cake flour ,1/2 US cup
- 40 g castor sugar ,around 3 tablespoons+1 teaspoon
- 5 g oil ,olive oil or other vegetable oil around 3/4 teaspoon
- warm water ,for speeding up the whipping process, not required in summer days.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C around 350F.
- Prepare a larger container and add half full warm water, then place your mixing bowl on the warm water. Add eggs and castor sugar. Whip at medium speed until light and fluffy. And then use low speed to remove some large bubbles. This step is the key of success and may take 12- 15 minutes until the mixture reach the ribbon stage.
- Shift flour in. Then use a spatula to combine well. And lastly add oil and well combined too.
- Prepare a mini 12 paper lined muffin tin mold and pour the batter in.
- Bake at the middle rack for 15 to 20 minutes until the surface is well colored.
Notes
Nutrition
These chinese egg cakes definitely take me back to my childhood.. I used to eat them ALL the time. Thanks for reminding me how delicious they are, I definitely need to make them myself soon!
This is my childhood food too. Very treasure memories.
how can u bake a big cake with this
Sure Hayley. Lots of Chinese birthday cake is made with this type of cake, called as sponge cake. But you will need to lengthen the baking time to 25 to 30 minutes.
What about the egg yolk ? Do we mix them too ? Or just the white egg
Whisk the entire eggs, including the egg yolk.
Hi Elaine,
I have tried your recipe 3 times now. I am doing something wrong but I am not sure what. I made my own cake flour and “blended” my own castor sugar. First and second times, the cupcakes came out compact and dense. This last time the cupcakes came out plump and beautiful, however, when I took them out of the oven, they deflated! Please advise. Thank you!!
Hi Salena,
I failed about twice before the final success. If the cake came out compact and dense, there might be two reasons: first, the egg is not whipped enough; second you kill almost the bubbles when blending with flour. Next time, use some warm water to make sure you can whip the egg to a perfect degree (around 7-10 minutes). And be gentle when mixing the flour.
If they deflated, the batter is not well mixed and there are extra large bubbles inside. When cooling down, the larger bubbles will become smaller, which cause the collapse of the cupcake. The final batter should be very smooth and without larger bubbles. If you use two egg and similar baking tool as me, the batter should be just perfect for the muffin tin.
Does all purpose flour work the same?
Thanks.
No Helena,
Low-gluten flour is a must for the fluffy cakes. So I am sorry all-purpose flour cannot work the same.
For the oil, what does the “g” stand for? Grams? But that is for weight. How many cups of oil does the recipe need? Thanks!
Hi Isabella,
Yes g stands for grams. We weigh the ingredients. 5g is around 1 teaspoon. You can slightly add more.
Hi
How much the amount of water
In cup
Hi Abir,
The warm water listed in the recipe is just use to speed up the egg whipping process. So it is depending on your tool. Besides, warm water will not be require in hot summer days.
Hi, do I have to whip the eggs until stiff peak or just until soft. Also if I whip by hand, how long should it take?
Hi Anne,
I have not tried to whip by hand, I use electric mixer and usually it will take around 7-9 minutes. The status of the egg should be nearly stiff peak and you can see obvious grains on the surface.
Hi,
Can I substitute the cake flour with self raising flour instead?
Thks!
Hi Doreen,
Cake flour (low gluten) actually is our best choice for this baked egg cake. Self raising flour may change the texture a little bit.
Hi Elaine,
If we prepare the dough/mixture for the egg cake today n bake it tomorrow morning, would it affect the taste n the texture of the cake? Tks for your help
Hi Irene,
I think it is not a good idea as the air in the dough might skip out and make the cake not fluffy as immediately baked one. I would suggest to bake it in the first night if you want to serve them as a breakfast. After cooling down, store them in air-tight bags and reheat for minutes if necessary. I used to bake the cake in the previous evening and serve as my daughter’s breakfast.
Hi Elaine,
Thank for your kind advise. Will try out advise. Have a great week ahead.
Cheers
You are the most welcome! Irene.
I’m planning on making this since I love buying sponge cakes when going to the Chinese bakery! I want to make these in regular-sized muffin tins instead of min-sized ones, so how long would I bake them? Thank you for the awesome recipes!
Hi Chloe,
I have not tried to make a regular muffin size yet. You can lengthen the baking time to 25 minutes to 30 minutes. Watch carefully at the last stage and so not let the cake rise too high. You can insert a toothpick to test it. If it comes out clean, then the cakes are done.
Hi looks yummy. Is there no baking powder?. Thanx
Hi ms,
The traditional version calls for no baking powder. The whipped egg holds the air. However you can add some to easy the process.