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Crème Caramel

Crème Caramel

Active time: 30 min
Total time: 300 min
Serves: 6–8
Crème caramel, which is sometimes referred to as flan, is a rich and easy-to-make custard dessert. Once baked, it is unmolded and served upside-down to expose the signature caramel underneath.

Chef's notes

Crème Caramel is a classic French dessert that is quick to make and even more fun to eat. Any leftovers will keep for a few days in the refrigerator. There are many recipes for Crème Caramel. Some are made with cream and egg yolks and/or with flavorings added. This recipe is lighter than some versions and it's not so heavy to have at the end of a meal. For a more delicate texture, make this recipe with four eggs.

Steps

1

Preparing the Caramel | Sugar Syrup

Preparing the Caramel | Sugar Syrup

Ingredients

  • 4 oz sugar
  • water (enough just to cover)
First preheat the oven to 350 °F (175° C) and have your ramekins (molds) ready. Depending on the size of the ramekins you may need 6 to 8 of them. To start the caramel, place the sugar into the pot and add enough water just to cover. The more water that is added, the longer the sugar will take to caramelize. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Do not stir. Brush the sides of the pot with a clean pastry brush dipped in water to prevent any sugar crystals from crystallizing, if needed. As soon as the sugar starts to color, gently swirl the pan to ensure the sugar is caramelizing evenly. This should take about 10 minutes or so. Once the desired caramel color has been achieved, quickly pour a bit of the caramel into the bottom of each ramekin. Note: Until you get used to making caramel, you can remove the pot from the burner just before you think it is ready and then just gently swirl the pot around. The residual heat from the pot will continue to darken the sugar. This just sort of slows down the process a tiny bit so you don't happen to overcook the sugar. The caramel will be VERY hot, so DO NOT touch it. As it sits, it will harden. This is what is supposed to happen. Note: To clean the caramel from the pot (and the ramekins later), fill the pot with water and bring to a simmer. The caramel will just melt away into the hot water.
2

Preparing the Vanilla Custard

Preparing the Vanilla Custard

Ingredients

  • 2 cups whole milk (500 ml)
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 6 large eggs
  • 100 g sugar (just under 1/2 cup)
To prepare the custard, scald the milk, which means to bring it almost to the boiling point. Meanwhile, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and vanilla until just combined.
3

Finishing and Straining the Custard

Finishing and Straining the Custard
To finish the custard, slowly temper the warm milk into the egg mixture while constantly whisking. Once done, strain the custard into a large measuring cup or jug that has a spout. This will make it easier to pour the custard into the ramekins.
4

Filling and Baking the Crème Caramel

Filling and Baking the Crème Caramel
Place the ramekins into a large, oven-proof baking dish. Evenly distribute the custard between the ramekins, filling them about three-quarters full. Next, fill the baking dish with very hot water until the water rises about half way up the ramekins. This will create a bain marie, which will cook the custards more evenly. For more information on this, watch the end of Step 1 of the Crème Brulee Recipe. Carefully transfer to the oven, making sure you don't get any water inside the ramekins. Let the custards bake for approximately 35 to 40 minutes or until they are just set but still jiggle in the center (like in Step 2 of this Creme Brulee). If some are done before the others, remove them from the bain marie and transfer them to a cooling rack.
5

Chilling & Serving the Crème Caramel

Chilling & Serving the Crème Caramel
Once done, place the custards into the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or even overnight. To serve, slide a thin paring knife between the custard and the inside rim of the ramekin. Try to stay as close as possible to the edge and try to be a smooth as possible (one motion) so that the edge of custard comes out as smooth and clean as possible. Once the custard is loose, place a small plate over the top and then carefully flip the whole thing over, making sure to keep the plate secure with your fingers. If the custard seems to be sticking a bit just give it a little nudge it should come out quite easily. It may just need a bit of air to get inside to loosen the custard. Serve.

27 Comments

  • Andrew L
    Andrew L •
    I have not made this yet but have a question. Maybe there is an obvious answer to this when making the recipe, but should the caramel be stored in the refrigerator overnight? If so would it then need to be heated or at room temperature before pouring it over the custard?
    Reply
  • Kimberley S
    Kimberley S • Rouxbe Staff •
    No, the caramel cannot be stored separately overnight. It is poured into the ramekins and the custard is then poured over that. The dessert is left to set in the refrigerator. Once it has chilled long enough, the whole dish is unmolded together. Cheers!
    Reply
  • Andrew L
    Andrew L •
    Thanks Kimberly, from the picture it looks as though it was added afterward also. It must spread after being refrigerated. I appreciate the response.
    Reply
  • Barb H
    Barb H •
    What purpose does scalding the milk serve in this recipe?
    Reply
  • Dawn T
    Dawn T •
    In this case, we are just saying to heat the milk to just before the boiling point (you should see small bubbles around the sides of the pot). The hot milk will ensure that the sugar gets fully dissolved into the custard base. Cheers!
    Reply
  • Alexandre S
    Alexandre S •
    My caramel was too hard to be easly poured. A lot of it remained stuck to the pan. What I did wrong?
    Reply
  • Christophe K
    Christophe K • Rouxbe Staff •
    Pas de probleme, simply put back the pot with caramel on the stove to melt it back until it is ""pourable"'. Bonne chance.
    Reply
  • Alexandre S
    Alexandre S •
    Hi. I repeated this recipe four times trying to control the heat and the cooking time. But I couldn't avoid getting a skin on the surface of the cooked custard in all the trials, even for a relatively undercooked custard. How can I solve this? Thanks in advance.
    Reply
  • Kimberley S
    Kimberley S • Rouxbe Staff •
    I'm not entirely clear at what point in the process you are getting a skin on the surface. If you are referring to a skin that may occur after baking, next time you can loosely cover the baking pan with foil... but not too tight - this can cause the water to come to a boil and any steam that is trapped can also fall into the custards and water them down. Also, make sure your oven isn't running too hot. Custards love gentle heat, so feel free to also reduce the temperature by 25-50 degrees. Hope this helps. Cheers!
    Reply
  • Rosalie K
    Rosalie K •
    I tried making this for the first time, and found that my sugar tasted burnt. I must not have taken it off the heat quickly enough, so know for next time. The colour looked about what I thought it should be, but I guess it must have been too dark. I think next time, I would pour a bit of the caramel onto a piece of tin foil or something and then taste it when it got cool enough, before proceeding to finish the dish. It's a great recipe though... just need some more practice :)
    Reply
  • Ken R
    Ken R • Rouxbe Staff •
    Hi Rosalie- The heat from the pan will continue to cook the sugar for some time, so pulling it from the heat when it just develops golden coloration is a good idea. Once you do it a few times, you'll get the hang of it. Good luck!
    Reply
  • Ivano V
    Ivano V •
    Hi, are you sure that we need to use whole eggs in this recipe? Because for me it tastes like omelet now=(
    Reply
  • Kirk B
    Kirk B •
    Hi Ivano - Great comment - we haven't tried this particular recipe without whole eggs but I definitely encourage you to try another approach and let us know what you think. I've tired other Creme Caramel recipes that use liquid egg whites in the past - and the results were positive so I believe it's possible to alter this recipe to create a lovely Creme Caramel without the whole eggs. I look forward to your feedback Ivano! Thanks for learning with Rouxbe! Chef Kirk
    Reply
  • Ivano V
    Ivano V •
    I've tried a couple other recipes and I'm not sure I can post them here, but it's much better when creme fraiche instead of Half the milk, and with less eggs and half of them - only egg yolks. I still don't know the perfect recipe, but it's the beginning=)
    Reply
  • Eric W
    Eric W • Rouxbe Staff •
    Thanks so much for following up, Ivano! We love to hear the results of your experimentation. Your suggestions sound like they would result in a nice variation of this recipe. Your comments help all the cooks interested in creme caramel.
    Reply
  • Kane C
    Kane C •
    I have used this recipe to make creme caramel many times with great results. When I try to use fruit puree in the custard, the texture looks like it has small pockmarks across it after cooking. The custard is cooked perfectly, and tastes great, but I'm used to it looking flawless (when I cook with extracts). I have tried sieving, straining through cloth, sieving again to no avail. Any ideas on how I can get my custard looking flawless when using fruit puree to flavour it? Thanks.
    Reply
  • Eric W
    Eric W • Rouxbe Staff •
    Kane, custards are relatively delicate creations where the ratio of water to other components--i.e. fat and protein in eggs and dairy--is important. Here, "water" refers to the fruit puree, which is mostly water. Consider the following: 1) ratio of fruit puree to eggs. The eggs are crucial to the structure of the custard, so if the liquid component is increased, eggs need to be increased; 2) ratio of fruit puree to dairy. The fat and protein in the dairy (here, it's milk; in some recipes, it's heavy cream) contribute to the structure and stability of the custard. If fruit puree replaces dairy, then water is replacing fat and protein, which weakens the structure. To troubleshoot, consider the following: A) reduce (over heat) the puree to minimize water content; B) consider using a fruit compound (see the link, below), which is concentrated, has good flavor, and is used like an extract in terms of using a small quantity, and C) consider using fruit powders for flavoring, which are concentrated in flavor and do not add water. And, take notes as you experiment with the addition of flavorings to this recipe. Fruit compound example: https://secure.auifinefoods.com/fruit-compounds. Fruit powder example: https://nuts.com/driedfruit/fruit-powders/
    Reply
  • Alexandros I
    Alexandros I •
    I've made this recipe a couple of times using exactly the portion of eggs as the recipe above suggests. However, I really believe that using 6 whole large eggs for 500ml of milk it's way too much egg liquid. The creme caramel has a strong egg taste although the texture of the creme is quite good. I've tried changing the portion of egg liquid this time using only 3 whole medium eggs and one egg white. This is still a bit too much because I can still smell the eggs. Don't know what else could have gone wrong since I've experimented a few times with it and I believe that something is not right with the egg quantity.
    Reply
  • Eric W
    Eric W • Rouxbe Staff •
    Alexandros, I recommend increasing the vanilla to 2 tsp. Four eggs work well, too. This results in a lighter egg flavor, along with vanilla flavor that we associate with this preparation. Your approach of using three whole medium eggs and one egg white is fine, of course.
    Reply
  • Zeina L
    Zeina L •
    How can I avoid the eggy taste in creme caramel!?! Please help
    Reply
  • Sandy S
    Sandy S •
    Hi Zeina, Well, to get the obvious out of the way... this is an egg-based custard so their will always be a bit of eggy flavor happening. That being said, if the eggs cook too much, they become stronger in flavor. There are some critical control points to be aware of in the process so you minimize this problem. Be careful when tempering the eggs with the hot milk, it is important to have the sugar already mixed in the eggs (to protect them from some of the heat), pour the hot milk slowly, and whisk constantly. Make sure the water level is proper for the vessels you are using (also there to protect from heat). Also, check early and often to be sure the custards don't overcook in the oven. If that doesn't improve, you can try reducing by 1 egg, though it may change the texture and/or cooking time. Best of luck! Cheers, Sandy
    Reply
  • Boipelo B
    Boipelo B •
    While preparing the creme caramel by accident increase the amount of sugar to double the amount.. What will the effect of this be on the creme caramel?
    Reply
  • Sandy S
    Sandy S •
    Hi Boipelo, Besides the obvious increase in sweetness of the dessert, you may (depending on where the excess sugar went, the caramel or the custard) have an issue with getting the proper consistency to the dish, as sugar creates extra moisture in foods which will affect how it sets up. Hope all works out... remember, practice makes perfect in anything! Cheers, Sandy
    Reply
  • Keith L
    Keith L •
    I'm considering giving this a recipe a try. When you refrigerate the finished product doesn't the caramel solidify? How do you get it to soften and run down the sides and pool on the plate so attractively?
    Reply
  • Priyani M
    Priyani M •
    I did it just the way the recipe was. It tasted beautiful. Also when I heated the caramel it was perfect black brown.. But after the set the ramkins in the oven after taking it out.. The colour was gone from the custard.... Like it was all white. The blackish caramel was not there after baking.. Where did I go wrong?
    Reply
  • Scott S
    Scott S • Rouxbe Staff •
    It does not seem like anything went wrong, the caramel should be a dark brown, not black. It will lose some of its color during the cooking process as it turns out. The custard will be typically white with a little yellow in the end, and the caramel will be a lighter color. Cheers! Scott
    Reply
  • Simeon S
    Simeon S •
    I don't know who wrote this recipe, but they did an awesome job wording it, what a great recipe writer :)
    Reply

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