Chiffon is the ultimate sponge cake. I show you my foolproof no-fail recipe, full of tips and tricks to ensure the perfect cake every time. Then, let's turn the plain Chiffon cake into a easy yet show-stopping Strawberry Shortcake, Chinese bakery style.

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Chiffon Cake Recipe

6" / 15 cm Cake
- 35g (2 tbsp + 1 1/2 teaspoon) veg oil
- 50g (1/2 cup minus 1 tablespoon) cake flour
- 50g (50 mL) milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 large eggs, ~50g each without shell
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar (sub 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar)
- 50g (1/4 cup) sugar

8" / 20 cm Cake

- 70g (5 tbsp) veg oil
- 100g (2/3 cup + 2 teaspoons) cake flour
- 100g (100 mL) milk
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 6 large eggs (300g), ~50g each without shell
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar (sub 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar)
- 100g (1/2 cup) sugar, added in 3 additions

Cake Pan

- 6" or 8" with removable bottom, no grease of flour (preferable) or non-removable bottom (see note for prep instructions)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 300F
2. In a large bowl, whisk together cake flour and oil. Add milk and vanilla. Whisk with a side-to-side motion until mostly combined. It's okay to have some lumps remaining.
3. Separate eggs, adding yolks directly to bowl with cake flour + oil, and eggs to a large clean mixing bowl.
4. Whisk egg yolks into the batter, again with a side-to-side motion, until the batter is smooth and forms a ribbon when dropped from the whisk. If it's too thick, add up to 2 tsp milk to thin out
5. Add cream of tartar to egg whites. Whip on high speed until white and foamy. Add in first 1/3 of sugar. Keep whipping on high speed until the egg holds a very very soft peak. Add in next 1/3 of sugar. Switch to medium speed. Whip until a soft floppy peak. Add in last 1/3 of sugar. Switch to medium-low speed. Whip until eggs hold a peak with a stiff base but a flexible tip.
6. Add 1/3 of the egg whites to the batter. Fold in with rubber spatula. Add batter back to rest of the egg whites. Gently fold until there are no streaks of white left in the batter.
7. Pour batter into a cake pan. Tap cake pan on counter a few times to get rid of air bubbles. Swirl a toothpick through the batter to further remove large air bubbles.
8. Bake at 300F for 50-55 minutes, until the top has cracked and turned a light golden. To test for doneness, gently press the top of the cake with a finger. It should not feel wet and should lightly spring back, though it might not spring back all the way. You may still hear sounds of the foam compressing when you press down. That's totally normal. Insert a bamboo skewer into the centre of the cake and it should come out mostly clean, maybe with one or two crumbs.
9. Immediate drop the cake pan twice on the counter to release excess hot air / steam. Quickly invert the pan onto two upside down bowls or a cooling rack. Let the cake cool for at least 90 minutes before removing from pan. Can also be left at room temperature overnight to cool.
10. Once cooled, press around the top of the cake to release from the sides. Run a thin knife all the way around the perimeter of the cake, pressing tightly against the inside of the cake pan. Pop up the bottom of the cake pan. Press around bottom edge of cake to release from base plate.
11. Serve plain or make into Strawberry Shortcake.

Using a non-removable bottom pan:

To prep a non-removable bottom pan, lightly brush only the inside bottom of the pan with a few drops of oil. Add 1/8 teaspoon flour and shake to distribute evenly. Discard excess flour. Proceed with recipe as usual.

To remove cake from non-removable bottom pan:

After running a knife around the perimeter of the cake, reach in between the cake and the side of the pan and press the cake in towards the centre. Repeat around the whole cake. This should detach the cake enough from the bottom for it to come out once the pan is inverted.

Strawberry Shortcake

- Double batch of Sheldo's Favourite Whipped Cream. Recipe here:    • Chocolate Banoffee Pavlova: Coffee Ca...  
- 2 lbs (~900g) strawberries, cored and halved

00:00 Chiffon Cake?

00:41 Welcome

01:13 Foam Cake Intro + What is Chiffon?

01:42 Recipe Starts!

01:54 Make Batter

02:36 Whisking Technique for Less Gluten

02:58 Continue Batter

03:31 Whip Egg Whites

05:24 Add Egg Whites to Batter

06:06 Cake Pan Talk

07:00 Bake Cake

07:48 Post-Bake + Cooling

08:11 Remove Cake from Pan

09:29 Chiffon Cake, So Soft

09:53 Strawberry Shortcake

11:04 Strawberry Shortcake Details

11:43 Outro