Perfect Chiffon Cake. Foolproof Method. Soft & Airy

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.

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

- 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

[nataliedavis]

I made this cake (with the strawberries and suggested cream) and took it to an event. Everyone said it was the best sponge they have ever had. Cake didn't last 24hrs.

Instructions and measurements were easy to follow and guaranteed the great result.

Thanks for great recipe!

[colo]

OMG! with your Chiffon cake recipe, I became my family's official cake baker. Everyone praises my cakes as the softest and airiest cakes they ever had before. I also used your Chiffon cake recipe for the Asian paper-wrapped cupcakes, and they loved it. Thank you!

[Benlands]

I have returned to say that this is the best sponge I have made. So bouncy and light but still moist! I think your techniques really help! Also, the cake does take syrup very well (for flavouring, not for moistening), structure totally intact. Thank you!!

[aaronwest]

I made the cake assembling it now tell you how happy my wife is. It’s her birthday and her dad would make her a strawberry shortcake for her birthday. He now rests in peace and we miss him and I know she does especially on her birthday so this cake has a lot of meaning and memories attached to it! I say that to say I appreciate you and your chiffon 😂

[michaelbendavid]

this is channel is criminally underrated, Thanks Sheldo for the content you provide!

[lml]

After baking a chiffon cake for the first time some years ago, all other cakes are like meh!! It is so perfect in every way that I just can’t settle for any other sponge. No way! ❤️ 🍰

[Undeadsweater]

I appreciate how you give some food science explanations to help us understand why certain methods work better than others.

It’s also such good timing that I found your channel! I watched your stabilized whipped cream video, since I’m making a white/vanilla cake with whipped cream frosting and strawberries for my mom for Mother’s Day. Funny that is basically what you made here too.

[tvaddict]

I made this cake and it was a huge success! Despite being a beginner baker who was nervous about making a cake for the first time, I encountered no issues because Sheldo's instruction and explanation were so clear and easy to follow. The cake came out light, springy, and not too sweet. I ended up using mangos instead of strawberries and people loved it. Thank you!

[evamoor]

I've been trained as a confectioner in Eastern Europe. While here we have different categorization for - as you have called them - foam cake types, most of the tips shared in this video were taught in culinary school, too. Your patient, detailed explanations for example on how to handle meringue are spot-on. Also how gluten forms in the batter - useful knowledge for everyone wanting to bake.
What professional confectioners here do a bit differently is encorporating it into the batter: on my exam it counted as a minus point if I lifted the spatula from the bottom of the bowl (one of the instructors yelled at me to "stop stroking it, it's not a cat"), but the rotating movement and mixing one third of the egg whites are the same.
As I said above, we have quite different foam cake categories (i.e. angel food cake is non-existing here and chiffon is also quite new as a concept), but I can't wait to try this one. Thank you!

[j.mao_]

A hidden gem! Stumbled upon this channel when I was researching what whipped cream stabilizers to use. Made this cake for my brother's birthday today and was definitely not disappointed! 🍰

[emzinspiredcreations]

I’ve made this cake several times…it really is the best sponge cake recipe I’ve ever made. I love it!!! Now can you make then best chocolate cake? 😁

[nph]

Incredibly fool proof! Approved by a fool! I made this for my bf's birthday with the whipped cream recipe. He loved it!❤

[graymaza]

Ive made meringue countless times and I’ve never understood what the perfect peaks look like and why until you explain it!

[baubble]

Your technique descriptions are equally comprehensive and user friendly. That is so appreciated. Thank you from a casual baker 😁

[ayeshak]

Oh my gosh, I love you! You really are the best baking instructor on youtube! An actual food scientist. ❤ Your detailed explanations for all the techniques are so helpful. Keep it up, Sheldo!

[xAlbinopiratex]

This is the cake I have been looking for for YEARS!
I always thought it was a sponge cake, I didn't realise it was Chiffon!
So everytime I would buy or make a sponge cake, I couldn't understand why it was so sweet, and didn't taste how I was expecting it to!
Thank you! 😁

[CaptainSwanEternity]

Oh my God, I learned so much from this video. You’ve 100% sold this cake to me and I’ll definitely be making it for my birthday in a couple of weeks. I found your channel from the stabilized whipped cream video and already went through a couple more, gotta say I’m impressed by the scientific knowledge, careful step by step instructions with each step explained, your lovely voice and personality *chefs kiss* 🙌🏻

[itstonycia]

I liked how you explain the reasoning behind doing certain steps like mixing oil with the cake flour. I’m saving this to my cooking playlist 🍰

[r.z]

I made this cake for my sisters birthday!! I was honestly worried that I may have messed up a step but it turned out perfect there was no more cake at the end of the party 😂 they asked for the recipe too!!

[munchkin]

Best chiffon cake recipe ever! I used this recipe 3x and everyone in my family loves it! It's like eating cotton 😋