Judging by the popularity of Pocky and the way anime fans seem to adore Japanese goodies, I think its safe to say that Japanese sweets are gaining a foothold here in America. Believe it or not the Japanese have an extensive tradition in sweets dating as far back as 300 B.C. Truly Japanese sweets are called wagashi and have their origins in Japanese traditions while Western inspired sweets are called yogashi.
Japanese desserts – like most Japanese main courses – are fairly light. Although sugar is used in Japanese desserts, it’s usually not refined white sugar. A while back I needed a dessert to bring to a Japanese themed potluck. I immediately thought of cheesecake because it just screams summer, but I knew that I wasnt going to kill my friends by bringing a chemical laden cheesecake from a box.
So I hopped online and perused traditional Western cheesecake recipes. Dear god, the amount of cream cheese and eggs used in those recipes was enough to clog even the healthiest of arteries. Since I was hoping for something Japanese (I was going to make the cheesecake a lychee cheesecake to give it an “Asian” flavor) I searched for Japanese desserts and looky-looky, I found a Japanese cheesecake recipe!
Most cheesecakes on the market are like bricks of lard and are so rich that you want to hurl after one high caloric piece. This recipe has a fraction of the sugar, cream cheese and eggs than most cheesecake recipes but it has a rich yet light texture. Its also more labor intense than most cheesecake recipes but its 100% worth the effort.
INGREDIENTS:
- 7 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup superfine sugar (caster sugar aka baker’s sugar) This should be next to the rest of the sugars in a well stocked super market
- 3 eggs, separated
- 1/4 cup cornstarch (don’t use flour!!)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 1/2 cups boiling water
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray a 9-inch cake tin with cooking oil spray.
- Beat cream cheese with milk to soften.
- Add half of the sugar, all the egg yolks, all the cornstarch and all the lemon juice to the beaten cream cheese.
- Beat until smooth.
- Beat egg whites separately in a medium sized bowl until foamy. Do NOT let any grease get in the eggs whites or youre screwed and by screwed I mean your egg whites will fail to get fluffy and peak!
- Gradually add the remaining sugar and all of the cream of tartar to the egg whites, beating on high speed until soft peaks form, about 8-10 minutes. This may seem excessive but you must get those peaks!
- Gradually fold beaten egg whites into the cream cheese mixture, stirring gently. DO NOT BEAT them into the mixture.
- Pour into cake pan and smooth the surface.
- Place cake pan into a larger roasting pan and place in lower rack of oven.
- Pour enough of the boiling water into the roasting pan to come half way up the side of the cake pan.
- Bake 35-40 minutes or until a pick inserted in the middle of the center comes out clean.
- If the surface becomes too dark while baking cover with a piece of tin foil, but be careful not to open the oven door until it has been in the oven for at least 20 minutes.
- If you can, let the cheese cake (which is a soufflé in disguise) gradually cool for one hour in the oven with the oven turned off.
- If you like, you can treat the cheesecake like its Western counterparts and spread some fruit filling on top of it. (I dont recommend lychee as it overwhelms the cheesecake).
Japanese cheesecake is a very light, fluffy, not too sweet cheesecake with a very cheesecake-y flavour.
I like this recipe because its:
- Not as fattening as Western versions
- Has a rich, full flavour without being too rich
- Fluffy, and yet its a cheesecake…
I disliked this recipe because its:
- Labor intensive and time consuming
- The original instructions were confusing (hopefully I fixed that)
All in all, this recipe rocked, try it and lemme know how it turned out for you.
Difficulty: Moderate to Difficult Time: Aout one hour Ingredient Availabilty: Very Easy
I love cheesecake! This is one I’ll definitely try to make
>>”I think it’s safe to say that Japanese sweets are gaining a foothold here in America”
I found a pocky section in Walmart?! How long has that been there?
I saved the recipe, thanks.
Lenners, I love cheesecake too, and now I love it even more thanks to this recipe. This is a time consuming recipe, but it’s worth it. My advice to you when you first make is to not eat it all in one sitting like we almost did.
I did a trial run with this before I made it for the potluck and, whoa, we kept testing it all night. There were two pieces left the next day that walked away sometime that evening…
Yes, I too have found a Pocky section in Wal-mart and no, I have no idea when Pocky started invading Wal-mart…proof positive of a Japanese invasion.
or, on a visit to Japan or Singapore, buy lots and lots of the cheesecakes. they’re quite common and relatively inexpensive too. much much easier. =P
looks really gd! however, 35 degrees… is it in Farenheit or Celcius? I’m living in Singapore, and we use Celcius here… Thanks!
sorry, meant to say 350 degrees…
@Stefanie, it’s 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Are you going to try the recipe? Lemme know how it turns out for you ^^b.
thanks! it’s lovely! very soft and fluffy, unlike Western cheesecakes. although it’s easily available in stores here, i just thought i’d make 1 for my sis’ b/day. but the surface cracked a little… too hot?
@stefanie, did you try leaving it to slowly cool in the oven for an hour? Maybe the transition from hot oven to cool kitchen had a hand in the cracking. Next time, see if leaving it in the oven to completely cool (without peeking in) solves this problem.
Hi Rachel, I tried baking it again. Did as you suggested. Perfect!!! Looks much better now. Thanks a bunch!;>
@Stefanie, that’s great!! I’m going to make my friend this recipe for her B-day and top it with kiwi next week. I love this cheesecake!
Hi Rachel, sounds great! I tried topping it with cherries. The tartness of it really goes the cheesecake! Was thinking of making a choc cheesecake. Any idea how to do it?
Delicious cake! Too lemon juice though. It overpowered the actual “cheesecake” taste of the cake. I’m going to try it again with vanilla extract.
Hi Rachel,
I see it’s quite some time since you published this recipe, but I still want to thank you for it. It was by far the best I could find on the net, and I looked through quite a few I must say..!
I’m making it for a cozy gathering at the Dojo where I’m training the japanese martial arts Aikido. Hope they will like it!! But I think so… (^o^)/
Doumo arigatou!
-Sif
(from Denmark)
@Stephanie, if you used fresh lemon juice, I can see why the flavor could be overpowering; fresh lemon juice is much stronger than the stuff in a bottle.
@Sif, You’re very welcome! Lemme know if your dojo approves!
Hi Rachel, mine cracked when its like 10 mins left…please advise… gee*
@Li, Sorry to hear your cheesecake cracked
. Here’s some things to ask yourself when you’re cooking your cheesecake:
-Did I put enough hot water in the roasting pan?
-Did I keep the oven door closed the ENTIRE time?
-Is my oven staying at an even temperature?
If you said yes to all three, it may be a problem with the ingredients. Check to make sure everything is measured correctly and that you followed the directions carefully. If your cheesecake gives you grief the second time, after you were careful, come back and we’ll troubleshoot some more!
hmm..most prob shd be insufficient water in e roasting pan…hee..im trying it again tonight..wish me success!shall return w good news!i hope!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It’s really simple, i tried it once and it works out perfectly. Yummy – I am definitely baking this again. Thanks
@Angel, I’m glad you like it, but you should really thank the Japanese for creating this yogashi for me to share!
Theres a pocky section in walmart!? Really!? I found some chocolate and strawberry pocky in krogers just last night, Its was my first time to try it, And it was REAL good.
@Hanon, some Wal-marts have a small section of international foods. Pocky can sometimes be found there for about $1.50, depending on where you’re at in the country. I highly encourage you to sample more Japanese snacks if you can; they’re more imaginative and a bit more healthy than American junk food.
can i not use water bath?
i’m baking this in a pyrex round pan in a microwave
can’t do a waterbath due to space limitations.
@quinn, I seriously don’t think you can make this in a microwave and have it turn out. I have no idea how a microwave cheesecake would taste, but part (most) of me says not good. If you want to try it, go for it, but I highly, highly, highly advise against cooking any cake in a microwave, let alone a very sensitive cheesecake. So, yeah, you need the water bath…
is it possible to place a biscuit base at the bottom, like most other cheesecakes? will the water bath intefere with the base?
My cake pan started floating around in the water bath! ;OD It also means that the water did not come halfway up the pan, only about 1/3 up, but it turned out fine.
Thanks for the recipe, Rachel! It turned out fluffy-licious!
@jasang, it floated? Lol, that must’ve been a sight. I’m glad it still turned out. Did you fruitify it, i.e. decorate with fruit toppings and such, after it cooled?
I tried to bake with the instructions, but it didn’t rise as much as I would’ve liked it. It’s probably my fault. How do I get it rise above 1″?
-i had my cream cheese at room temp and my eggs as well
-i had a water bath
-i had my egg whites beaten for 10 min
*one thing that happened was that the cake was not at all brown, yet pale after 40 min in the oven at 350F, I did pre-heat it.
i saw another recipe that had cake flour and butter, it looked almost the same. what happens if i put cake flour in? will it help to rise the cake?
@mango, this may seem like a silly question, but how big was your cake pan? If it were bigger than 9″ I could see not having a very deep cake. Pan size aside:
-When you beat the eggs for, did they form peaks?
-Was the water for the water bath hot? When I first made this cheesecake, I didn’t preheat the water and the cake didn’t cook as quickly. It took a bit longer.
-You say the cake was pale, as in golden brown? It should be a golden color.
-Did you let the cake cool in the oven for an hour?
I don’t know what function butter would serve in the cheesecake. Maybe as a substitute for the milk? Personally, I wouldn’t use butter as I prefer a lighter cake. I haven’t used cake flour but it seems as if it would lend itself to fluffiness. Give it a shot and let us know how you fared!
Hi Rachel, thnx for the reply.
-I believe my egg whites did have peaks.
-the water bath was hot but not boiling, i will try to boil it next time
-the cake was pale white color at the end of 40 min, so i left in in there for an additional 10 min to get that golden brown color.
-I did let it cool in the oven, but halfway, i checked (keeping the oven closed) and the cake had shrunk down, flatter than it was.
One question though, is there any difference between the caster sugar and icing sugar? because i used the icing sugar.
@mango, yes, there’s a big difference between caster sugar and icing sugar, two actually:
1. Icing sugar, aka powdered sugar, is much finer than caster sugar, much.
2. Because the sugar is so fine, a tiny bit of cornstarch is added to prevent clumping.
I’m unsure as to the degree using icing sugar would whack the cake off its fluffiness course. I say give it another go (maybe halve the recipe to save on ingredients) and try it with the caster sugar. If you don’t have caster sugar, I’ve read how several people put regular table sugar in a blender or food processor to grind it finer. Don’t grind it too much, though, or you’ll end up with icing sugar. Good luck!
I found it imposible to get the peaks. I was doing it all by hand for a while then switched to electic ( which my mom failed to tell me we had in advance……). It’s in the oven now so we’ll see how that goes….
@kat, Zounds! By hand?! That’s one reason you might have had zip luck with the peak-age. Another reason peaks fail to form are :
-Not adding the cream of tartar (done that)
-Having even a tiny bit of grease or oil come in contact with the whites (have avoided that)
How did it eventually turn out?
it turned out fine. but I think it would of been fluffyer if I had gotten those peaks. I’m going to try again latter this week.
A bit of grease possibly got in, the cream of tartar went in.
My mom was saying latter after eating it…. that wipeing the bowls out with vinegar helps get rid of the possible grease
hi,
thanks for sharing the recipe.. I have a couple questions to ask.
1. The top of my cake was ‘cracked’! may i know what caused it? I couldnt acheive a smooth surface like yours after attempting this twice.
2. When baking, I could see that my cake started to rise. After about 10 mins, the top became brown so i covered with foil. However, after 1 hour of letting it rest in the oven, it sank. Why did it sank?
Thanks once again
)
@lisa,cracks are the bane of any type of cheesecake, and will show up unless you take some careful steps to prevent them. If you’re set on a perfect cheesecake, check out these helpful hints.
Hi Rachel,
Your recipe sounds delicious and I plan to try it soon. However, my oven has a fan function and a non-fan function. Question – should I use the fan function or not? And why?
Thanks in advance.
@Suef, are you referring to a convection oven? I’d say don’t try this with the fan on, otherwise it would cook too fast, possibly causing it to bubble and crack. Baking cheesecake requires a steady, lower temp. You could try it with the fan on, but maybe lower the temp 50-75 degrees, depending on your oven, make sure you have plenty of water in the water bath and cover the cheesecake with tinfoil beforehand. Good Luck!
Hi Rachel,
If I understand correctly, you baked yours in a bain marie at 350F (about 180C) without the fan for 35 to 40 mins, and then left it to cool in the oven for an hour (with the door ajar)?
I think I’ll do it your tried and true method to start with, before I experiment with other methods.
I’ve just tried baking the cheescake today. Is there a way to keep the cheesecake from deflating after turning off the oven? Also, my cheesecake turned out slighly soggy. Maybe bake it longer?
@Susan, This just happened to me! I was going to try baking it a lower temperature for longer, but forgot T_T. I piled on the kiwi and strawberries and no one was the wiser! Next time make sure you don’t peek in the oven for at least 20-30 minutes and try cooking longer at lower temps. Maybe try lowering it to 325 and baking for an hour.
Hi Rachel, just per curiosity would like to know where you got this recipe, in Japan, through a friend or you found it in the net? I wrote almost 5 years ago a recipe like that, same amount of the ingredients (and the word) don’t use flour was my version, so I would be surprised if you this recipe it’s your version. Best Regards.
@Maeva, I did indeed find this online. If this is your recipe, my apologies for not posting a link back. If you’ll send me your link to the original recipe, I’ll post it in the article where it says I found it online.
Hi Rachel, thanks, not sure you found the one I posted it also could be that someone else took my recipe and put it in an other website, I wouldn’t have found it if a person wouldn’t have written that there is an other link for this japanese recipe and so he put your link (you can see his message in the comment (right side).
http://www.recipezaar.com/Japanese-Cheesecake-90032
For me it’s no problem, I am happy to see that you like the cake, I was just surprised about the person who probably didn’t really look at the ingredients well, because it’s similar, your recipe has perhaps more explanations that’s why he perhaps put your link.
Have a nice week.
Hi Rachel, thank you very much for the link, I think last time I didn’t write it correctly, now I clicked and it’s right, there is no % before the numbers.
Thanks again, take care.
hello! i’m just wondering, really cant use an all-purpose flour? haha! cause i researched and they actually substitutable so yeaa. thanks!
Thanks for the recipe, I haven’t baked the cake yet and only just realised that the ‘cream cheese’ I purchased is the spreadable type, not the ones that come in a block. It says cottage and cream cheese blend on the side. Will this affect the recipe? SHould I get a proper block of cream cheese instead?
do you know how many grams is 7 ounces ?and how much grams should i use for this recipe ?because in my country ,it seems like we measure ingredients in grams .
would appreciate if you could convert the measurement for me .
thanks
@captain, this probably getting to you wayyyy too late, but yes, I think it would affect the recipe- drastically! Let us know if it turned out, however.
@smile, I’m of the “teach a man to fish-they’ll eat for a lifetime” school of thought, so check this out: http://www.onlineconversion.com/weight_volume_cooking.htm