Don't pretend you've never wanted to blowtorch your food
Finally, a socially acceptable reason to own a blowtorch. Underneath that glassy caramel crack is a silky vanilla custard that needs a gentle water bath and a patient fridge. Five ingredients, zero places to hide, and the most satisfying spoon tap in all of dessert.
The challenge
- Water bath temperature control
- Preventing curdled custard
- Achieving silky texture
- Caramelizing sugar evenly
- Avoiding burnt spots with torch
This classic French dessert is deceptively simple but unforgiving of mistakes. A vanilla-infused custard bakes in a water bath that must stay at the exact right temperature - too hot and you get scrambled eggs, too cool and it never sets.
The custard needs to reach that precise wobbly-but-set consistency, then chill for hours before the final step. Right before serving, you torch a thin layer of sugar into a crackling caramel shell without overheating the cold custard beneath or creating burnt patches.
Prep: 25 minutes (plus at least 4 hours chilling) · Cook: 35-45 minutes
Ingredients
For the custard
- 500 ml (2 cups) double (heavy) cream
- 100 ml (scant 1/2 cup) whole milk
- 1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped (or 2 tsp vanilla bean paste)
- 6 large egg yolks
- 75 g (1/3 cup) caster (superfine) sugar
- A small pinch of salt
For the topping
- 6-8 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar or fine demerara sugar
- Fresh berries and mint, to serve (optional)
Equipment
- 6 shallow ramekins (125-150 ml / 1/2-2/3 cup each), a deep roasting tin, a tea towel and a kitchen blowtorch
Method
- Heat the oven and kettleHeat the oven to 150°C (300°F), or 130°C fan. Put the kettle on, then let the boiled water stand for a couple of minutes so it's very hot but not boiling. Line a deep roasting tin with a folded tea towel and sit the ramekins on it.
- Infuse the creamWarm the cream, milk, vanilla seeds and pod in a saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming with small bubbles at the edge, about 80°C (175°F). Don't let it boil. Take off the heat, cover and steep for 15 minutes.
- Mix the yolks gentlyIn a large jug or bowl, whisk the yolks, sugar and salt together slowly for about 1 minute until smooth and slightly paler. Whisk gently; you're mixing, not making foam.
- TemperRemove the vanilla pod and rewarm the cream briefly if it has cooled. Pour it onto the yolks in a thin stream, whisking constantly, so the eggs warm up gradually without scrambling.
- Strain and skimPour the custard through a fine sieve into a jug, then skim off any bubbles from the surface with a spoon. This is the secret to a perfectly silky, smooth top.
- Bake in a water bathDivide the custard between the ramekins. Slide the tin onto the oven shelf, then carefully pour the hot water into the tin until it comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 30-40 minutes. They're ready when the edges are set and the centre wobbles like jelly when nudged; a thermometer in the centre should read about 80°C (176°F).
- Cool and chillLift the ramekins out of the water bath straight away so they stop cooking. Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, then cover and chill for at least 4 hours, or up to 2 days.
- Sugar the topsBlot any condensation off the custards with kitchen paper. Sprinkle about 1 tsp sugar over each, tilting and tapping the ramekin so it forms a thin, even layer, and tip out any excess.
- Torch itHold the blowtorch 5-8 cm (2-3 in) from the surface and keep it moving in small circles until the sugar melts, bubbles and turns deep amber. For an extra-thick crack, add a second thin layer of sugar and torch again.
- Set and serveLet the caramel harden for 2-3 minutes, then serve within 30 minutes, with berries if you like, before the crust softens.
- Holster the blowtorchTap the caramel with the back of a spoon and enjoy that glorious crack like it's ASMR. Then put the blowtorch away before you start eyeing up other things in the kitchen. Not everything needs torching. Most things, though.
Tips from the trenches
- The tea towel under the ramekins stops the bottoms overheating and keeps the custard silky, not grainy.
- Pull the custards while they still wobble in the middle. They keep setting as they cool, and over-baking is what makes them curdle.
- Thin, even sugar layers caramelise better than one thick pile. Two thin passes beat one heavy one.
- Keep the torch moving and stop at deep amber. Black spots taste bitter, and lingering in one place warms the custard underneath.
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.”— Virginia Woolf
