Who doesn’t like pudding? Well, no one! Unless of course,  you are allergic to eggs!!!

The caramelized sugar dripping down the velvety tall custard forming a pool of caramel around it takes me back to my childhood days – pudding was a must have dessert on the dinner table. The merry days, when we would wait all day long anxiously for the dinner and the moment when ami would serve the dessert. We would all keep our eyes tied to the caramel topping in the hope of getting the biggest chunk. Childhood! Sigh!
Using simple ingredients and technique, caramel pudding is one of the traditional English desserts adopted in every family in their own way. Every family has their own version of the recipe inherited from their elders and altered to their taste.  For me the secret behind a perfect caramel pudding is good number of eggs, less milk and whisked nicely with full cream. The combination gives a smooth silky texture to the pudding which I love the most.  It can be steamed or baked in a water bath – Bain Marie method. It tastes perfect with both cooking techniques.
Lets start cooking. Shall we?

Ingredients:

For the custard
  • Eggs - 5
  • Sugar – 10 teaspoon
  • Milk – 1 cup
  • Cream – ½ cup
  • Vanilla Essence – 1 teaspoon
For the Carame
  • Sugar – 6 tablespoon
  • Water -  4 tablespoon
  • Preparation time : 30 minutes
  • Cooking time : 45 minutes
  • Number of servings (yield) : 4-6

Instructions:

For the custard

  • Whisk the eggs, vanilla essence and sugar together in a bowl until well mixed.
  • In a saucepan, gently boil the milk and let it cool until its only so warm that you can dip your finger in.
  • Strain the milk through a sieve into the egg mixture. Also, add cream and whisk them together until smooth.

For the Caramel

  • Pour the sugar and water in a pan and let the sugar dissolve slowly.
  • Let it boil till the sugar turns into a dark copper color and no sugar granules left.
  • Remove from the heat immediately to ensure caramel does not burn.
  • Pour the caramel into the pudding tin or individual ramekins servings and let it rest for a while so it becomes hard. (Do not refrigerate because sugar will absorb moisture and become soggy)

Assembly Line

  • Place pudding tin or ramekins in a large pot and fill the tin half-way with boiling water thus creating a water bath.
  • Pour custard in the tins, cover with a lid and let it cook in steam for about 20 – 30 minutes or until the custard is set.
  • When cooked, take caramel pudding tin out of the water bath and let it cool on a wire rack.
  • Let it cool in fridge overnight so caramel is absorbed in the custard for a nice velvety taste.
  • Before serving the pudding, loosen the sides of the tin with a small knife around the edges of the pudding.
  • Place the serving dish on top of the tin and turn it upside down delivering the pudding.

Fatima Ali

I am trained to be an IT professional. I served National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) for six years after graduating from the same university. As long as I can remember, cooking good food has been my passion and it makes me happy. My cooking lessons were a bit unusual though. Back in the day when digital did not mean much, my father would record cooking shows (knorr ka kitchen, kaukab khuwaja and Zee Khana Khazana – Chef Sanjeev Kapoor) for me to watch endless times later on, before trying the recipes out. I would make brownies and cold cake almost every day while my mother was asleep. This was my way of surprising her every evening. My mother cooks amazing food too and I have tried many of the recipes written in her recipe book. I draw inspiration from a number of chefs from televised cooking shows such as Late Chef Farah, Chef Rahat, Chef Mehboob, BBC Food, Masala TV, Chef Shai, Chef Sharmeen, Master Chef Australia and my ultimate favorite Chef Shireen Anwer. I would not be as good a cook I am now without passive guidance from each one of these.