Flan is a dessert found throughout the Spanish-speaking (and influenced) world and it’s certainly not hard to see why. A set custard topped with a heavenly caramel syrup is one of the best desserts out there – and the good new is that it’s relatively easy to make and uses very few ingredients.
Though lots of different countries make flan, it is common to find it made with sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk – especially in Mexican flan. However, if you don’t want to open up any cans (or want to curb the sweetness that you may get if using condensed milk), then this is the recipe for you!
I’ve developed it to make individual servings and it can easily be doubled should you want to feed a crowd. And the great news is that it’s the perfect make-ahead dessert – it needs time to chill in the fridge and it can stay in there for a few days before serving!
How to Make Flan Without Evaporated Milk
There are two components to a flan – the caramel and the custard itself. For all intents and purposes, flan is basically just an upside-down creme brulee – though it doesn’t require any special equipment (a blowtorch) to make.
We will start with making the caramel – a process I have covered ad nauseam on this website (see my popcorn balls or chewy caramel recipe). This is very very simple.
All you need to do is add some sugar to a small saucepan along with a bit of water. Take this time to also set a small dish of water and a pastry brush next to the stovetop – you will need this later.
Set the pan over medium heat and stir constantly to dissolve the sugar – you want all the sugar to be completely dissolved before the mixture boils and you also do not want to stir at all after the mixture is boiling.
Once the sugar is dissolved, stop stirring the syrup. Dip the pastry brush in the water and wash down the sides of the pan to get rid of any sugar crystals.
Then let the syrup boil, undisturbed, until you notice it begins to change colour. Once it reaches an amber colour, remove it from the heat – this will take about 5 minutes.
Immediately pour the caramel into 4 175ml/6oz ramekins, swirling the ramekin to coat the bottom evenly. Set these aside and turn your attention to the custard now.
Add an equal amount of cream and whole milk to a medium saucepan along with a pinch of salt. Then, scrape the seeds from a vanilla pod into the milk, along with the pod itself. If you don’t want to use a vanilla pod, you can also use extract or paste here.
Set it over medium heat and gently heat the milk. Once it’s just simmering, remove the milk from the heat and fish out the vanilla pod.
Meanwhile, add some sugar along with a whole egg and some egg yolks to a medium mixing bowl. Whisk these together vigorously until the mixture is pale and very frothy – a full 90 seconds.
Now, whisking constantly, slowly stream in the hot milk mixture. Once that’s all incorporated, set a fine mesh sieve over a measuring jug (or something large with a pour spout) and strain the custard through it.
Place a tea towel on the bottom of a large baking dish and arrange the caramel-coated ramekins on top of it. Pour the custard into the ramekins, ensuring that they’re equally filled.
Now, pour some boiling water into the baking dish, ensuring that it comes about halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This ensures that the custards bake evenly.
Cover the entire baking dish tightly with foil and then carefully move it to a 150°C/300°F oven. Cook the flans until they wobble significantly when shaken, but they do not ripple like a liquid – this will take about 30-40 minutes.
Allow the flans to cool in the water bath for 5 minutes before removing them and allowing them to cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Once room temperature, move them to the refrigerator to chill completely – at least three hours.
To serve, run a paring knife along the sides of the ramekin. Place a plate on top of the ramekin and then flip the whole thing upside down.
Give the plate a good shake to release the flan (you will likely hear it fall out and notice some caramel pooling on the plate) and carefully remove the ramekin. You’ll notice that the unmoulding process is very similar to my sticky toffee pudding!
Serve the flan immediately after unmoulding!
Easy Flan Without Condensed Milk
Equipment
- 4 175ml/6oz ramekins
Ingredients
- 150 g (1¼ cups) caster sugar divided, (see note 1)
- 250 ml (1 cup) heavy/double cream
- 250 ml (1 cup) whole milk
- 1 vanilla pod seeds scraped & pod reserved (see note 2)
- ¼ tsp (½ tsp) salt
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 150°C/300°F. Set a small dish of water and a pastry brush next to the stove. Add 100g (½ cup) sugar to a small saucepan and drizzle over 2 tbsp of water. Set over medium heat and, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, dissolve the sugar. It is important that the sugar is completely dissolved before allowing the mixture to come to a boil.
- Once the sugar is dissolved and before the mixture has come to a boil, stop stirring entirely. Dip the pastry brush in the water and wash down the sides of the pan. Let the syrup boil, undisturbed, until it reaches a deep amber colour and wisps of smoke appear – about 5-10 minutes.
- Immediately pour the caramel equally into four 175ml/6oz ramekins, swirling each ramekin to coat the bottom in caramel. Set aside. (See note 3)
- Put a kettle of water on to boil. Add the cream, milk, vanilla seeds and pod and salt to a medium saucepan. Set over medium-low heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Once simmering, remove from the heat.
- While the milk is coming up to a simmer, add the egg yolks, whole egg and remaining 50g (¼ cup) of sugar to a large mixing bowl. Whisk vigorously for about 90 seconds, or until the mixture is very frothy, light and pale.
- Remove the vanilla pod from the milk mixture. Whisking constantly, slowly stream the hot milk mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Set a fine mesh sieve over a large measuring jug or pitcher and strain the custard through the sieve.
- Pour the custard into the ramekins, ensuring they are all equally filled. Line a large baking dish with a tea towel and arrange the ramekins on top. Pour the boiling water into the dish, ensuring that the water comes at least halfway up the ramekins. Tightly cover the baking dish with foil.
- Carefully move the baking dish to the oven. Bake until the custards are set but still wobble when shaken – about 30-40 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before moving the ramekins from the water bath to a cooling rack. Let the flans cool to room temperature before moving to the refrigerator and allowing to chill completely – at least 3-4 hours.
- To serve, run a paring knife around the edges of the ramekin. Put a plate upside down over the top of the ramekin. Flip the plate and ramekin over in on fluid motion and give it a firm shake. Lift the ramekin from the plate and serve.
Notes
- I recommend using caster sugar (also known as superfine sugar) rather than granulated sugar as it does dissolve a bit quicker. However, if all you have is granulated, this is not a problem and you will still see success so long as the sugar is completely dissolved before the syrup begins to boil.
- Use 1 tbsp of vanilla extract or paste if that’s all you have.
- The caramel will harden in the ramekins. This is normal and will turn into a syrup once baked with the custard. If it is cooling too quickly in the pan, you can rewarm it by setting the pan over low heat until it is liquid again. If the caramel does not evenly coat the bottom of the ramekins, you can zap them in the microwave for 10-second increments to liquify the caramel and swirl to coat the bottom. Don’t worry if it’s not completely even as it will liquify and coat it when the flan is cooked.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: Nutritional information is automatically generated and provided as guidance only. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
This simple flan only uses a handful of ingredients – and none of those require opening cans! Delightfully creamy and boasting a wonderful texture, this is the perfect special occasion dessert.
Are you looking to make flan without evaporated or sweetened condensed milk? Have any questions about this recipe? Let me know in the comments!
