Update: this recipe was originally published in September 2017 and has been worked on in 2021.
Japanese cheesecake. I have always wanted to try it. Japanese cheesecake is a very delicate matter. It has to be handled as careful as raw eggs. It does contain a lot of eggs. Maybe that’s why it is as light as a feather. No, this is not your typical American cream cheese cake. It is closer to an angel’s food cake than anything else. It has cream cheese, yes, but the eggs help to create this very creamy and light texture.
It may sound silly, but when I made this cake the first time, it was like a meditation. I won’t deny, this is definitely not an easy cake. It requires time and dedication. But if you are willing to give it a shot, you will just need to take one step at a time. Don’t rush anything, just check off the instructions one item at a time. And then you will get this creamy and silky cheesecake. Japanese style and maybe drink a cup of tea with it. And relax a little.
A few tips:
- Be sure that your eggs are at room temperature. If you forgot to take them out on time, put them in a bowl filled with warm water.
- Prepare your spingform carefully and make sure it is deep enough. This cake rises a lot, I used extra parchment paper for the sides.
- Don’t substitute. You won’t get the same result.
- Be patient and don’t rush anything. Especially when waiting for the cake to cool off.
If you keep these things in mind, you will have a feather greeting from Japan.
Credit: Just One Cookbook
This Japanese Cheesecake is as cloudy as an Angel Food Cake and is close to a souffle. Prepare a deep springform of 24-26cm in diameter by placing parchment paper on the bottom and all around the sides. Be sure that it does not leak. I usually cover the outside with aluminum foil. Sift flour and cornstarch in a small bowl twice and set aside. Zest half the lemon and squeeze to get the lemon juice, set aside. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites. Be sure to keep the egg whites in a grease-free bowl. Leave both at room temperature. Prepare a double-boiler and place cream cheese, butter, butter, heavy cream and 60 grams of sugar in second bowl. Heat at medium heat while stirring. Remove from heat. Whisk in egg yolks, one at a time until well blended. Then add lemon juice and lemon zest. Sift flour and corn on top and whisk until well blended. Set aside. Preheat the oven to about 180 degrees Celsius with a deep-dish baking sheet. Pour water in the baking sheet about two centimeters high. Then whip up egg whites with a mixer on medium speed. Add a pinch of salt once you started and beat until foamy. Usually takes only a few minutes. Gradually add 100 grams of sugar while beating on high speed. Unlike meringue, for Japanese cheesecake the egg whites only need to have medium peaks. This means that if you take out the mixer, marks should be seen and some meringue clinging to the mixer whisks for a few seconds, but then flop over. Now it's all about being gentle and only using a whisk. First add one third of the meringue to the cream cheese mix. Try not to take out air, folding by making the movement of the number 8. The add the second third and lastly the third. You should have a silky batter, light in texture and easy to pour. Pour into prepared springform, tap a few times to take out air bubbles and place in oven with baking sheet filled with water. Reduce oven temperature to 160 degrees and bake for about 70-75 minutes. Be sure not to open the oven door during this time. Reduce temperature to 150 degrees and bake 10 more minutes, then turn off oven. Put a wooden spoon or something similar in the oven door and let cake cool this way still inside the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes. If you take the cake out too quickly, it will shrink much more than desired. Now take out of the oven and let cool. Cake will shrink (this is normal). Take out springform once fully cooled and decorate to your liking. This cake freezes beautifully. I recommend freezing prepared slices.Japanese Cheesecake
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
11 Comments
Anne
Sunday February 7th, 2021 at 10:37 AMLiebe Jenny
Sehr lecker und noch warm am Besten. Hab ihn gestern gebacken und bin begeistert. Hab das Mehl aber nur 1x gesiebt – war kein Problem 😉
Dankeschön,
Anne
Jenny
Sunday February 7th, 2021 at 10:58 AMLiebe Anne, das klingt super, wie schön!
Reimund Hörnemann
Monday October 18th, 2021 at 05:50 PMder macht ein wenig süchtig ich habe jetzt in 2 Woche den dritten gebacken jetzt macht das Rezept in der Familie die runde.
das ist mit Abstand der beste Käsekuchen den wir gegessen haben.
Jenny
Monday October 18th, 2021 at 06:53 PMOh, das sind ja sehr nette Worte, danke! Wenn du magst, kannst du auch noch Sterne verteilen.
Norma
Wednesday April 20th, 2022 at 05:56 PMI am an American living in Hamburg and anxious to try your recipe.
It looks dreamy. Just hope that it is not too difficult to tackle.
Jenny
Wednesday April 20th, 2022 at 05:58 PMWell, it is a bit of work, but you will manage. The result is to die for! Just make sure you have a scale to use and let me know the outcome.
N.G.
Tuesday December 26th, 2023 at 12:28 PMBei mir geht der Käsekuchen nicht auf?
Mache alles wie angegeben.
Jenny
Tuesday December 26th, 2023 at 01:23 PMWie meinst du das?
N.G.
Thursday December 28th, 2023 at 05:52 PMEr war sehr flach und niche fluffig.Ich habe jetzt eine kleinere Form verwendet und das Eiweiss richtig geschlagen. Aber geschmacklich schmeckt er sehr nach Frischkäse. Wie soll er denn am Ende schmecken? Vielleicht verwende ich das nächste Mal Vanillezucker.
Jenny
Thursday December 28th, 2023 at 06:05 PMHi, also aus der Ferne ist es sehr schwer zu sagen wo das Problem war. Ist er beim Backen denn aufgegangen oder war die ganze Zeit nichts zu sehen? Ich würde jetzt, ohne Genaueres zu wissen, darauf tippen, dass evtl. die Ofentemperatur zu hoch war. Hast du ein Ofen-Thermometer?
Er schmeckt auf jeden Fall nach Frischkäse und nach Eiern, definitiv, sind ja auch die Hauptzutaten. Stell dir die Konsistenz wie einen Käsekuchen als Soufflé vor. Er sollte fluffig sein, dass er wabbelt. Bzgl. Eiweiß will ich ihn tatsächlich bald wieder machen und kann dann mal schauen, ob es einen Unterschied macht, wenn ich das Eiweiß ganz steif schlage. Ich berichte. Bisher habe ich es nicht gemacht und es funktioniert trotzdem. Vanilleextrakt oder -zucker ist sicherlich eine Option, aber ich meine nicht im japanischen Original enthalten.
Jenny
Sunday February 4th, 2024 at 01:47 PMSo, ich habe ihn jetzt nochmal gebacken. Falls dein Kuchen beim Backen nicht aufgegangen ist, ist definitiv was falsch gelaufen, wie gesagt ist es ein Soufflé, sprich, er geht auf und sackt dann etwas ein, wenn er abkühlt. Diesmal habe ich das Eiweiß sehr steif geschlagen. Es klappt. Ich will ihn jetzt noch einmal nachbacken und das Eiweiß nur bis zu weichen Spitzen schlagen, wie im Rezept angegeben. Mal schauen, ob ich irgendeinen Unterschied merke.
Wie dem auch sei, ja Ei und Frischkäse schmeckt man sehr, sind ja auch die Hauptzutaten. Berichte gerne, falls du ihn nochmal nachmachst.