Flan Recipe
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Flan is a luscious, sweet custard topped with a decadent caramel sauce that brings a touch of elegance to any dessert table. It looks impressive, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how simple it is to make!
One of the most popular Latin desserts, flan is a rich, sweet custard topped with caramel sauce. It’s made with a mixture of eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and other flavorings, and then baked gently in a water bath until it is set but still creamy. Once done, the custard is inverted onto a plate, revealing a layer of luscious caramel on top. Flan is almost identical to the French custard dessert crème caramel; it’s also similar to crème brûlée, but a bit denser and with liquid caramel instead of a brittle top.
Though it looks impressive, flan is suprisingly simple to make. This classic version adapted from Cook’s Illustrated is my go-to flan recipe. Prepared in a loaf pan rather than a wide cake pan, it’s easy to unmold without breaking—and since it can be made up to four days in advance, it’s a fantastic dessert for entertaining.
“Restaurant quality flan without the fuss (and fear)…A definite keeper.”
What You’ll Need To Make Flan
- Sugar: Forms the caramel sauce that coats the flan, adding a rich sweetness and glossy finish.
- Eggs and Egg Yolks: Provide structure and richness to the custard, giving the flan its creamy texture. You will have plenty of leftover egg whites—a great excuse to whip up macarons, chocolate chip meringue cookies, pavlova, or coconut macaroons!
- Sweetened Condensed Milk and Evaporated Milk: Add creaminess and sweetness to the custard base, ensuring a decadent flavor.
- Whole Milk: Contributes to the velvety texture of the flan, enhancing its richness without overwhelming the other flavors. If you don’t have whole milk, you can substitute 2% milk or half-and-half, but I don’t recommend skim milk.
- Vanilla Extract: Infuses the flan with a warm, aromatic flavor, complementing the richness of the custard.
- Bourbon: Adds depth, complexity, and a subtle hint of warmth to the flan’s flavor profile. You can use another type of liquor like rum or brandy to add a different flavor profile. If you prefer not to use any alcohol, just increase the vanilla by 2 teaspoons.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the Caramel
Stir the sugar and 1/4 cup water together in a medium saucepan until the sugar is completely moistened. Bring the mixture to a boil on the stove over medium-high heat, without stirring. Continue cooking until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to turn golden.
Gently swirling the pan, continue to cook until sugar is a pale honey color.
Remove from the heat and swirl the pan until the sugar is a reddish-amber color and fragrant, 15 to 20 seconds.
Carefully swirl in 2 tablespoons of warm tap water until incorporated – be careful as the mixture will bubble and steam. The water helps thin the caramel, so it doesn’t all stick to the pan after the flan bakes in the oven.
Pour the caramelized sugar into 8½ x 4½-inch loaf pan and set aside. The caramel will harden in the pan.
Step 2: Make the Custard
Whisk together the eggs and egg yolks in large bowl.
Add the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, whole milk, vanilla, Bourbon, and salt and whisk until incorporated.
Strain mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a larger bowl. The strainer will catch little bits of egg that you don’t want in your flan.
Pour the strained custard into the loaf pan over the caramel. Cover the loaf pan tightly with aluminum foil.
Step 3: Bake
Place the loaf pan in the center of a 9×13-inch baking pan or roasting pan (preferably with high sides) to make a water bath. Place the nested pans in the oven; using a tea kettle or pitcher, pour hot water around the loaf pan until it reaches about halfway up the sides of the loaf pan. The purpose of the water bath is to moderate the heat and ensure that the mixture cooks evenly into a smooth and creamy custard. (Cheesecake uses the same technique.)
Bake for 75 to 90 minutes. Very carefully pull back the foil (there will be steam that has accumulated under it) to ensure the custard is set around the edges but still a bit jiggly in the center. The custard should not be completely set when it is removed from the oven; it will continue to cook as it cools. Remove the pans from the oven. Remove the foil and leave the flan in the water bath for about one hour to cool.
Step 4: Chill and Unmold the Flan
Remove the loaf pan from water bath, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and chill overnight or up to 4 days. To unmold the flan, carefully slide a knife around the edges of the pan.
Invert a platter with a raised rim on top of the flan and turn the pan and platter over. If it doesn’t release immediately, let it sit inverted for a minute and it should eventually slide out. Remove the loaf pan and, using a rubber spatula, scrape the residual caramel over the flan. You won’t be able to release all of it – that’s okay. Slice the flan and spoon the sauce over the individual servings. Serve with berries, if you like.
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Video Tutorial
Flan
Flan is a luscious, sweet custard topped with a decadent caramel sauce that brings a touch of elegance to any dessert table. It looks impressive, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how simple it is to make!
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs plus 5 yolks
- 1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 (12-oz) can evaporated milk
- ½ cup whole milk (half-and-half or 2% milk may be substituted but do not use skim milk)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon Bourbon (see note)
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- (This recipe should be made at least one day before serving.) Adjust a rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Stir together the sugar and ¼ cup water in a small heavy saucepan until the sugar is completely moistened. Bring to boil over medium-high heat and cook, without stirring, until the mixture begins to turn golden. Gently swirling the pan, continue to cook until sugar is a honey color. Remove from the heat and swirl the pan until the sugar is reddish-amber and fragrant, 15 to 20 seconds. Carefully swirl in 2 tablespoons of warm tap water until incorporated – be careful as the mixture will bubble and steam. This whole process should take less than 10 minutes.
- Pour the caramel into an 8½ x 4½-inch loaf pan; do not scrape out the saucepan. (Note: The caramel will solidify when you pour it into the loaf pan. That's ok -- it will soften up again as it bakes.) Set the loaf pan aside. (To clean the hardened caramel from the saucepan, fill the pan with water and bring it to a boil.)
- Whisk the eggs and yolks in large bowl until combined. Add the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, whole milk, vanilla, Bourbon, and salt and whisk until incorporated. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl to remove any bits of egg; then pour the strained custard into the loaf pan over the caramel. Cover the loaf pan tightly with aluminum foil.
- Place the loaf pan in the center of a 9x13-inch baking or roasting pan (preferably with high sides) to make a water bath. Place the nested pans in the oven; then, using a tea kettle or pitcher, pour hot water around the loaf pan until it reaches about halfway up the sides of the loaf pan. Bake for 75 to 90 minutes. Very carefully pull back the foil (there will be steam that has accumulated under it) to ensure the custard is set around the edges but still a bit jiggly in the center. (Don’t worry that it seems undercooked. The custard will continue to cook as it cools, and the center will set completely -- I promise!) Carefully remove the pans from the oven. Remove the foil and leave the flan in the water bath for 1 hour to cool.
- Remove the loaf pan from the water bath and wipe the pan dry. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge overnight or up to 4 days.
- To unmold the flan, carefully slide a sharp knife around the edges of the pan. Invert a platter with a raised rim (to contain the liquid caramel) on top of the flan and turn the pan and platter over. If the flan doesn’t release immediately, let it sit inverted for a minute and it should slide out. If it still doesn't come out, try running the knife around the edges again. When the flan is released, remove the loaf pan. Using rubber spatula, scrape the residual caramel onto the platter. You won’t be able to release all of the caramel – that’s okay. Slice the flan and spoon the sauce over individual portions. (Leftover flan may be covered loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 4 days.)
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (10 servings)
- Serving size: 1 slice
- Calories: 249
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 39 g
- Sugar: 39 g
- Protein: 7 g
- Sodium: 224 mg
- Cholesterol: 61 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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I have made this many times, always to rave reviews. Often change up the flavouring to match whatever fruit I am using as a garnish — amaretto with bananas and amaretti cookies on the side, grand marnier with apricots and a few toasted slivered almonds, etc. It is an easy make-ahead dessert that really does wow your guests. It’s a go-to for us.
Thank you Jen for a no-fail recipe which is simple, quick to put together, made with ingredients I always have on hand, and is always well received.
Hi Jenn —
I love this flan and my friends ask for it for every dinner party. Do you have any tips to double the recipe? Size of pan? Length of cooking? I’d rather make one flan, but I could make two separate ones if absolutely necessary.
Thanks!!!
Hi Lesa, So glad this has been a hit with your friends! You can double this but for the most predictable results, I’d use two loaf pans. Hope that helps!
I looked and must have missed it. What temperature is the oven set to?
No worries — the oven temp should be 300°F/150°C. 🙂
Caramel came out perfect! Flan itself not soo good. It did not set well at all. Even though it looks awful, it tastes great. From reading many of the comments apparently I did not let it bake long enough. From reading other comments, I should just keep baking it no matter how long the baking time until it sets. It was firm around the edges by about 1/2 + inch. I think the key for me is to understand the dimension of a jiggly center? Thanks for any advice you can offer me…
Hi Tom, I’m sorry that you had a problem with this! Just the very center of the flan should be jiggly when it’s done; nothing else should really move. Your oven may run a little cool so I’d just keep the flan in there until it gets to that texture. Hope that helps!
I’m curious – trying to get the smoothest flan as I’ve been prone to bubbly ones after my first attempt. Was there a reason why you didn’t temper the eggs?
Hi Michelle, There’s no need to temper the eggs here because they’re not being combined with any hot ingredients. Hope you enjoy the flan if you make it!
Please help! I had 3 failed attempts at the caramel 🙁 I know it is a very detailed and finicky process. The first time, I gave in and stirred with a wooden spoon as it turned honey colored (my son warned me not to!) which resulted in all crystal formation and out that went! The second time, it took a LONG time to turn colors and yet, I did not get a rich amber colored caramel like yours. As I went to pour it into the baking container, I scraped the bottom of my pan with a spatula and lo and behold, the crystals started forming at the base of my baking dish and I had to throw the whole thing out! I tried again, with determination and no stirring utensils! I managed to get a fairly deep golden caramel (not amber!), at which point I poured it into my glass baking dish. It sizzled for a while and the crystals were starting to form at the base, but I threw my custard in there and baked it up! The resulting flan was DELICIOUS taste-wise! I still want to finesse the caramel technique – please help! FYI, I am using an All-Clad heavy bottom pan to make the caramel. And using a glass Pyrex dish to bake the flan in. Any tips or thoughts Jenn? Thank you in advance.
Hi Faye, I’m sorry you had such a hard time with the caramel! It sounds like you did everything right the third time. In what way would you like to improve it?
Thanks Jenn. I’d like to know how to prevent the caramel from crystallizing when I pour it into my Pyrex baking dish. I feel as though I have to double or triple my caramel recipe in order to get barely any syrup with the flan. The rest just became a solid sheet of crystallized sheet on the base of my baking dish. I understand that the caramel solidifies when you pour it into the baking dish, but what other steps can I take to avoid the crystallization of the sugar?
Hi Faye, I think what you’re suggesting (doubling or tripling the caramel) may give you more of what you’re looking for. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it!
This flan was excellent. I made it as described and it was not overly sweet and not difficult to prepare. I did use 1/2 tsp. of Grand Marnier extract instead of bourbon and it worked great! The caramel gave me some fits, though. It started solidifying as I was pouring it into the loaf pan, resulting in a very uneven layer on the bottom of the pan. But after it was baked and then cooled, there was a nice even layer across the top of the flan, although not nearly as dark as the photo. It came out of the pan perfectly, too. I’ll be making this one again in the future. Thanks for everything you do here, Jenn. It’s greatly appreciated. And hey, I haven’t made a dud since I discovered this wonderful site!
OMG!!! This is the best flan I have ever tasted. I replaced the bourbon with white rum and added lime zest for extra flavor. It came out delicious. I had guests for Mexican dinner so the flan was the perfect closure to our soirée. Thank you for another great recipe!
Is the measurement of the condensed and evaporated mild in fluid ounces?
Hi Jane, Sweetened Condensed Milk is measured by weight, not fluid ounces, because of the product thickness. It does not measure the same as what we normally think of when measuring a regular liquid such as water or regular milk because of its density. (I took this right from the Eagle Brand site.) Evaporated milk is measured by fluid ounces. Hope that helps!
Hi Jen, I am going to be making this for a dinner on friday. Only question I have is in Canada a can of Condensed milk is 300 ml. Which is only 10.14 oz. Your recipe calls for a 14 oz tin. Do I add another 4oz of whole milk or cream?
Hi Kim, I think you can get away with supplementing the condensed milk with cream. Please LMK how it turns out!
The flan turned out fabulous! it has good consistency, it came out all in one piece. The taste is great and by now I have cut several pieces. They don’t collapse so presentation is good. Thank you for this recipe, I had not eaten flan for many years since I was a child at my parents home, memories are flowing back!