Earl Grey Chiffon Cake

Before You Start: Gather all the ingredients. I highly encourage you to weigh your ingredients 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.

Preheat the oven to 340ºF (170ºC). For a convection oven, reduce the 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.

To make tea powder, put 2 tsp Earl Grey loose tea leaves in a food processor (I used a Nutribullet here). Grind them to a fine powder. Alternatively, you can use a mortar and pestle to grind the tea leaves, or put tea leaves in a bag and crush them. Transfer to a small bowl and set it aside.

To brew strong tea, put 1 Tbsp Earl Grey loose tea leaves in a fine sieve over a bowl. Next, pour 6 Tbsp hot water over the tea leaves to steep. Let it cool, then remove the tea leaves. Measure 4 Tbsp (60 ml) of this brewed tea and set it aside.

Separate 3 large eggs (50 g each w/o shell) into egg yolks and whites. Keep the eggs whites in a stand mixer bowl; refrigerate or freeze the 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.

Start mixing the batter. In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and one-third of the 85 g sugar with a hand whisk. Whisk vigorously until it‘s a creamy pale yellow color. 

Take out the bowl of egg whites from the refrigerator or freezer. Set the bowl on the stand mixer with a whisk attachment (I used the KitchenAid Professional Series). Start whipping the egg whites on medium-low speed (Speed 4) 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 (Speed 10) and gradually add the remaining sugar in small increments. Beat vigorously until stiff peaks form. It takes about 2 minutes of beating at high speed to reach stiff peaks. Tip: I usually pause beating when the egg whites are almost done. 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 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.

Using a spatula or hand whisk, add one-third of the meringue into the batter. Mix well by hand until it‘s homogeneous.

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. 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. Run a wooden skewer through the batter to release any remaining air pockets.

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 confectioners’ sugar on top, if you‘d like. Slice and enjoy.

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.