The best moist chiffon recipe
I must have made the pandan chiffon at least a thousand times over my lifetime. It is always a favorite for breakfast, and everyone seems to love it. The Daughter asked me the help make this for the ‘Harmony’ Day in her office. This cake is chosen because it truly represents Singapore in our opinion.
The Moistest Pandan Chiffon Cake
Equipment
- 1 Kitchenaid Mixer Otherwise, use muscles to whip.
- 1 Egg Beater/Whip
- 1 Aluminium Tube Pan
Ingredients
Meringue
- 7 no Egg Whites
- 210 g Sugar (I used plain white sugar)
Egg Yolk Mixture
- 7 no Egg Yolks
- 80 g Oil
- 80 g Coconut Milk
- 40 g Water
- 2 tbsp Pandan Essence adjust to your taste
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 210 g Self-Raising Flour
- 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 165C
Make the Egg Yolk mixture first
- Place egg yolks, oil, water, coconut milk, salt and pandan essence into a large bowl and mix. Do not over mix.
- Sift and add in the self-raising flour and baking powder.
Make the meringue
- Beat the egg whites till foamy.
- Add the sugar gradually, beat another 4 or 5 minutes (or until the egg whites are shiny) to medium to stiff peaks.
Folding in
- Mix 1/4 of the meringue into the egg yolk mixture to 'loosen' the mixture.
- Fold in the rest of the meringue into the egg yolk mixture.
Baking
- Pour the mixture into the tube pan, and wipe the batter off the sides. Run a knife through the mixture to remove excess bubbles. Shake to even the surface. Do not bang or try to remove more air bubbles.
- Bake for 1 hour at 160 to 165C.
- Ready when a skewer inserted comes out clean. Do not open the oven before the 1 hour mark.
Cooling
- Cool the cake completely upside down. Remove from the mold using a spatula. Cut the sides clean to unmold.
It’s super easy to make if you know how to make a good meringue, but make sure you do not overbeat it. I don’t really like my meringue to have stiff peaks; I prefer it slightly, just slightly under stiff peaks, as it is far easier to fold into the egg yolk mixture. In addition, beating egg whites to stiff peaks is too risky; it’s easy to overbeat them.
So here are the important steps to note when making the pandan chiffon:
- Make a good meringue. To do that, beat the egg whites until foamy first, and then add the sugar slowly. Beat it to almost stiff peaks. If the meringue is broken (like clouds rather than creamy), either add more egg whites to repair it or start over.
- Never overbeat the egg yolk mixture. Do not allow gluten to form when mixing the egg yolk mixture, and ensure the flour is completely mixed in with no lumps visible to the eye.
- Always use a light-colored tube cake pan with legs (to stand when you are cooling the cake), and never grease it.
- When baked, cool the cake upside down. Don’t be tempted to unmold it before it is totally cooled down. This is a moist cake, so it can collapse if unmolded too soon.
To judge the right meringue ‘doneness,’ check that it is super shiny. This recipe is super moist, so you don’t have to worry about dryness. If you want the cake very fragrant, consider the following:
- Use freshly squeezed coconut milk instead of coconut milk from a carton or powder.
- Use freshly ground pandan leaves and half the pandan essence.
- Salt. Don’t forget to add that 1/2 teaspoon of salt. It makes all the difference.
This version is easy and fast. It takes 10 minutes to prepare and 1 hour to bake. It will be perfect, scarless, moist, and yummy. Enjoy!
