A savory cake with onion, carrot, and pork. Made with sesame oil and shiro-dashi, it has a flavor that could be described as either Japanese or Chinese-inspired.

Calories and prices are approximate values.

Onion, Carrot, and Pork Cake Salé Recipe (Instructions)

(1) Dice the carrots and onions.

(2) Sauté the pork (thinly sliced) and the vegetables from (1) in 10g of oil. First the meat, then the carrots, then the onions. Stop when the vegetables change color and soften slightly.

(3) Separate the two eggs into whites and yolks.

(4) Make a stiff meringue from the egg whites. Whisk with a hand mixer for about 1 minute, then add 10g of sugar and whisk for another minute. The meringue is now complete.

(5) Whisk the 2 egg yolks, 20g oil, 100g soy milk, 10g soy sauce, 10g shiro dashi, and 4g salt with a hand mixer for about 1 minute. Then add 100g flour and 1g baking soda (to make the dough fluffy) and mix with the hand mixer.

(6) Next, add the meringue and mix with a spatula.

(7) Finally, add the sautéed vegetables and meat and mix with a spatula. The dough is now ready.

(8) Line the bottom of the cake pan with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Then pour the dough into the cake pan and sprinkle 30g of cheese evenly over the top.

(9) Tap the bottom of the pan about a dozen times (to remove air bubbles), then place in a preheated oven (180°C). Bake at 180°C for 40 minutes.

(10) After it has cooled slightly, remove from the pan and cut. Perhaps thanks to the baking soda, it seemed to have risen and puffed up nicely.

The finished cake had a strong aroma of sesame oil and shiro dashi, and a savory taste that made me want to eat more rice. The dough around the pork had a texture similar to nikuman (steamed pork buns), giving it a flavor that could be described as either Japanese or Chinese. However, the dough itself was so flavorful that, unfortunately, I couldn’t really taste the cheese.